Summary: The sugar industry, utilizing sugarcane bagasse from production residues as fuel, produces enough electricity to meet production needs, thus no longer purchasing fuel or electricity. This has led to a lack of emphasis on the quantity of bagasse burned, resulting in wasteful energy usage and neglect in the management of energy use, including the training of energy计量 personnel and the statistics and analysis of energy consumption.
This article addresses common issues faced by sugar production companies from the perspective of energy measurement, and offers several suggestions.
Keywords: Sugar Production; Sugarcane Sugar Production; Energy Metering; Energy Consumption
Introduction
As China's economy and society rapidly develop, the energy situation and environmental issues are becoming increasingly severe, presenting many new situations and problems for energy conservation efforts. The sugar industry utilizes the by-products (bagasse) from the production process for self-sufficient power generation, achieving "independence and self-reliance" in energy utilization. Guangxi, as China's largest sugar production base, still faces challenges of being "dispersed," "small," and "weak" in sugar-making enterprises. This article, starting from the perspective of energy measurement, sorts out the common problems faced by sugar production enterprises and proposes several suggestions.
Basic situation of Guangxi sugar industry and energy consumption
More than 90 sugar refineries in Guangxi started the 2018/2019 sugar season. The national production for the 2018/2019 season reached 10.76 million tons, with Guangxi contributing approximately 6.1 million tons, accounting for 56.7% of the total. Unlike other provinces and cities that primarily produce sugar from beets, Guangxi focuses on sugarcane sugar refining, utilizing three filtration methods: carbonization, sulfuration, and membrane techniques.
Energy measurement typically involves three levels: primary energy consumption units (such as main power usage), secondary energy consumption units (subordinate energy accounting units under the energy-consuming units, e.g., a workshop, a process section, etc.), and the third level, which consists mainly of high-energy-consuming equipment (e.g., 100kW rated power for electricity, coal consumption of lt/h, 7MW rated capacity, etc.).
The energy types consumed in the sugar industry primarily include electricity, sugarcane bagasse, diesel, and steam. During the normal production process, the bagasse remaining after sugarcane is pressed is used for boiler combustion. The steam generated is then used to drive a turbine connected to a generator for electricity generation, meeting the power needs of various production, auxiliary, and ancillary systems. Some companies sell excess electricity generated to the power supply company through the grid. Part of the steam and the steam after the turbine is used in the sugar-making and evaporation processes. Diesel is mainly used for the consumption in the operation of goods within the factory during the production process.
2. Key Issues in the Process of Corporate Energy Measurement
2.1 Weak awareness of energy measurement
Through on-site observations, it was found that the company's energy consumption is primarily electricity and bagasse. Since the bagasse burned is a byproduct of the production process, it is unnecessary to purchase it, and the company considers it "no economic loss." Self-generated electricity is sufficient to meet production needs, with only a small amount of purchased electricity required for maintenance or startup. Consequently, the company is indifferent to the amount of bagasse burned, leading to wasted energy use. Additionally, due to a lack of emphasis on energy consumption, some companies treat water and electricity meter readers as energy measurement personnel, neglecting the cultivation of energy measurement staff and the management of energy consumption statistics and analysis. Most companies have not established energy measurement targets and simply interpret energy goals as sales targets, failing to effectively grasp the company's energy consumption situation.
2.2 Insufficient Energy Measurement Equipment Provision
The first-level equipment rate can achieve 100%, but the second and third-level energy metering equipment is seriously insufficient. The company only manages the meters for trade settlements with the power supply bureau and the meters for external grid supply, while the second and third-level meters within other factory areas are not installed or lack necessary management. Most installed meters have also not undergone regular calibration since the factory was established. The energy consumption of biomass fuel (bagasse) is roughly calculated based on the sugarcane fiber content to determine the total amount of bagasse, deducting the amount for packaging and external sale, to derive the amount of bagasse burned. The actual burned amount is not directly measured due to significant variations in water loss with different environmental factors, which may lead to substantial discrepancies between this statistical method and the actual application amount. According to GB17167-2006 "General Rules for the Allocation and Management of Energy Metering Equipment for Energy Users," the power equipment rate should be 100% for the first level, 100% for the second level, and 95% for the third level. Most enterprises can only meet the first-level equipment rate requirements; bagasse, as one of the energy types, should be separately metered. Steam metering should also be equipped according to the second-level limit of 5,000 GJ/a and the third-level limit of 7 MW; water should be equipped according to the second-level limit of 5,000 t/a and the third-level limit of 1 t/h.
2.3 Incorrect Comprehensive Energy Consumption Statistics
Field research reveals that a sugar production company employs two methods of sugar production: sugarcane sugar-making and refining. During the sugar cane harvest season, both sugar-making and refining are conducted simultaneously, utilizing sugarcane bagasse for power generation through combustion. Outside of the harvest season, only refining takes place, and coal is burned when there is no bagasse. The company calculates the energy consumption per unit of output by converting only the coal burned into standard coal, without converting electricity and bagasse into standard coal as well. Due to inconsistent statistical criteria, the calculated energy consumption per unit of product is difficult to compare with that of other companies in the industry, posing a challenge to the company's development.
