Cookstown

Location:

Clinker manufacture operational: 27/8/1968 to date

Approximate total clinker production to 2022: 18.8 million tonnes (26th)

Raw materials:

Ownership:

This was Ireland’s fifth rotary kiln plant, and the first with an efficient kiln. The kiln became the most successful of five of the same design in this study (the others being at Weardale, Dunbar and South Ferriby), and its efficiency and output were such that no serious consideration was given to a change of process. Since the closure of South Ferriby, it has been the sole Lepol kiln plant remaining. The kiln was briefly the largest in capacity until overtaken in 1970 by the Hope and Northfleet kilns, and it remains the longest-operating kiln.

The rawmills are distant from the kilns and could not use waste heat from the kiln system for raw material drying. They are heated with fuel oil, with typical heat usage ✄ MJ/kg.

The plant’s location is sufficiently close to Belfast (60 km) and Derry (50 km) to assure a good market although only road transport is available. In January 2022, the entire Northern Ireland functions of LafargeHolcim were sold to the local Cookstown Cement Ltd.

Please contact me with any relevant information or corrections. I am particularly interested in firmer dates and statistics.

Note: technical information on currently operational plants is ✄withheld in the public version of the site at present unless already published.

Power Supply

The plant was entirely electrically powered from the grid from the outset.

Rawmills

One 1350 kW Aerofall mill for coarse grinding and one Polysius 900 kW double-rotator mill for separator rejects regrind(1).

One rotary kiln was installed:

Kiln A1

Supplier: Polysius
Operated: 27/8/1968 to date
Process: Semi-dry: Lepol 27.7×3.91 m grate(1): details✄
Location:

Dimensions: Metric 60.39 × 3.918BC / 4.351D(1)
Rotation (viewed from firing end): anti-clockwise(3)
Slope: 3.5% (2.006°)(3)
Speed: 1.1 rpm(3) later raised to 1.75 rpm(4) and later to 2.3 rpm
Drive: 134 kW(3)
Kiln profile: ✄
Cooler: grate: details✄
Fuel:

Coal mill: direct: Babcock 150 kW 7E ball-race mill
Exhaust: two Sturtevant electrostatic precipitators in parallel before ID fan(1).
Typical Output: ✄
Typical Heat Consumption: ✄



References:

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