processes
Article Influence of Maintenance Actions in the Drying Stage of a Paper Mill on CO 2 Emissions
Luis Miguel Calvo 1 and Rosario Domingo 2, *
1 Department de Mechanical Engineering, Energy and Materials, Universidad P ú blica de Navarra, C/Tarazona, km 2, 31500 Tudela, Spain; luismiguel.calvo@unavarra.es 2 Department of Construction and Manufacturing Engineering, Universidad Nacional de Educaci ó na Distancia (UNED), C/Juan del Rosal 12, 28040 Madrid, Spain * Correspondence: rdomingo@ind.uned.es Abstract: Greenhouse gases from industrial activities have become a global problem. Emissions management is being developed to raise awareness of the importance of controlling pollution in general and atmospheric emissions in particular. In 2017, the deficit of the rights of issuance in the industrial sectors increased up to 8.3% (verified emissions in 2017 versus allocation in 2017). This trend will increase more at the end of Phase III due to a progressive reduction in allocation. Phase IV will be much more restrictive in allocating emission rights than Phase III. The extra cost of this deficit reinforces the need for industry in general to reduce CO 2 and for the paper industry to reduce GHG emissions and generate credits. Old factories are typically identified as sources of pollution in addition to being inefficient compared to new factories. This article discusses the possibilities offered by maintenance actions, whose integration into a process can successfully reduce the environmental impact of industrial plants, particularly by reducing the CO 2 equivalent emissions (CO 2 -equnits henceforth CO 2 ) they produce. This case study analyzes the integration of maintenance rules that enable significant thermal energy savings and consequently CO 2 emissions reduction associated with papermaking. Managing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), such as the amount of cold water added to the boiler circuit and the conditions of the air blown into the dryer section hood, can be used as indicators of CO 2 emissions generated. The control of the water and temperature reduces these emissions. A defined measure—in this case, t CO 2 /t Paper—indicates an achievement of a 21% reduction in emissions over the past 8 years.
Citation: Calvo, L.M.; Domingo, R. Influence of Maintenance Actions in the Drying Stage of a Paper Mill on CO 2 Emissions. Processes 2021 , 9 , 1707. https://doi.org/10.3390/pr9101707
Keywords: industrial process; CO 2 emissions; maintenance; papermaking
Academic Editor: Dominic C. Y. Foo
Received: 2 June 2021 Accepted: 18 September 2021 Published: 23 September 2021
1. Introduction In recent years, the relationship between greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from in- dustrial activities and global warming has been highlighted by the United Nations Climate Change Conferences [1] and the European Commission [2]. GHG emissions from the use of fossil fuels, such as natural gas, often occur because of manufacturing processes, which is considered necessary and inevitable. Most industrial plants have reduced GHG emissions by replacing equipment with more modern, energy-efficient technology as can be seen in the application of additive manufacturing technology to a radiant tube used to improve its radiant heat efficiency [3], in the use of innovative design solutions in drive unit control systems of mobile wood-chipping machines [4], or in the use of finite element methods to optimize parameters of piercing punch [5]. Equipment deteriorates with use and, after some time, does not run at its designed parameters. The activity linked to maintenance is fundamental in the industry. Alsyouf [6] finds that approximately 13% of his time is spent planning maintenance activities and 33% is dedicated to unplanned tasks. The implementation of periodic maintenance tasks is related to the improvement in production indicators [7,8]. Domingo and Aguado [9] also investigated the relation- ship of sustainability with the main indicator of the TPM, the OEE (Overall Equipment
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Processes 2021 , 9 , 1707. https://doi.org/10.3390/pr9101707
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