CHY

Suspension (PC) Combustion

Chungen Yin
CHY@iet.auc.dk
Institute of Energy Technology
Aalborg University
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Agenda

Topic 1. What Is Pulverized Coal (PC) Combustion?

Topic 2. What Is Tangentially-Fired PC (TFPC)?

Topic 3. Gas Temperature Deviation In TFPC Boilers
Topic 4. NOx Emissions & Controlling In TFPC Boilers
Topic 5. Deposits In TFPC Boilers
Topic 6. PC Combustion Development Prospects
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Topic 1: What Is PC Combustion?

ISSUES:

1. Development of Combustion Mode

2. Stages of Coal Particle Combustion

3. Industrial PC Combustion Manners

4. Processes associated with PC Combustion

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1. Development of Combustion Mode

¾ Stoker Combustion

¾ Suspension Combustion
Ž Popular in recent decades, in large coal fired scale boilers
Ž Solid fuels is milled to a very fine powder
Typically, coal particle: maximum < 300µm; 70%~75% by mass < 75µm
Pass through a burner in suspension.
Ž Namely PC combustion, when coal is the fuel.

¾ Fluidized Bed Combustion (FBC)

Ž Get attention most recently, for smaller scale combustion
Ž Typically, bubbling and circulating fluidized bed (BFB & CFB)
Ž Introduced in another lecture
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2. Stages of Coal Particle Combustion

Ž As the wet coal particle heats up, water is driven off

Ž Drying continues and devolatilization begins

Ž Drying & devolatilization continue; volatiles ignite

Ž Drying complete, devolatilization continues; and

volatiles combustion continues

Ž Devolatilization & volatiles combustion complete; and

residual char combusts
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3. Industrial PC Combustion Manners

¾ Two manners. Choice depends on

Ž Cost factor;
Ž Operating experience;
Ž Emission level;
Ž Manufacture; and so on.

¾ Wall-Fired
(Left)

¾ Tangentially-Fired (Corner Fired )

(Right)
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4. Processes Associated With PC Combustion

ESP- Electrostatic precipitator

FGD- Flue gas desulfurizer

¾ Equipment
Ž Coal mills
Ž Burner design/arrays
Ž Furnace/Radiant section
Ž Pendant super-heaters
Ž Convection banks
Ž Electro-static precipitators
Ž Flue gas desulphurizers
Ž NOx control
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¾ Sub-Process
Fuel distribution
Ignition/flame stability characteristics
General flame - combustion characteristics;
Flame to water wall radiation heat transfer;
Heat conduction from outer to inner surface;
Slagging potential
Heat conduction; Slagging potential
Heat conduction; Fouling potential
Filtering of fly ash
Flue gas desulphurization
Combustion modification technology.
Flue Gas deNOxing.
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Topic 2: What Is TFPC Combustion?

SYSTEMS:

1. Fuel Preparation & Supply

2. Combustion Air Supply

3. Concentric Firing System

4. Different Combustion Zones

5. Air / Flue Gas Path

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Tangentially-fired PC (TFPC) boiler

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Features Include:
Ž Flame attachment coal
nozzle tips
Ž Concentric Firing
System (CFS) nozzles
Ž Close-coupled OFA
Ž Multilevel separated OFA
Ž Dynamic classifiers
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1. Fuel Preparation & Supply

Ž Particle residence time: several seconds, typically 2~5s, in combustion zone

Ž Coal must be pulverized enough for complete combustion during the time
Ž Equipment: Coal mills
Ž Characterization techniques: Particle size distribution
Ž Rules:
• Mass fraction of PC residue on sieve with 76 µm hole sizes does not exceed volatiles in dry coal;
• Currently, typically with maximum size < 300 µm; more than 70% in mass < 75 µm.

