PERFORMANCE EVALUATION AND OPTIMIZATION OF CRYSTALLIZATION AND SUGAR HANDLING SUBSYSTEMS IN SUGAR MILL PLANT USING PSO

An appropriate maintenance strategy is necessary for sugar mill plants and particularly focuses on the core processing system. This research creates an availability-based simulation model for a sugar mill with 25,500 tons sugarcane crushing capacity. A Markov performance evaluation approach is used, and differential equations generated from a transition diagram covering fully operational, partially operational, and failure modes are included. Among the major processing units, the Evaporator is identified as a core processing component, being directly involved in sugar concentration. In contrast, the Rotary Dryer and the Centrifugal Machine (Batch or Continuous Centrifuge) are classified as auxiliary units. These support the production process by reducing moisture content and separating sugar from molasses, respectively, without altering the sugar chemically. The Crystallizer (e.g., A-Pan Crystallizer) is also a core processing component, directly responsible for crystal formation. PSO is used to improve performance by optimizing the failure and repair rates and enhancing the performance metrics. Experimental results showed the system achieved 88.84% availability. These results allow maintenance strategies that focus on the most critical subsystems to be processing developed. A case for focused maintenance is made based on the evidence provided for more effective scheduling, ultimately improving system performance.