Gasoues Fuels

Beant College of Engineering & Technology, Gurdaspur – 143521
A Premier Institute of Government of Punjab under Mentorship of IIT Ropar

Affiliated to IKGPTU Kapurthala & Accredited by NAAC
BTCH-804
Energy Engineering
24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 1

Chapter - 3
Gaseous Fuels


Classification of Gaseous Fuels

• Gas fuels are the most convenient requiring the
least amount of handling and simplest and most
maintenance free burner systems.
• Gas is delivered "on tap" via a distribution
network and so is suited to a high population or
industrial density.
• However large consumers do have gas holders
and some produce their own gas.

The following is a list of the types of gaseous fuel:

(A) Fuels naturally found in nature:
• Natural gas
• Methane from coal mines
(B) Fuel gases made from solid fuel:
• Gases derived from Coal
• Gases derived from waste and Biomass
• From other industrial processes (Blast furnace
gas)
(C) Gases made from petroleum:

• Liquefied Petroleum gas (LPG)
• Refinery gases
• Gases from oil gasification
(D) Gases from some fermentation process:
When deciding whether an alternative gas can be
used in an appliance, three factors must be
considered:

- For the same pressure drop is the heat release

roughly the same
- For the same air and fuel flows is the flame shape
the same
- For the same heat release conditions are
pollutants within a specified tolerance


• High Flame Speed Gases: Its C.V. = 4000 - 5000

Kcal/Nm3
Weaver’s Flame Speed Factor = 32-45
• Low Flame Speed Gases: Its C.V. = 7500 – 10,000
Kcal/Nm3
• Intermediate Flame Speed Gases: Its C.V. = 5000 -
7500 Kcal/Nm3

Types of Gaseous Fuel

Natural Gas
Naturally occurring gas found in oil fields and coal
fields (Fire damp). The quantities of the
constituents vary but the principle component is
methane. Other components include higher
hydrocarbons which can be separated out as a
condensate. Some gases also contain hydrogen
sulphide.
Terms used to describe gases:
• dry or lean - high methane content (less

condensate)
• wet - high concentration of higher hydrocarbons
(C5 - C10)
• sour - High concentration of H2S
• sweet - low conc. of H2S
• residue gas - gas remaining after the condensing
process
• casing head gas - gas extracted from an oil well
by extraction at the surface.
• Natural gases can be liquefied for distribution by

tanker. Liquefied natural gas (LNG) contains
mostly methane, LPG (Liquefied petroleum gas)
mostly butane and propane.

COMPOSITION OF NG:
• The major compounds of natural gas are:
methane (CH4) and its homologous C3 -C7.
• Non-combustible compounds of NG are:
nitrogen, CO2, water.
• An important compound (pollutant) of NG is:
H2S (sulfuretted hydrogen).

Methane Gas: Methane is associated with coal, as

coal absorbs methane, during mining, this gas is
desorbed and is recovered. It can be explosive &
the gas is often called Fire Damp. Composition of
methane gas
CH4 – 93 - 99%
CO2 – 0 - 4%
C2H6 – 0 - 3%
N2 – 2 - 6%
H2 – Some traces
• Coal mine methane (CMM) is a type of gas present in

active, working mine sites.
• This gas is extracted from the air in the coal mine
helping improve safety and preventing uncontrolled
release of methane to atmosphere.
• CMM typically has an oxygen content of 5-12%. The
methane content ranges from 25-60%.
• Methane is released as a direct result of the physical
process of coal extraction. Coal extraction releases
methane trapped within the coal seam, thus creating a
potential safety hazard.
• Methane released from the worked coal face

can be diluted and removed by large ventilation
systems.
• These systems dilute methane within the mine
to concentrations below the explosive range of
5-15%, with a target for methane concentrations
under 1%.
• The methane removed from working mines via
this technique is known as Ventilation Air
Methane (VAM).
Coal mine methane is emitted from five sources:

