Andritz Brasil Ltda., part of Austria-headed international technology group Andritz AG has recently announced that it has received an order to supply dynamic simulation solutions for Bracell’s announced expansion project – called “Project Star” – for their pulp mill in Lençois Paulista, São Paulo (SP), Brazil. The new mill will have a flexible line designed primarily to produce dissolving pulp.
Bracell is part of Singapore-based RGE. It began operations in Brazil with the acquisition of Bahia Specialty Cellulose(BSC) and Copener (Florestal) in Bahia. In 2018, operations were expanded with the acquisition of Lwarcel Celulose in Lençois Paulista, São Paulo.
Announced in April 2019, “Project Star” project is an ambitious effort by Bracell to expand its production capacity in Lençois Paulista from the current 250 000 tonnes per year by another 1.25 million tonnes in order to reach 1.5 million tonnes per year. The expansion work has already begun and should be completed by the end of 2021
According to Andritz, the scope of supply encompasses the dynamic models, DCS checkout, and Operator Training Simulator (OTS). Andritz’s proprietary simulation tool IDEAS will be used to model the following process areas: fiber line, pulp drying machine and recovery boiler supplied by Andritz, as well as the white liquor plant (including biomass gasification) and evaporation plant (including recrystallization) supplied by other vendors.
Faster start-up and virtual test platform
The simulated models will be used to test and verify process design concepts, identify and correct errors in the control logic, and provide realistic, hands-on training modules for the operators, helping Bracell to achieve a faster and smoother start-up.
This proven approach not only reduces plant start-up time. The OTS also provides an ongoing virtual test platform that allows both new operator training as well as re-testing of experienced operators. Different scenarios are configured within the OTS, such as plant startups/shutdowns and reactions to process upsets.
In addition, the simulator will allow operators to be trained on the core processes in a risk-free environment prior to operating the real plant so they can respond to abnormal operations quickly and effectively once the plant is in full operation.
