Study of Heat Transfer in a Fixed Bed Centimeter Furnace with Pottery Walls : The Case of Natural Laterite and Kaolinic Laterite

The valorization of municipal waste is a good option for energy production. Our work consists of a numerical study of the heat equations in a fixed-bed centimetric grate furnace modeled by a natural laterite inner wall and a kaolin laterite wall. Simulation results showed that the kiln filling rate at 100% is 5 kg of fuel. From 500o C as the starting point for heating, the temperature reaches a maximum of 1225o C and 1050o C respectively for natural and kaolin laterite at 30 minutes of operation. In addition, the internal temperature is optimal around 35 ± 5 hgs-1 of internal air flow. A drop in internal temperature was observed after 35 minutes due to mass degradation and convection of the outlet gas. Natural laterite tends to retain heat inside the kiln more than kaolinite, which dissipates too quickly. These results show that, depending on how heat is converted into energy, the right materials and operations need to be chosen to optimize the process.