Ž Fuel Supply: Transported through burners into furnace by primary air

Ž Fuel Ignition: Using oil or gas flames
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2. Combustion Air Supply

¾ Burners Arrangement
Ž Burners at each of the 4 corners in a 609MW boiler (Right)
Ž SA: Secondary Air; PA: Primary Air; OFA: Over-Fire Air

¾ Primary Air (PA)

Ž Functions
• Transport PC particles into combustion chamber;
• Provide air in initial combustion stage.

Ž Parameters
• Flow rate: Usually, ~ 1kg PA/ 1kg fuel, independent of fuel;
• Injection velocity: ~ 20m/s, also independent of fuel;
• Temperature: Limited to about 100°C, considering:
High temperature is useful for fuel ignition;
Low temperature is helpful for safe transportation of PC
• Amount: ~15% of total air supply
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¾ Secondary Air (SA)

Ž Function
• Provide combustion air, separately injected from any fuel

Ž Parameters
• Flow rate: Depend on fuel and boiler capacity;
• Injection velocity: Higher than PA, probably ~ 50m/s, depend on boiler
• Temperature: Can be more strongly preheated, possibly > 350°C;
Assist the ignition and burnout of coal particles.
• Amount: ~85% of total air supply

¾ Over-Fire Air (OFA)

Ž Function
• Provide further combustion air over the primary combustion zone
• Make sure the fuel is burnout as much as possible before leaving furnace

Ž Parameters
• Served as SA, injection velocity and angle are similar with those of SA
• Amount: 10~30% of total combustion air
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3. Concentric Firing System

Concept of concentric firing system

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¾ Formation
Ž PA at 4 corners is injected into furnace at a set “firing ” angle to form an
imaginary circle in boiler center.
Ž Part of SA is offset from imaginary circle at a different (usually larger)
firing angle, creating a second imaginary circle. (Not necessarily)

¾ Advantages
Ž PC particles sweep around furnace volume, with longer residence time.
• Improved coal particle burnout;

Ž Fuel-rich zone in inner region, surrounded by O2-rich SA outer

• Low NOx: By detaching high T & high O2, two necessary conditions for NOx;
• Oxidizing atmosphere along furnace water-wall (reducing one is very corrosive)
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4. Different Combustion Zones

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¾ Primary Combustion Zone

Ž Location: In lower part of the furnace
Ž Feature: Reduced firing rate
Ž Formation: By operating under substoichiometric condition; (staging air)
By separating “Fuel-rich” & “Fuel-lean” zones; (offset air)
By staging fuel supply from different PA inlets; (staging fuel)
Ž Benefit: Low NOx production

¾ Reburning Zone (not necessary)

Ž Location: Above the primary combustion zone
Ž Feature: Slightly fuel rich
Ž Formation: By injecting more tiny fuel or gas (10-30% of total heat input)
• Assure a good burnout within shorter residence time;
Ž Benefit: Further consume the un-burnt PC in primary zone;
Further lower NOx- those produced before is reduced to N2
¾ Burnout Zone
Ž Location: Before furnace exit
Ž Feature: Normal excess air
Ž Formation: By using OFA
Ž Benefit: Burnout the remaining char; while not producing much NOx.
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5. Air / Flue Gas Path

Fuel transportation PA burners

(Served as PA)
PA & SA blowers Pre-heaters
(Before boiler exit)
Further pre-heated SA burners
(Served as SA, incl. OFA)

REAR PASS:
Super-heaters; CROSSOVER PASS: Platen
Economizers; Super- and/or Re- Super-heaters FURNACE
Air pre-heaters heaters in the pass In upper furnace
(in turn)

Electro-Static Flue gas Selective catalytic

Stack
Precipitators (ESP) desulphurizer reduction (SCR) units
(Remove dust) (Remove SO2) (Remove NOx) (Into air)
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Topic 3. Gas Deviation In TFPC Boilers

ISSUES:

1. Temperature Deviation & Its Effect

2. Possible Causes Analysis

3. Possible Solution
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1. Gas Temperature Deviation & Its Effect

Ž Inherent feature
Ž Increase with capacity
Ž Typically,
100~150K in 200MW
150~200K in 300MW
200~250K in 600MW
Ž Negative effect:
Tube overheating &
explosion of super-
heaters and/or re-
heaters
(No. 1 operational accidents)
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2. Possible Causes Analysis

