STEAM BOILER (12MW) FOR THE UKRAINIAN VEGETABLE OIL EXTRACTION PLANT USING SUNFLOWER HUSKS

Summary

This project deals with biomass energy utilisation in oil extracting plant. The customer is manufacturing sunflower oil and ground oil cake.

The facility operates in three shifts per day and about 8000 h per year. Energy demand of the plant before investment is covered by the following two boilers, i.e. a Biomass Boiler and a Natural Gas Boiler, which provide steam for a process with the rate 250t/day of sunflower seeds. The second is used for backup purposes.

Investment opportunity
Sunflower husks, the main by-product of the process, could be used for energy production. The processing capacity of the plant will be increased to 500 t/day of sunflower seeds in the near future. / Highlights
Expected annual energy production: 96 000 MWh
Expected annual natural gas savings: 10 000 000 m3
Expected annual use of husks: 23300 t/y.

Foreseen annual energy demand of the plant.

Parameter / Units / Heat energy / Electricity
Annual operational time / h / 8000 / 8000
Required steam / t/h / 15 / --
Annual heat energy demand / 96 660 / --
Average electric power demand / MW / -- / 1,6
Annual electric energy demand / MWh / -- / 12 800

This offers a good investment opportunity to use the available biomass (sunflower husks) in order to produce the required steam for the operation of the plant. There is the option to produce through the husks combustion:

  • steam and electricity (CHP) or
  • only steam.

Energy potential of the husks

Parameter / Units / Value
Sunflower seeds processing / t/d / 500
Sunflower husks output / kg/h / 2917
Lower heating value / MWh/t / 4,167
Capacity / MW / 12,155

Project description

The proposed new project facility will include a biomass steam boiler with a thermal output design capacity of 12MW. The new boiler could be combined with a steam turbine – electric generator set in order to cover part of the electrical energy consumption (CHP plant option). The steam pressure and temperature, after the boiler, should be higher than the values required for the steam used for oil production purposes.

There is also an option that the boiler produces the steam with the characteristics required for the oil production (Steam generation option).

Technical parameters of the two options (CHP plant, Steam boiler)

Parameter / Units / CHP plant / Steam boiler
Boiler capacity / MWth / 12 / 12
Average boiler output / MWth / 10,33 / 10,33
Boiler capacity usage coefficient / % / 86 / 86
Boiler efficiency / % / 85 / 85
Turbine- generator - Capacity / MWel / 0,5 / -

Savings and other benefits

The total investment costs of CHP plant is 1,95 million Euros while the cost of steam generator is 1,2 million Euros (in both cases including VAT).The savings are presented in the following table.

Savings (€) from the installation of the new equipment

Year / Unit / CHP plant / Steam generation
2008 / € / 941.067 / 832.779
2009 / € / 1.141.863 / 1.032.588
2010 / € / 1.279.414 / 1.159.659
2011 / € / 1.325.926 / 1.182.800
2012 / € / 1.375.536 / 1.206.835
2013 / € / 1.427.888 / 1.231.071
2014 / € / 1.483.178 / 1.255.502
2015 / € / 1.542.876 / 1.281.432