Options to reduce Tableland Mill’s process steam consumption to below 40% on cane

Tableland Mill operates a single-boiler cogeneration plant and is currently planning for a potential increase in crushing rate of 25% initially and 50% in the future. The process house currently operates with process steam consumption on cane (SOC) of ~43%. The expansion in rate is to be achieved without further investment in steam generation, thus requiring several process steam-efficiency options to be implemented. Options that can reduce the SOC to 37% were determined to be suitable. The various upgrade options that were considered and their advantages and disadvantages are described. The results should be of interest to other Australian factories seeking to increase their process steam efficiency to comparable levels.