¾ Residual Gas Swirling at Furnace Exit
Ž Moments M1, M2, M3
M1: Residual airflow
swirling in upper
furnace;
M3: By induction fan,
const. along width
of crossover pass;
M2: Composite moment
of M1 & M3

Ž Uneven gas velocity

Residual swirling leads
to uneven gas velocity
distribution in upper
furnace & in crossover
pass.
High in right; low in left
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Ž Flow path of the gas in the left

(1) Goes firstly backward to the front-wall (i.e., in –Y direction);
(2) Then turns into the gap between the front wall and SH1;
(3) Flows toward the right with a high speed;
(4) Goes forward into the crossover pass.
Ž The resulted gas temperature distribution
(1) Cooled by the front wall (inner media is low) & the SH1 (inner media T is also low);
(2) Mixed with the gas in the right coming directly from the combustion section;
(3) High gas temperature in the left & low in the right.
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¾ Existence of Platen Super-Heaters

Ž They attenuate residual airflow swirling at furnace exit to some extent;
Ž Thus, reduce the velocity deviation between two side-walls
Ž They alleviate, while not aggravate, gas temperature; this effect is limited

¾ Effect of Particle Trajectories & their Combustion Histories

Ž They can cause gas temperature deviation in upper furnace;
Ž However, they are just a minor factor and their effect is not important.
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3. Possible Solutions

¾ Reasonable Boiler Design

Ž Design of concentric firing system in furnace;
Ž Design of distance between the upmost burners to the furnace exit;
Ž Counter-offsetting part of the air-injections; and so on.
All the measures are aimed to reduce residual swirling at furnace exit.

¾ New Methods (according to my opinion)

Ž A new nose might be added on the front wall near furnace exit;
Ž Re-arranged SH panels to distribute uniformly gas between two sidewalls.
These two new methods are specially aimed to reduce the high-speed gas flow
from one side-wall to the opposite side-wall in the gap between the front wall
and the platen super-heaters.
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Topic 4. NOx Emission & Control

ISSUES:

1. NOx Formation

2. NOx Control Mechanism

3. Practical Ways to Control NOx

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1. NOx Formation
¾ NOx from Coal Combustion
Ž About 95% NO, ~5% NO2, and < 1% of N2O,
Ž Largely depend on combustion intensity
Ž Uncontrolled NOx level of 175~3200ppm
¾ NOx Sources
Ž Thermal NOx
• Formed by attack of O atom on N2 in combustion air
• About 20% of total NOx emission from PC burners
• Mainly affected by flame T & O2 concentration, with the former most important.
Ž Fuel NOx
• Formed by pyrolysis & oxidation of N compounds in coals
• About 80% of total NOx emission from PC burners
• Fuel N vs. fuel NOx relation is complex and unclear:
- Coals with high N do not necessarily produce more NOx;
- Increased N in coal will lead to a decreased conversion rate;
- N in char and in volatiles have different conversion ways to NOx
• O2 concentration plays an important role in fuel N conversion into NOx
• Flame temperature has relatively small influence on Fuel NOx formation
Ž Prompt NOx
• Formed by capture of N2 by hydrocarbon radicals. Too few in coal combustion.
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2. NOx Control Mechanism

¾ Higher NOx result from
Ž Intense combustion (high temperature),
Ž High oxygen availability (high O2 concentration)
Ž The two factors act to minimize differences that exist between coals.

¾ NOx Control Measures (in principle)

Ž Minimize O2 concentration;
Ž Decrease maximum flame temperature;
Ž Minimize residence time in zones where maximum T occurs.

¾ Problems Induced by above Low-NOx Measures

Ž Low combustion efficiency;
• Efficient combustion requires: High T, high O2, and high residence time
Ž Increased corrosion potential
• Reducing atmosphere is very corrosive
• Sub-stoichiometric related problems: slagging, water-wall wastage, etc.