3. Energy Tips for Businesses
3.1 Enhance Energy Measurement Emphasis
As the concept of energy measurement deepens and in response to inspections by energy-saving authorities, many companies have recognized the importance of energy measurement. However, in practice, they still underestimate the value of bagasse and neglect the management of energy derived from bagasse, such as self-generated electricity, steam, and hot water. While encouraging the sugar industry to extend its industrial chain and fully utilize every part of a sugarcane stalk, it is also important to realize that energy conservation and cost reduction can not only save energy for the company but also lower costs and generate economic benefits.
Enhanced Management of Measuring Equipment Deployment
Businesses are advised to reasonably allocate energy meters according to GB17167-2006 "General Rules for Energy Metering Equipment Allocation and Management of Energy-consuming Units." Utilize GBT33656-2017 "Method for Drawing Energy Metering Network Diagrams of Enterprises" to depict the actual flow and metering network points of various energy types. Prepare an inventory of energy metering equipment, including names, model specifications, accuracy levels, measurement ranges, manufacturers, serial numbers, installation locations, and purposes (energy metering, self-inspection, energy analysis), and regularly update them based on actual usage.
4. Ankelei Building Energy Consumption Analysis System
4.1 Overview
The Acrel-5000web Building Energy Consumption Analysis System is a user-end energy management analysis system. It builds upon the electrical energy management system by adding centralized collection and analysis of water, gas, coal, oil, heat (cooling) consumption, etc. By细分 and statistically analyzing all energy consumption at the user end, it presents various energy usage and consumption scenarios to management or decision-makers through intuitive data and charts, facilitating the identification of high-energy consumption points or inefficient energy consumption habits. This effectively saves energy and provides accurate data support for users' further energy-saving transformation or equipment upgrades. Users can implement energy calculations according to national regulations, analyze the current situation, identify issues, explore energy-saving potential, propose practical energy-saving measures, and submit energy calculation reports to departments responsible for energy conservation at or above the county level.
4.2 Application Locations
System design, construction, and operational maintenance for energy consumption monitoring and management in public buildings, corporate groups, industrial parks, large-scale properties, schools, hospitals, and enterprises across various industries.
4.3 System Features
4.3.1 System Overview
The platform displays the operational status, monthly energy consumption calculations, map navigation, hourly and monthly energy consumption curves, and a rolling comparison of daily and monthly energy consumption year-on-year.
4.3.2 Energy Consumption Overview
The energy consumption for buildings, departments, regions, branch roads, and categories is compared. It supports hourly trends for the current day, daily trends for the current month, energy consumption statistics by time period, and total energy consumption comparisons for the same and previous periods.
3.4.3 Energy Consumption Statistics
The company has implemented a daily, monthly, and annual reporting system for the energy consumption of building, regional, sub-item, and branch structures. It supports exporting report data to Excel and allows for the selection of building data to generate bar charts.
4.3.4 Reimbursement Rate Statistics
The report on the composite tariff rates statistically analyzes the peak, shoulder, off-peak, and valley electricity consumption and cost for different branches under a single building, categorized by daily, monthly, and annual statistics. Data export to Excel is supported.
4.3.5 Year-on-Year Analysis
The company conducts year-on-year energy consumption analysis for buildings, sub-items, regions, and branches, combining graphical representations with reports on a daily, monthly, and annual basis.
4.3.6 Energy Flow Diagram
The Energy Flow Map illustrates the energy flow from source to end within a single building over a specific period, allowing for viewing in both raw and normalized values.
March 4th, 2023 - Night-Time Energy Consumption Analysis
Nighttime energy consumption is presented in tables, curves, and pie charts to categorize selected branch energy.Energy consumption statistics for working hours and off-hours, with support for exporting reports.
4.3.8 Equipment Management
Equipment management encompasses functions such as equipment types, inventory records, and maintenance logs. It assists users in reasonably managing equipment to ensure smooth operation.
3.9.4 User Report
Users report automatically calculates the monthly usage trends of various energies for selected buildings, providing simple energy consumption analysis results, and offers a separate analysis for electricity usage with tiered rates. The report is editable.
-
System Hardware Configuration
6. Closing Remarks
Guangxi is one of China's key sugar-producing regions. Strengthening energy measurement management, establishing and improving the energy measurement management system, and enhancing the training of energy measurement personnel can effectively promote the optimization of the energy structure, increase the utilization rate of energy, and bring economic and social benefits to enterprises.
Reference
-
Zeng Xianhua. Research on the Application of Energy Metering in Sugar Production Process[J]. Low Carbon World, 2018, 01(240): 370-371.
-
Yu Bi Jian. Exploration of Energy Measurement and Management in Sugar Manufacturing Enterprises[J]. Science and Technology and Enterprise, 2014(12): 72.
[3] General Rules for the Equipment and Management of Energy-Measuring Instruments in Energy-Consuming Units [S].
[4] Chen Lin, Li Shubin. Discussion on Common Issues in Energy Accounting for Sugar Production Enterprises [S].
Ankorri Enterprise Microgrid Design & Application Manual. 2022.05 Edition.
