How Much Cost Can a TDF Shredder Line Save for Cement Plants?

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A comprehensive guide to the core configuration, full production process, and cost-reduction & emission-reduction value of TDF Shredder Line for South African cement plants, revealing the “industrial-grade stability” of the YX1200 model.

When a medium-sized cement plant in South Africa increased its “tire fuel replacement ratio” from 10% to 30%, the key behind it was a TDF Shredder Line — this YX1200 model equipment, put into operation in October 2025, can stably produce 5cm uniform fuel and adapt to local used tire types, becoming the core support for the cement plant’s “energy transformation”. Today, we will detail: What is the full process of this production line? How does it solve the “stability problem” of industrial fuel? More importantly — How much cost can a TDF Shredder Line save for cement plants?

I. Core Configuration of TDF Shredder Line: The “Industrial-Grade Gene” of YX1200 Model

This production line, custom-designed for South African cement plants, is built around the “high requirements of industrial scenarios” from parameters to design to ensure fuel stability and adaptability:

Basic Core Parameters

  • Model: YX1200 Tyre Shredder
  • Production Capacity: 4-5 tons of used tires per hour; can stably output about 80-100 tons of TDF fuel per day (based on 20 hours of daily operation), fully matching the daily fuel demand of cement plants
  • Finished Product Size: Strictly controlled at 5cm (50mm) ±2mm, which can perfectly fit the fuel feed port of cement kilns and avoid material jamming or incomplete combustion
  • Adapted Tire Types: Can process common local car tires, light truck tires, and engineering tires without pre-classification; compatible with tire sizes of 650-1200mm
  • Commissioning Time: October 10, 2025; achieved full-load operation after 1 month of debugging

Core Equipment Composition

The production line consists of 5 modules, forming a closed loop of “feeding-processing-discharging”:

  1. Automatic Feeding System: Conveyor belt + size recognition device, automatically adjusts feeding speed to avoid equipment overload
  2. Bead Steel Removal Machine: Hydraulically driven clamping device, processes 40-45 tires per hour with 100% bead steel removal rate
  3. Whole Tire Cutter: 45-degree inclined blade, cuts tires into 3-4 15cm sections for subsequent shredding
  4. YX1200 Double-Shaft Shredder: 450mm diameter 40Cr blades (hardness 55-58 HRC), 600 rpm to ensure the uniformity of 5cm finished products
  5. Grading Screen + Finished Product Silo: 10-mesh screen for automatic screening; qualified fuel enters the 100-ton finished product silo, and unqualified materials are returned to the shredder for reprocessing

II. Full Production Process of TDF Shredder Line: From “Local Used Tires” to “5cm Cement Fuel”

This production line is designed with a 4-step “customized processing process” for local tire types and cement plant needs in South Africa to ensure stable fuel quality:

Step 1: Raw Material Receiving and Adaptation

Locally recycled used tires are transported to the production line by trucks and directly poured into the feeding silo — the size recognition device of the conveyor belt automatically judges tire specifications and adjusts feeding speed: car tires are fed at 1 piece every 3 seconds, and engineering tires at 1 piece every 5 seconds to avoid equipment jamming.

Step 2: Bead Steel and Impurity Pretreatment

Tires enter the bead steel removal machine, where the hydraulic clamping device clamps the tire edge and rotates to peel off the bead steel; at the same time, the built-in magnet adsorbs metal impurities on the tire surface to ensure no hard impurities damage the blades in the subsequent shredding process.

Step 3: Graded Shredding and Size Control

  • First-step Cutting: The whole tire cutter cuts tires into 3-4 15cm sections; the cutting blades adopt a replaceable design and are replaced after processing 1000 tons of tires
  • Second-step Shredding: The sections enter the YX1200 double-shaft shredder, with the blade gap preset to 5cm; high-speed rotating blades shred the sections into 5cm rubber chips; the built-in “size sensor” of the equipment monitors the finished product size in real time and automatically adjusts the blade gap if the error exceeds 2mm
  • Third-step Screening: Shredded materials enter the grading screen; the 10-mesh screen filters out 5cm qualified fuel; fine chips under the screen are collected for making rubber crumbs; coarse materials on the screen are returned to the shredder for reprocessing via the return belt

Step 4: Finished Product Storage and Conveying

Qualified 5cm fuel is sent to the 100-ton finished product silo and directly conveyed to the cement plant’s fuel silo via a closed conveyor belt, with no secondary pollution throughout the process; the fuel moisture content is controlled within 8% to ensure combustion stability.

III. Core Value of TDF Shredder Line for Cement Plants: Cost Reduction, Emission Reduction and Equipment Protection

After the commissioning of this production line, it has brought 3 “quantifiable values” to the South African cement plant, becoming a model for industrial energy transformation:

20% Reduction in Fuel Cost

  • The production cost of 1 ton of TDF fuel is about $80, while the local coal price is $120/ton
  • The production line outputs 100 tons of fuel per day, which can replace 30 tons of coal, saving $1,200 in fuel cost per day and about $438,000 per year

240 Tons of Carbon Emission Reduction per Month

  • 1 ton of TDF fuel produces 0.8 tons less carbon emission than coal
  • The production line outputs 3,000 tons of fuel per month, reducing carbon emissions by 240 tons, equivalent to the annual carbon sequestration of 12,000 trees

10% Extension of Cement Kiln Equipment Life

  • 5cm uniform fuel can achieve “suspension combustion” in cement kilns, avoiding kiln wall wear from coarse materials and coking from fine materials
  • The kiln inspection cycle of the cement plant is extended from once every 6 months to once every 7 months, saving about $150,000 in inspection cost per year

IV. Technical Advantages of TDF Shredder Line: Why Is the YX1200 Model Suitable for Industrial Scenarios?

This production line can operate stably in South African cement plants, supported by 3 “industrial-grade technical advantages”:

High Stability

The equipment adopts a PLC control system, which can monitor parameters such as current, temperature, and blade gap in real time; it automatically shuts down for protection in case of abnormalities, with a failure rate of less than 1% per month.

Low Maintenance Cost

  • The service life of blades is up to 1,000 tons per replacement, and the replacement time is only 2 hours
  • The equipment adopts a “modular design”; core components can be quickly disassembled and replaced, and daily maintenance only requires 1 technician

High Adaptability

The production line can adjust the finished product size according to cement plant needs (supports 3-8cm customization) and switch production modes to process used tires into rubber crumbs or TDF chips to meet different scenario needs.

The TDF Shredder Line (YX1200 model) provides stable 5cm clean fuel for South African cement plants through “customized parameters + localized process design”, solving the local used tire recycling problem and providing a replicable model for cost reduction and emission reduction in industrial enterprises. Driven by the “dual carbon” goal, this production line is not only “equipment” but also a “customized solution for industrial energy” — every such production line is promoting the transformation of traditional industries to “circular economy”, reducing the burden on the earth while creating new value for the industry.