BENEFITS

• More than 4.8 million kilowatt-hours

(kWh) estimated annual electricity

savings

• Nearly 150,000 million British thermal

units annual natural gas savings

• Decreased waste disposal costs and

increased paper production

• Potential to further reduce natural

gas consumption, burn waste sludge,

and allow use of cheaper high-sulfur

coal through installation of fluidizedbed boiler

APPLICATIONS

A team of energy assessment experts

examined the large energy-using 

equipment and systems at the Appleton

Papers, Inc., West Carrollton paper mill.

The team conducted a comprehensive

assessment covering energy, waste, 

and process-related improvements. The

team’s goal was to identify significant

opportunities for cost savings, quality

improvement, and productivity 

enhancement.

March 2002 OFFICE OF INDUSTRIAL TECHNOLOGIES

ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND RENEWABLE ENERGY, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

FOREST

PRODUCTS

BestPractices

Assessment Case Study

Appleton Papers Plant-Wide Energy Assessment 

Saves Energy and Reduces Waste

Summary

A plant-wide energy survey of the Appleton Papers, Inc., West Carrollton paper mill

resulted in twenty-one recommendations for projects to reduce energy consumption

and waste production and improve process efficiency. Initial estimates indicate that

implementation of these recommendations will save nearly $3.5 million annually with a

project cost of only $2.4 million. An average payback period of about 1.2 years per

project is expected. Another recommendation to install a fluidized-bed boiler could

result in additional annual savings of over $2.6 million.

Company Background

Appleton Papers, Inc., was founded in 1907 and is headquartered in Appleton,

Wisconsin. The company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Arjo Wiggins Appleton.

Appleton produces carbonless, thermal, security, and specialty engineered papers,

and is renowned globally for its capabilities in microencapsulation and coating.

Appleton has five facilities located across the Midwest and Northeast and operates 

eight distribution centers and over seventy sales offices across North America. The

company has about 2,800 employees and has over $1 billion in annual sales.

PAPER MACHINE AT APPLETON’S WEST CARROLLTON PAPER MILL
The Appleton Papers mill in West Carrollton, Ohio, was built in 1946. The facility has a workforce

of about 450 employees and manufactures approximately 182,000 tons of carbonless paper every

year. Primary manufacturing operations include recycling, materials preparation, paper production,

roll finishing, shipping, and distribution. Up to 400 tons per day of wastepaper is processed into

bleached pulp. Three paper machines are capable of producing up to 500 tons of paper per day.

The mill uses two coal-fired and one gas-fired boiler to produce up to 5 million lb/day of process

steam for paper manufacturing and recycling operations. A generator supplies almost 40 percent

of the mill’s electrical requirements. The wastewater treatment facility treats 7 million gallons per

day of water.

Assessment Overview

The plant-wide assessment team elected to employ a comprehensive assessment methodology

that considered energy, waste, and process-related improvements. The team examined all large

energy-using equipment and systems for potential savings. They compiled a waste inventory

and investigated the potential for waste reduction or improved disposal/recycling. The team also

examined manufacturing processes for potential improvements, and emerging technologies

were assessed for potential contributions to efficiency improvement.

The project team included Appleton Papers, The Edison Materials Technology Center (EMTEC),

Ohio’s Office of Energy Efficiency, Mid-West Building Diagnostics, the International Center for

Water Resource Management, CSGI, and Energy Information Systems. The U.S. Department of

Energy’s (DOE) Office of Industrial Technologies (OIT) co-sponsored the assessment. OIT supports

plant-wide energy efficiency assessments that will lead to improvements in industrial efficiency,

waste reduction, productivity, and global competitiveness in OIT’s Industries of the Future strategy.

Assessment Implementation

Energy systems

As part of the company’s energy management program, Appleton uses data from operations and

from utility bills to identify trends, anomalies, and billing errors. Personnel also analyze energy

consumption, production trends, and operating costs. This data was used in the plant-wide energy

assessment to compare Appleton’s utility costs, energy consumption, average power factor, and

average load factor to industry averages, and to develop assessment recommendations. Appleton’s

focus was to identify and minimize end-use loads. The utility distribution system was also 

examined for inefficiencies and for savings potential. The assessment team examined electrical

systems, coal- and gas-fired boilers, lighting, motor-driven systems, vacuum pumps, and

process heating.

Pollution prevention

The team examined options for waste stream elimination, recycling, product substitution, and

efficiency improvements. Specific areas addressed during the assessment included recycling,

sludge reduction, methods for early detection of changes in fly ash concentration, use of alternative

scrubbers, reuse of waste products or changes in waste product production, reusable shipping

containers, and methods to reduce NOx emissions.
Overview of Specific Actions Identified in the Assessment

There were twenty-two separate recommendations resulting from the plant-wide energy assessment.

The six recommendations that had estimated cost savings of more than $200,000 each are 

summarized below.

