Aggregates plant case study

Plant Data

Answering the needs: Renewi

Renewi, a Belgian company with over 6,000 employees and nearly 200 operational sites across Europe, is one of the key players in waste management in the Benelux region. It was formed through the merger of Shanks Group plc and Van Gansewinkel Groep BV, headquartered in Buckinghamshire, UK.

When the customer, Renewi, contacted Matec, their requirement was to renew the sand washing line in the Mont-Saint Guibert quarry in Belgium. This quarry, one of the oldest in Europe, was acquired by Renewi’s Valorisation & Quarry division, responsible for producing and enhancing sands for construction and glass industries. The original washing line produced 200-250 kT/year of certified washed sand according to BENOR construction standards. Due to the outdated plant, intervention was necessary to improve production capacity and the quality of the final product.

The new plant had to ensure a production of 150 tons/hour of washed sand, with a focus on minimizing water, energy, and consumable material consumption. The washed sand, by removing clay from the grains, needed to comply with BENOR standards, specifically reducing the presence of elements below 63μm to less than 3%.

Automatic flocculant dosing system

The Doson system is a patented photoelectric cell system by Matec that controls and adjusts the flocculant based on the amount of suspended solid particles in water. Doson regularly takes samples of sludge, analyzes them in a closed chamber using electronic sensors, and adjusts the flocculant powder quantity based on the settling speed of solid material in the reference sample.

This system offer a double advantage, ensuring up to 30% savings in flocculant usage and optimal settling by matching the perfect dilution quantity based on the solid’s percentage in the treated sludge.

Matec’s solution for Renewi plant

Renewi needed a high-quality final product with an easy-to-use plant while keeping total operating costs under control. Matec proposed a comprehensive Aggretec 150 treatment system, the core of the treatment and washing plant, coupled with a complete waste water treatment system.

The Aggretec system comprises a 30 m³ loading hopper, a 2-deck vibrating screen (Screentec), and a Sandtec sand washing system with a capacity of 200 t/h and two 650mm stainless steel hydrocyclones, producing two types of clean sand at the output.

The filtration unit provided by Matec to Renewi consists of a clarified water tank, sludge tank, and a Bifloc flocculant preparation station equipped with the automatic dosing system Doson.

At the center of the plant is our filter press, an Ignis 1300×1300 – 80 plates chamber 25, a TT2 Fast quick-opening system, supported by a feeding Alfa pump and a 5,000-liter homogenization tank.

Completing the plant are a 90,000-liter clear water tank and a 200,000-liter vertical stainless steel thickener for sludge storage.

Result achieved in Renewi plant

Matec successfully met the customer’s needs, achieving set objectives and transforming their waste material into a valuable resource. The provided complete plant was able to meet even the most demanding customer expectations, reaching significant milestones such as:

Reduction in water consumption for sand treatment and washing through their reuse after filtration.
Recovery of quality sands after thorough washing and size selection, surpassing minimum required quantities with an effective reduction of microparticles below 63μm.
Reduction in operating costs thanks to the automated Matec system, which also decreased the need for qualified personnel to supervise the transformation process.