Model-based framework for the evaluation of energy-efficiency measures in multi-cylinder paper drying.

Paper drying is the most energy-intensive step in papermaking and around 90% of the total amount of manufactured paper is produced in multi-cylinder dryers. A framework based on a physical model of multi-cylinder drying was developed to assess the effect of various energy-saving measures at a production site. The framework was applied to the drying section of a paper machine producing corrugated paper. The calculated steam and power savings reach up to 1.55 GJth/tpaper and 0.1 GJel/tpaper respectively, depending on the chosen combination of efficiency measures. The cumulative effect of the measures is not equal to the sum of their individual effects, which highlights the importance of accounting for interactions when considering the implementation of several measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]