Fuzzy Control for Heat Recovery Systems of Cement

A fuzzy logic controller of the heat recovery systems of cement clinker grate cooler is presented in this paper. The development and tests of the proposed fuzzy controller have been implemented in a cement plant in Guangdong, China. Cooling is performed by blowing fresh air underneath the grate cooler plate and heat recovery is obtained by outlet pipe extracting the hot air. However, continuous fluctuation of both the clinker inlet temperature and flow rate, in conjunction with the practical unfeasibility of direct measurements of such parameters, makes it difficult to extract air at constant temperature, this being the only parameter that can be monitored for process control. In this situation, fuzzy logic control offers an advantage over conventional control techniques in implementing the control rules. Drawing on a previously developed unsteady-state real-time heat exchange model of cement clinker grate cooler operation, the paper describes the development and optimization of the control system along with tests of its performance.