Thanks to the low-temperature belt dryer from SWISS COMBI, Renova in Portugal can reduce the disposal costs for paper sludge and also cut the costs for CO2 certificates.
Lower disposal and CO2 costs by drying paper sludge
The production of paper and the reuse of waste paper produces by-products such as paper sludge, which companies have to dispose of. As disposal costs are calculated per tonne, it pays to remove as much water as possible from the sludge before disposal to reduce the weight - and therefore the disposal costs.
Our low-temperature belt dryer (LTD) is ideally suited for this, as it uses the waste heat from the existing boiler to dry the paper sludge down to a residual moisture content of 12 per cent. No additional primary energy is required, making the LTD a particularly energy-efficient dryer.
Turning waste into fuel
Our customer Renova in Portugal goes one step further: paper production requires steam, and at Renova this steam is generated by a special boiler that is fuelled with biomass rather than fossil fuels. More precisely, with wood and bark chips - and dried paper sludge.
This makes the company less dependent on fossil fuels, which means it has to buy less fuel overall and also saves CO2 certificates that the industry has to purchase for the use of fossil fuels.
According to NABU Germany, the production of one tonne of toilet paper requires approximately the same amount of energy as the production of one tonne of steel, namely around 5 megawatt hours (MWh ). If this energy comes from fossil energy sources, the required CO2 certificates quickly become a cost driver.
Renova was aware of this and was looking for ways to use its own waste materials as a cost-effective fuel instead of paying for their disposal. Before Renova chose the SWISS COMBI solution, the process was extensively tested and validated with our test belt dryer at our site. The LTD plant is the first to be built in Portugal for drying paper sludge.
Energy and cost-efficient drying
The SWISS COMBI belt dryer uses waste heat and therefore ensures particularly energy and cost-efficient drying. Depending on the requirements, the product to be dried can be dried down to a residual moisture content of 2 per cent.
If you are interested in the drying of paper sludge or the possible applications of our belt dryers, please contact us!