Recover Heat from Paper Machine Vents

Three paper machines produce paper from wet pulp. The primary drying process required for papermaking is carried out with drums heated by steam. The paper machines also use a large amount of

hot air for pocket ventilation. In some cases, gas-fired burners are also used to supplement the

steam heat. The paper machines require ventilation to maintain the necessary humidity levels and

for operator comfort. Currently, steam heat is used for space heating for the plant air handlers, for

heating the plant areas, and for the paper machine vents. The assessment team recommended that

recovery of the vent heat be used for heating the plant air during winter months. Cross-flow heat

exchangers can be used to recover heat from the paper machine vent exhaust gas, delivering hot air

for plant heating.

The following actions are recommended for thirteen exhaust stacks selected to meet a 50 percent 

investment rate of return criteria:

• Install a heat exchanger between the existing exhaust fan and the vent stack

• Install a low-pressure fan to circulate ambient air through the heat exchanger

• Install insulated ducts to deliver heated air to the plant air handlers.

Recover Usable Fiber from Low-Consistency Screen Rejects

The recycling plant has de-inking and bleaching operations that process 400 tons of post-industrial

grade paper per day. Recovery of usable fiber from these operations would not only decrease the

cost of waste disposal, but would also result in increased paper production. Reduction in fiber loss is

possible at the low-consistency screens and at the centrifugal forward cleaners located downstream

of the bleaching section. 

Manufacturing process improvements

The assessment team identified process improvements by dividing the production process into discrete

steps, and then assigning measures of productivity to each step. In this way, the assessment team

could identify production inefficiencies, defects, and inventory requirements. The team evaluated

inventory and material requirements, material flow, process automation, setup and changeover

processes, quality control, preventive maintenance practices, and production bottlenecks. The team

also identified and evaluated emerging technologies that could improve process efficiency while

reducing waste and emissions.

Results and Recommendations

On the following page, Table 1 summarizes specific recommendations identified during the plant-wide

assessment. These projections of savings and capital costs are initial estimates identified during the

assessment and have not been validated through rigorous engineering analyses. Table 2 shows 

estimated savings and costs associated with the recommendation to add a fluidized-bed boiler.
Annual Project Simple Payback

Recommendation Savings ($) Cost ($) Period (years)

Recover heat from paper machine vents 1,015,000 1,500,000 1.5

Recover fiber from low-consistency 572,634 110,000 0.3

screen rejects

Install oxygen and carbon monoxide 474,694 200,000 0.4

monitoring equipment to control

boiler combustion

Reuse uhle-box seal water 288,185 132,600 0.5

Reduce silo temperatures 212,310 None Immediate

Combine “good” and “bad” batches of 177,728 50,000 0.3

post-industrial pulp

Use direct-fired water heating for 162,164 135,000 0.8

de-inking operation

Use high temperature exhaust from 141,372 127,576 0.9

flotation ovens to heat pocket ventilation air

Use dryer heat to heat vacuum pump 88,900 11,980 0.2

seal water

Reuse centrifugal pump seal water 80,080 20,000 0.3

Recirculate vacuum pump seal water 51,857 25,000 0.5

Use well water to cool paper machines 48,273 45,000 0.9

Feed dryer vacuum pump seal water 40,407 2,000 0.1

to paper machine silos

Reduce compressed air costs 37,962 8,750 0.3

Recover heat from steam 21,590 27,600 1.3

decurling shower exhaust

Maximize electricity production in winter 17,706 None Immediate

Use condenser water for steam makeup 12,995 10,000 0.8

Reclaim waste heat from air compressors 8,466 6,000 0.8

Insulate blow-through steam header 2,729 6,466 2.3

piping

Install ambient air intake for 2,352 1,500 0.7

air compressors

Use MotorMaster+ for motor analysis 946 3,193 3.4

Total 3,458,350 2,422,665 0.9 (average)

TABLE 1. ASSESSMENT RECOMMENDATIONS AND ESTIMATED SAVINGS

Annual Project Simple Payback

Recommendation Savings ($) Cost ($) Period (years)

Add fluidized-bed boiler 2,638,398 23,000,000 8.7

TABLE 2. ESTIMATED SAVINGS FOR RECOMMENDATION TO ADD A FLUIDIZED-BED BOILER
A tertiary screen rejects tank could be installed to retain the pulp from the low-consistency screen rejects.

High-density impurities would settle at the bottom of the tank in the underflow water and the pulp would

be recovered. The scalped pulp would be sent back to an additional screen for further washing to remove

low-density impurities. Fresh make up water would then be added to the pulp before sending it to downstream units for further processing.

Install Oxygen and Carbon Monoxide Monitoring Equipment to Control Boiler Combustion

Three boilers produce 250,000 pounds per hour of steam for several heating and drying processes.

Currently, two coal-fired boilers are used as the primary base load for steam production. The coal-fired boilers

have conventional controls for steam pressure and temperature and for coal and air input. An additional

boiler is natural gas-fired, and operators use it in standby mode to supply steam when the demand

exceeds the generation capacity of the coal-fired boilers. Oxygen in the flue gases is manually adjusted

by controlling the under-fire airflow. The existing control system does not provide continuous measurement, monitoring, or control of combustion air.