1. Degasification systems at underground coal mines
(drainage systems).
2. Ventilation air from underground mines, which contains
dilute concentrations of methane.
3. Abandoned or closed mines, from which methane may seep
out through vent holes.
4. Surface mines, from which methane in the coal seams is
directly exposed to the atmosphere.
5. Fugitive emissions from post-mining operations, in which
coal continues to emit methane as it is stored in piles and
transported.
Uses Of Methane
1. Methane is an important source of H2.
2. Methane reacts with steam at high temperatures
to yield CO and hydrogen; the latter is used in the
manufacture ammonia & explosives.
3. Other valuable chemicals derived from methane
include methanol, chloroform & nitromethane.
4. The incomplete combustion of methane yields
carbon black, used as a reinforcing agent in
rubber used for automobile tires.
PRODUCER GAS
• Producer gas is a combustible gas manufactured by
blowing a mixture of steam and air upwards
through a bed of hot coke, or coal, such that the
fuel is completely gasified.
• The gas obtained from coke consists mainly of a
mixture of CO2 and H2 with N2 from the blast of air.
• When coal is used the gas will contain, in addition,
tar and the gases liberated during the
carbonization of the coal in the fuel bed.
• The process is carried out usually by charging the

fuel by gravity from a hopper into a vertical,
cylindrical, steel chamber, which is either lined
with fire bricks, or it has an annular water-jacket
from which steam required for gasification can be
raised by heat transmitted from the fuel bed.
• The fuel bed is supported at the bottom by a
grate/distributor, through which is introduced the
blast, made by adding steam to the air supply such
that it is saturated at a temperature of about 50°C.
• A layer of ash is maintained at the bottom of the

fuel bed; to preheat the blast.
• Above the ash zone is a narrow combustion
zone in which oxygen in the air reacts with C in
the fuel to form CO2 & generating the heat.
• At the top of the bed the incoming fuel is dried
and carbonized.
• Most of the sulfur in the coal appears as
hydrogen sulfide in the product gas.
• A typical producer gas contains 27% CO, 12% H2, 0.5%

methane, 5% CO2 and 55% N2, by volume.
• It has a heating value of about 5,000 kJ/m3.
• Formation of producer gas from air and carbon:
C + O2 → CO2, +97,600 cal.; CO2 + C → 2CO, –38,800 cal.
2C + O2 → 2CO, +58,800 cal.
• Reactions between steam and carbon:
H2O + C → H2 + CO, –28,800 cal.;
2H2O + C → 2H2 + CO2, –18,800 cal.
• Reaction between steam and carbon monoxide:
H2O + CO → CO2 + H2, +10,000 cal.
CO2 + H2 → CO + H2O, –10,000 cal.

Uses and Advantages of Producer Gas:

• It is used in furnace.
• Quantity of air required for the combustion of
producer gas is not much.
• Producer gas is more easily transmitted than solid
fuel.
• Gas-fired furnaces can be maintained at a constant
temperature.
• With gas, an oxidising and reducing flame can be
obtained.
• Heat loss due to converting solid fuel into

producer gas can be made in an economic way.
• Smoke nuisance can be avoided.
• Producer gas can be produced even by the
poorest quality of fuel.
• Producer gas was used as an industrial fuel for
iron and steel manufacturing, cement and
ceramic kilns.
• It was cheap to make.
Water gas
• It is a mixture of CO and H2 produced from
synthesis gas.
• Synthesis gas is a useful product, but is
flammable.
• Synthesis gas is made by passing steam over a
red-hot carbon fuel such as coke.


Carburetted water gas

• Water gas has a lower heat of combustion than coal
gas, so the C.V. was often boosted by passing the gas
through a heated retort, into which oil was sprayed.
• The resulting mixed gas was called carburetted water
gas.
• The average composition this gas is as follows:
H2=34-38%; CO=23-28%; saturated HC = 17-21%;
unsaturated HC =13-16%; CO2=0.2-2.2%; N2=2.5-5.0%.
• It is used as a source of heat since it has a high CV.
Blast furnace gas (BFG)

• It is a by-product of blast furnaces that is
generated when the iron-ore
is reduced with coke to metallic iron.
• It has a very low heating value, about
3.5 MJ/m3, because it consists of about 60
percent N2 and 18-20% CO2, which are not
flammable. The rest is mostly CO, which has
low heating value.

