ABB's System 800xA ensures control and monitoring for Södra Cell's pulp and energy production demands. The system's Simulator provide operator training and enables test runs that helps to reduce time and effort for commissioning.
Improved engineering and operator training with 800xA Simulator
Increasing numbers of pulp mills are using and gaining great benefits from a simulator including their control systems. In 2009, Södra Cell’s Värö mill in Sweden commissioned an evaporation facility, and the facility also includes a simulator, where the 800xA Simulator from ABB is connected with a facility model from Andritz AG.
“The simulator is very useful for configuration, test runs and training”, says Södra Cell Värö’s Control systems Supervisor Tommy Pettersson.
The Södra Cell’s Värö mill manufactures paper pulp, mainly for tissue products, and largely for export. In addition to pulp, the mill also produces energy: electricity both for its own use and for sale to the grid, steam for its own processes and heating, and for the district heating network in Varberg city.
Energy production has become more important over time, and Södra Cell has for some years now been running a major project dealing with energy efficiency. The latest stage of the project is a new evaporation facility where the liquor from the digester is evaporated to a higher degree of dried solid prior to combustion in the recovery boiler.
“The objective for Södra Cell Värö is to produce surplus of electricity, district heating and biofuel”, says Tommy Pettersson.
The project for the new evaporation facility started at the beginning of 2008. The facility is delivered by Andritz AG and the entire control system is supplied by ABB.
Simulator mirrors the mill's control system
Hans Stenberg, ABB’s customer manager for Södra Cell Värö, says that the Värö mill has an integrated DCS system for the whole mill based on the System 800xA automation platform with AC450 and AC 800M controllers.
“The new evaporation facility has 800xA and AC 800M controllers and operating stations connected to the rest of the mill”, he says.
The delivery includes a simulator, something that was previously unusual within the paper pulp industry but has seen more in demand in recent years. ABB’s 800xA Simulator mirrors the whole control system’s hardware and software and works with a process model of the mill. The controllers run as Soft Controllers in standard computer hardware, thereby minimizing the hardware and maintenance.
“Working with our own staff and Andritz we have developed a control philosophy and converted it to control system code. A couple of our expert process engineers have created displays for the operator interface”, says Tommy Pettersson.