The assessment team recommended installation of an oxygen and carbon monoxide measuring, 

monitoring, and control system on the coal-fired boilers. Because the two boilers operate near rated

capacity, improved control of the oxygen in the excess combustion air would probably result in substantial

savings. Flue gas oxygen content can be reduced by:

• Reducing airflow to the boiler while maintaining fixed fuel flow. This slightly increases steam production

because of increased reaction temperature and higher heat transfer rates.

• Maintaining the current level of combustion airflow and increasing fuel input to consume additional 

oxygen. This results in a lower oxygen concentration in the flue gas, which in turn increases the 

reaction temperature and the amount of heat released in the boiler, enhances heat transfer, and 

increases steam production.

RECOVERY OF USABLE FIBER FROM LOW-CONSISTENCY SCREENS
BestPractices is part of the Office of

Industrial Technologies’ (OIT’s) Industries

of the Future strategy, which helps the

country’s most energy-intensive 

industries improve their competitiveness.

BestPractices brings together the bestavailable and emerging technologies and

practices to help companies begin

improving energy efficiency, environmental

performance, and productivity right now.

BestPractices emphasizes plant systems,

where significant efficiency improvements

and savings can be achieved. Industry

gains easy access to near-term and 

long-term solutions for improving the 

performance of motor, steam, compressed

air, and process heating systems. In 

addition, the Industrial Assessment Centers

provide comprehensive industrial energy 

evaluations to small- and medium-size

manufacturers.

PROJECT PARTNERS

Appleton Papers, Inc.

West Carrollton, OH

The Edison Materials Technology

Center (EMTEC)

Dayton, OH

Ohio’s Office of Energy Efficiency

Columbus, OH 

Mid-West Building Diagnostics

Xenia, OH

The International Center for Water

Resource Management

Columbus, OH 

CSGI

Rockville, MD

Energy Information Systems

Dayton, OH

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

OIT Clearinghouse

Phone: (800) 862-2086

Fax: (360) 586-8303

clearinghouse@ee.doe.gov

Visit our home page at

www.oit.doe.gov

Please send any comments,

questions, or suggestions to

webmaster.oit@ee.doe.gov

Office of Industrial Technologies

Energy Efficiency 

and Renewable Energy

U.S. Department of Energy

Washington, DC 20585-0121

DOE/GO-102002-1512

March 2002

A gain of one percent in overall boiler efficiency can be expected because of

improved heat transfer. Additionally, increased steam production in the coal-fired

boilers will eliminate or reduce the need for the gas-fired boiler. 

Reuse Uhle-Box Seal Water

Uhle-box seal water, or water removed from the press section of the paper

machines, contains synthetic felt hair, fiber, ash, and fillers. Closing the system

around the press section would allow proper reuse of uhle-box seal water, 

yielding benefits such as:

• Reducing fresh water consumption and pumping costs

• Reducing chemical consumption for water softening

• Reducing water heating costs

• Reducing waste streams and improving environmental compliance.

The assessment team recommended that partially recycled uhle-box seal water

be used in the de-inking and bleaching units.

Reduce Silo Temperatures

Steam is injected into the dilute pulp mixtures in the paper machine silos to heat

the mixtures from about 107° F to 110° F. The temperature of the pulp mix

leaving the silo may be reduced from 110° F to 109° F. The assessment team

estimates energy savings from the temperature reduction at more than

$212,000 annually.

Add a Fluidized-Bed Boiler

West Carrollton mill personnel are considering the installation of a 60,000- to

100,000-pound-per-hour fluidized-bed boiler and a 3 megawatt turbine generator set

to supplement the operation of the current coal- and gas-fired boilers. Table 2

shows the savings summary associated with this project. Advantages of the

proposed fluidized-bed boiler include reducing the amount of natural gas 

consumed, burning some of the sludge generated in the mill, and burning

cheaper high-sulfur coal. Because the implementation costs and payback period

of this project are high ($23 million and 8.7 years), this project is not considered

a likely candidate for immediate implementation.

INDUSTRY OF THE FUTURE—FOREST PRODUCTS

AND AGENDA 2020

In November 1994, DOE’s Secretary of Energy and the Chairman of the

American Forest and Paper Association signed a compact, establishing a

research partnership involving the forest products industry and DOE. A key

feature of this partnership was a strategic technology plan-Agenda 2020: A

Technology Vision and Research Agenda for America’s Forest, Wood,

and Paper Industry. Agenda 2020 includes goals for the research partnership and a plan to address the industry’s needs in six critical areas: 

● Energy performance ● Recycling

● Environmental performance ● Sensors and controls

● Capital effectiveness ● Sustainable forestry

OIT Forest Products Team Leader: Valri Robinson (202) 586-0937.