• It is commonly used as a fuel within the

steel works, but it can be used in
boilers and power plants equipped to burn it.
• It may be combined with natural gas or coke
oven gas before combustion.
• Particulate matter is removed so that it can be
burned more cleanly.
• Blast furnace gas is sometimes flared without
generating heat or electricity.
• Blast furnace gas is generated at higher pressure

and at about 100–150°C in a modern blast
furnace.
• Auto ignition point of blast furnace gas is
approximate 630–650°C.
• The high concentration of carbon monoxide
makes the gas hazardous.

Coal Gas
• Coal gas is flammable, made from coal and
supplied to the user via a piped distribution
system.
• It is produced when coal is heated strongly in
the absence of air.
• Town gas is a more general term referring to
manufactured gaseous fuels produced for sale
to consumers and municipalities.
• Coal gas contains a mixture of calorific gases

including H2, CO, CH4, ethylene and volatile
hydrocarbons together with small quantities of
non-calorific gases such as CO2 and N2.

Refinery Gas
• It is any form or mixture of gases produced in
refineries by distillation, cracking, reforming,
and other processes.
• The principal constituents are methane, ethane,
ethylene, normal butane, propane, propylene,
etc.
• Still gas is used as a refinery fuel and a
petrochemical feedstock.
• Refinery gas is typically consumed in the refinery

as fuel.
• Rarely would a refinery sell refinery gas as a
finished product.

Biomass Gases
• Biomass gasification means incomplete
combustion of biomass resulting in production
of combustible gases consisting of carbon
monoxide (CO), hydrogen (H2) and traces of
methane (CH4).
• This mixture is called producer gas.
• Producer gas can be used to
- run internal combustion engines
- can be used as substitute for furnace oil in direct

heat applications and
- can be used to produce, in an economically
viable way, methanol—an extremely attractive
chemical which is useful both as fuel for heat
engines as well as chemical feedstock for
industries.
• The production of generator gas (producer gas)
called gasification, is partial combustion biomass
at 1000°C. The reactor is called a gasifier.
• The combustion products from complete

combustion of biomass generally contain
nitrogen, water vapour, carbon dioxide and
surplus of oxygen.
• However, in gasification where there is a surplus
of solid fuel (incomplete combustion) the
products of combustion are combustible gases
like carbon monoxide (CO), hydrogen (H2) and
traces of methane and useless products like tar
and dust.
• The production of these gases is by reaction of

water vapour and carbon dioxide through a
glowing layer of charcoal.
• Thus the key to gasifier design is to create
conditions such that
(i) biomass is reduced to charcoal, and
(ii) charcoal is converted at suitable
temperature to produce CO and H2.


Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG)

• LPG is a flammable mixture of hydrocarbon gases
used as fuel in heating appliances, cooking
equipment, and vehicles.
• It is increasingly used as an aerosol propellant and
a refrigerant, replacing chlorofluorocarbons in an
effort to reduce damage to the ozone layer. When
specifically used as a vehicle fuel it is often
referred to as autogas.

• Varieties of LPG include mixes that are mostly

propane (C3H8), mostly butane (C4H10), and,
most commonly, mixes including both.
• LPG is prepared by refining petroleum or "wet“
natural gas, and is almost entirely derived from
fossil fuel sources, being manufactured during
the refining of petroleum (crude oil), or
extracted from petroleum or natural gas
streams as they emerge from the ground.

• As it is a gas, it does not pose ground or water

pollution hazards, but it can cause air pollution.
• LPG has a typical specific CV of 46.1 MJ/kg.
• Its density is lower than either that of petrol or
fuel oil.
• Its boiling point is below room temperature, So,
LPG will evaporate quickly at normal
temperature & pressure. So, it is usually
supplied in pressurized steel vessels.
• They are typically filled to 80–85% of their

capacity to allow for thermal expansion.
• The pressure at which LPG becomes liquid,
called its vapour pressure, is approximately 220
kilopascals (32 psi) for pure butane at 20 °C.
• LPG is heavier than air, and thus will flow along
floors.

