Process Heating for Wood Products
We specialize in energy systems at Sigma Thermal for direct and indirect heating applications in the wood products industry. The customers we serve in the wood products sectors are wood pellet manufacturers, OSB and Engineered Lumber producers, sawmills, and waste wood to power.
The Sigma Thermal energy systems can provide direct hot gas heating for a single or triple-pass rotary dryer. This is common in the wood pellet and OSB facilities. Indirect thermal oil heating is also common for the OSB and engineered lumber facilities. A common combustion system can supply heat energy to a direct rotary dryer and a thermal oil heating system.
Some common heat users for indirect thermal oil heating are log pond heating, building heating, wax heating, and engineered lumber presses. Lumber kiln drying is another common use for thermal oil heat in the sawmill industry.
Sigma Thermal specializes in understanding the heating load for our customer’s facilities, and how to maximize the energy system output to suit their needs.
Fuel Considerations
Typically waste fuel from the production processes is used to fuel the energy systems. Whole logs are purchased and stored at many of the facilities. The first step of processing is to debark the logs. Approximately 8% of the log’s mass is removed during debarking. This is used as a primary source of fuel in the Sigma Thermal Energy System. Other waste products from the manufacturing process at these facilities can be used as a fuel source as well. Several examples are listed below. These include several types of fuels that are commonly used.
- Bark
- Wood trim
- Hogged wood
- Wood chips
- Shavings
- Sawdust
- Sanderdust
Two different types of combustion systems can be used for direct or indirect heating systems. The Sigma Thermal reciprocating grate is designed to burn larger particles such as hogged bark or larger wood chips. These fuels are burned on top of a grate with 4 different controlled zones. Fuel supplied to the grate can range from 35% to 60% moisture content on a wet basis. Fuel is slowly burned as it moves down the grate. For fuel < 10% moisture content on a wet basis, the fuel can be sized to smaller than 2mm and be burned in suspension.
A laboratory fuel analysis can be completed if a fuel sample is available. The analysis can give Sigma Thermal detailed information needed to determine what type of combustion system is necessary. See below:
- Particle Size Distribution
- Moisture content
- Heating Value
- Chemical makeup
- Ash content
Learn More With Sigma Thermal
If you’re looking for reliable process heating solutions for wood pellets, engineered lumber, or similar applications, you can maximize energy efficiency and sustainability by burning wood waste products. The high-quality process heating systems from Sigma Thermal can deliver the results you need for increased cost-effectiveness and overall efficiency, regardless of your requirements.
In addition to process heating equipment for the wood products industry, we offer biomass energy systems, thermal fluid heating systems, electric process heaters, direct-fired heaters, process bath heaters, heat recovery systems, and more to address our worldwide clients’ diverse needs in everything from aerospace to textiles. We also offer support services ranging from system servicing and parts sales to retrofits and system automation for comprehensive solutions.
Contact our team to learn more about our process heating options for wood products, or request a quote today to get started.
