Paper 360
When Turkish tissue producer Europap Tezol became weary of constant maintenance of the vacuum system on its TM2, it replaced the existing heavy system with a new, reliable turbo blower technology from Runtech Systems. Now it not only saves energy and water, but also brings more reliability and peace of mind to the mill.
Europap Tezol operates on two sites, Izmir-Torbali and Mersin-Tarsus in Turkey. TM1 and TM2 are located at the Izmir site, and TM3 line in Mersin. The total capacity of the three lines is 93,000 metric tpy. Both mills are integrated with their own converting departments. The new tissue machine, TM4, which has recently started up, is located in Mersin. The company produces different tissue grades such as towel, toilet, and napkin for both domestic and export markets based on recycled fiber and kraft with grammages ranging from 14 to 40 gsm. About 50 percent of Tezol’s production is exported. The Turkish market has a preference for products based on 100 percent virgin pulp.
Kerem Karabiyikoglu, maintenance manager, and Tolga Uyan, production manager, with the EP Turbo Blower.
Europap Tezol is a dynamic company and constantly strives to improve its operations to produce the most economical paper in all quality segments, while maintaining its sensitivity to the environment. “Our company owners follow the market’s new developments constantly,” says Kerem Karabiyikoglu, maintenance manager at the Izmir site. “We are making new investments all the time to secure the economical operation of our tissue machines. At this mill in Izmir, for example, we have recently invested in stock preparation, new boilers, and heat exchangers.
“The lowering of carbon emissions is also a focus for us, and we are taking action to make sure emissions are kept to the minimum.”
IMPROVING RELIABILITY
TM2 had suffered difficulties in the past with an unreliable vacuum system, so the company decided to invest in a new one from Runtec Systems to solve its problems. The delivery to TM2 included a RunEco EP600 Turbo Blower with EcoDrop water separator and EcoFlow dewatering measurements to suction press roll and felt uhle boxes. EP600 Turbo Blower is a two-stage speed-controlled blower designed to operate efficiently across a wide range of vacuum levels and air flows. The closed 3D impeller design gives top efficiency together with good controllability.
Karabiyikoglu worked as the project manager for the vacuum system rebuild and has a thorough understanding of the operation of the two systems, old and new, he says, “Previously, we operated two secondhand liquid ring pumps which required a lot of maintenance. Despite our efforts, we experienced many problems, especially maintenance-wise. Even the new inside coating failed. What we really needed was a reliable vacuum solution.”
EP Turbo Blower at Runtech’s facility in Kotka, Finland.
A built-in integrated high-speed motor on the system eliminates the need for a gearbox or coupling, making the unit very compact and easy to install. Its compact design makes it ideal for rebuilds and also reduces installation costs. In most cases, Runtech can replace the existing system with minimum piping and civil work costs. A major part of the installation is carried out during the normal machine run and only a short shutdown is needed for the final tie-in valve connections. In addition, RunEco vacuum system with EP Turbo Blowers is a dry system. Turbo Blowers operate without any sealing liquid (water), thus contributing significantly to water savings in a paper mill while reducing the risk of any pathogen growth, such as Legionella-bacteria, to a minimum.
“When selecting a supplier, our first consideration is always price and return on investment.” says Karabiyikoglu. “Now, with Turbo Blowers the problems we had have been solved. And as well as other benefits, we are also saving energy and using less water.”
The lower footprint of the system was another reason to choose Runtech as the new vacuum system supplier. Production Manager Tolga Uyan says: “The Runtech Turbo Blower is very compact. The space around TM2 was very limited, which made it almost impossible to even consider other alternatives.”
RELIABLE MEASUREMENTS AND CONTROLLABLE VACUUM
EcoFlow dewatering measurements allow full optimization benefits for the Turbo Blowers and provide a window into the process with accurate real-time information about the dewatering performance. The EcoFlow dewatering measurement system optimizes dewatering and vacuum levels in the press section. It minimizes start-up time of the new felts, maximizes felt lifetime and can be used to optimize different felt types.
“Although my experience from the previous system before the rebuild was limited, I’m happy we upgraded to this system. The results are really very good. Producing vacuum is much easier and the felt lifetime is longer. We have achieved energy savings of 40kW/ton and significant water savings,” says Uyan. “We are using ground water, and just like everywhere, water is becoming a more and more important issue in Turkey. We strive to consume less and less water all the time. Climate change is a global problem, and here there is less rain and winters are getting shorter; water is now becoming a very valuable resource.”
“EcoFlows are a good tool to optimize the vacuum need. We have got great support from Runtech, from the sales to the project phase, which we are very happy about,” Karabiyikoglu concludes. “In the space of the first year of operation we have seen the savings we expected. Continuing this way, we are looking at the possibility to equip another machine with an EP Turbo Blower.”