¾ Compromises
Ž Detach the three necessary conditions for NOx formation
Ž Reduce maximum T to some extent while keeping efficient combustion
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3. Practical Ways to Control NOx

¾ General Primary Measures (in furnace)
Ž Reduce peak flame temperature to some extent
• NOx formation is limited
Ž Produce fuel-rich/fuel-lean sequencing
• Favorable for the conversion of fuel-N to N2
Ž NOx re-burning
• Convert NOx formed earlier into N2 by reduction with hydrocarbon radicals

¾ General Secondary Measures (Flue Gas Treatment before into stack)

Ž Selective catalytic reduction (SCR)
Ž Selective non-catalytic reduction (SNCR) at extra costs
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¾ Fuel Staging
Ž Burner out of service
• Shut off fuel flow from one burner or more to create fuel-rich / fuel-lean zones
• Achieving some NOx emission control (10%)
Ž Fuel biasing
• Divert fuel from upper-level to lower burners (or from center to side)
• Create fuel-rich lower (or central) zone and a fuel-lean upper (or side) Create fuel-
rich lower (or central) zone and a fuel-lean upper (or side)
• To lower flame T & improve balance of O2 in furnace
• NOx may be reduced by up to 30% using it.
Ž Reburing
• Use gas, atomized oil or micronized coal as secondary fuel
• Amount: 10~30% total heat input
• Location: between primary combustion zone and burnout zone
• Form fuel-rich O2-deficient reducing zone, decompose NOx formed in primary
combustion zone into N2
• Capable of achieving relatively high NOx reduction (up to 70%)
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¾ Boiler Design
Ž Larger furnace (at a given energy input): lower heat release rate to lower NOx

¾ Low NOx Burners

Ž Control fuel / air mixing at burner
Ž Biasing fuel
Ž Create larger and more branched flames
• Peak flame T is reduced
• Reduce the amount of oxygen available in the hottest part of the flame

¾ Air Staging
Ž Globally, normal excess air supplied to guarantee a good overall combustion effi.
Locally, sub-stoichiometric combustion condition is used.
Ž Three forms of air staging:
• Horizontally staging by creating fuel-rich and lean zones with offset air
• Vertically staging by separating PA and SA burners
• Overfire air (OFA)
Ž NOx formation is discouraged by sub-stoichiometric condition
Sub-stoichiometric combustion reduces flame temperature in primary comb. zone
Ž OFA achieve 10~35% NOx reductions, without any bad effect on boiler efficiency
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¾ Flue Gas Re-circulation

Ž 20~30% of the flue gas (350~400°C) is re-circulated into furnace or burner
Ž To decrease flame temperatures and availability of oxygen
Ž Mainly aimed to reduce thermal NOx
Ž It alone in PC boiler achieves a low NOx reduction efficiency (<20%)
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Topic 5. Slagging & Fouling

ISSUES:

1. What Are Slagging & Fouling?

2. Locations of Deposits

3. Summary of Causes & Effects

4. Possible Solutions
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1. What Are Slagging & Fouling?

Two main types of deposits in boilers.
¾ Slagging
Ž Deposits within furnace, in areas directly exposed to flame radiation
such as furnace walls and some widely spaced pendant super-heaters.
Ž Take place in the hottest parts of boiler
¾ Fouling
Ž Deposits in areas NOT directly exposed to flame radiation
such as the more closely spaced tubes in convection sections of boiler
Ž Take place as flue gas & suspended fly ash cool down
¾ Effects of deposition on boiler performance
Ž Reduction of heat transfer from combustion gas to water-steam
• Lead to an increase in gas temperature
• Lead to a further increase in deposition rate
• Result in continually changing conditions in boiler
Ž Formation of sticky surfaces which then collect other particles
Ž Formation of huge clinkers on heat transfer tubes, possibly dozens of tons
Ž Explosion caused by falling of huge slag during operation
• About 40 dead by serious slagging-related explosion in a CE-600MW boiler (1992)
Ž Increased corrosion & erosion, directly due to deposition or due to sootblowing
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2. Locations of Deposits