• There are two main dangers from this. The first

is a possible explosion if the mixture of LPG and
air is within the explosive limits and there is an
ignition source. The second is suffocation due to
LPG displacing air, causing a decrease in oxygen
concentration.
• A full LPG cylinder contains 85% liquid; the rest
of volume will contain vapour at a pressure that
varies with temperature.

Uses of LPG
• LPG is used for cooking
• LPG can provide an alternative to heating oil or
kerosene.
• LPG is most often used in areas that do not have
direct access to piped natural gas.
• LPG is used to fuel engines.
• LPG can be converted into alkylate, a gasoline.

Coal gasification is the process of producing

syngas—a mixture consisting primarily of CO, H2,
CO2, natural gas, and water vapour (H2O)—from
coal & water, air and/or oxygen.
Historically, coal was gasified to produce coal gas,
also known as "town gas". Coal gas is combustible
and was used for heating and municipal lighting,
before the advent of large-scale production of
natural gas from oil wells.

• In current practice, large-scale coal gasification

installations are for electricity generation or for
production of chemical feedstocks.
• The hydrogen obtained from coal gasification can be
used for making ammonia or upgrading fossil fuels.
• Coal-derived syngas can be converted into
transportation fuels such as gasoline, diesel or
methnol.
• Natural gas from coal gasification can be
liquefied for use as a fuel in the transport sector.
Gas Scrubber
• Gas Scrubber is a used to neutralize harmful
components in industrial air or waste gas streams,
for example to prevent fumes that have an
irritating effect or cause odor nuisance.
• Gas scrubber can be applied as emission control
technique at various gaseous emissions.
• Gas scrubbing is also called absorption.
• It may also be used to recover certain raw
materials after the treatment.
• The installation functions by bringing a gas

stream in close contact with a washing liquid.
• Because of this contact, certain gaseous
components dissolve and remain in the water.
• There is thus a transfer of the components from
the gas phase to the liquid phase, also referred to
as absorption.
• The solubility of the particles in the liquid will
determine to what extent the gaseous
components dissolve into the liquid phase.

Gasoues Fuels

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Beant College of Engineering & Technology, Gurdaspur – 143521

A Premier Institute of Government of Punjab under Mentorship of IIT Ropar

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 1

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 2

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 3

Classification of Gaseous Fuels

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 4

The following is a list of the types of gaseous fuel:

(C) Gases made from petroleum:

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 6

- For the same pressure drop is the heat release

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 7

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 8

• High Flame Speed Gases: Its C.V. = 4000 - 5000

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 9

Types of Gaseous Fuel

• dry or lean - high methane content (less

• Natural gases can be liquefied for distribution by

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 12

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 13

Methane Gas: Methane is associated with coal, as

• Coal mine methane (CMM) is a type of gas present in

• Methane released from the worked coal face

Coal mine methane is emitted from five sources:

• The process is carried out usually by charging the

• A layer of ash is maintained at the bottom of the

• A typical producer gas contains 27% CO, 12% H2, 0.5%

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 23

Uses and Advantages of Producer Gas:

• Heat loss due to converting solid fuel into

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 26

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 27

Carburetted water gas

Blast furnace gas (BFG)

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 29

• It is commonly used as a fuel within the

• Blast furnace gas is generated at higher pressure

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 31

• Coal gas contains a mixture of calorific gases

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 33

• Refinery gas is typically consumed in the refinery

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 35

- can be used as substitute for furnace oil in direct

• The combustion products from complete

• The production of these gases is by reaction of

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 39

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 40

Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG)

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 41

• Varieties of LPG include mixes that are mostly

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 42

• As it is a gas, it does not pose ground or water

• They are typically filled to 80–85% of their

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 44

• There are two main dangers from this. The first

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 45

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 46

Coal gasification is the process of producing

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 47

• In current practice, large-scale coal gasification

• The installation functions by bringing a gas

24-Aug-20 Department of Chemical Engineering 51