1— Ash hopper (bridging)

2— Ash slope (mechanical damage)
3— Burners (eyebrows)
4— Water-wall slag
5— Division wall slag
6— Platen super-heaters (bird-nesting)
7— Convection bank (bonded deposits)
8— Economizer (bonded deposits)
9— Air pre-heaters (gas inlet fouling)
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¾ 1- Ash hopper (bridging)

Ž Usually caused by
- slag running down the boiler walls and solidifying;
- large sintered deposits falling off super-heater platens and falling into hopper;
Ž It is largely unpredictable, but coals with
- high iron content & low ash fusion temperature are particularly susceptible;
- high heat content resulting in high flame temperature also have an effect.
Ž May be removed
- by thermal shock (from a load reduction or water lancing);
- by mechanical prodding, or ultimately during a shut-down.
- In severe cases, the bridge may have to be removed with help of explosives.

¾ 2- Ash slope (mechanical damage)

Ž May caused by
- other accumulations higher up in the boiler coming loose & dropping down
Ž May lead to
- damaging the tubes
- slide down & bridge over the hopper exit, if an ash slab there breaks loose
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¾ 3- Burners (eyebrows)
Ž Eyebrows formed above or below the burner mouth
Ž Bad effect:
- distort the flow pattern from the burner;
- cause quarl damages and flow blockage (in severe cases);
- develop into large lumps of slag hanging onto the burner tip;
- difficult to diagnose and correct.

¾ 4- Water wall slag

Ž Possible causes
- burn coals with a low ash fusion temperature and/or high heating values;
- interaction between burner type and boiler dimensions can be critical;
- swirl degree on short flame turbulent burners is critical;
- local reducing conditions due to lack of a sufficient air supply;
- Particle size is important: a coarse grind may result in local slagging.

¾ 5- Division wall slag

Ž In certain designs, slag can form on internal division walls within furnace.
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¾ 6- Platen super-heaters (bird-nesting)

Ž Birdsnesting in tube platens is due to deposits of sintered/fused ash
- build-up firstly on the bottom of the platens, may be removed fairly easily;
- larger accumulations resist on-load cleaning, become very harder with age;
- eventually bridge across tube bank, cause a major distortion of flows patterns;
- result in erosion & increased pressure drop, and may cause tube distortion;
- larger lumps can fall off, possibly damaging burners & main boiler hopper.

¾ 7- Convection bank (bonded deposits)

Ž Often the result of condensing alkali metal sulfates
- Hard thick deposits can form as other particles stick to the surface;
- initial deposits may be difficult to remove, and can cause tube corrosion;
- part deposits may be removed by differential expansion during load variations.
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¾ 8- Economizer (bonded deposits)

Ž Vulnerable to build-up of bonded dust, especially finned tube economizers
- high calcium content in ash can exacerbate this problem (for bituminous type ash)
- new problem resulting from the sootblowing on it, since
most of the resulting debris is carried forward with flue gas;
much of this is collected in economizer hopper located at bottom of back pass;
difficulties in clearing this material are sometimes encountered.

¾ 9- Air pre-heaters (gas inlet fouling)

Ž May due to
- large particles dislodged by sootblowing bypassing earlier collection hopper;
Ž So-called popcorn ash sometimes accumulates on air pre-heaters
- low density;
- may be deposited temporarily, then removed by sootblowing or by load changes;
- It then moves further along with flue gas into ESP and stack.
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3. Summary of Causes & Effects

¾ The causes for increased deposits may be summarized as,
Ž Coal quality
Ž Improper coal fineness
Ž Combustion problems and poor flame stability
Ž Low excess O2 or O2 imbalance
Ž Inadequate soot-blowing
Ž High furnace exit gas temperature

¾ Effects on overall performance of power station may be summarized as,

Ž Reduction in heat transfer in boiler
Ž Increased maintenance cost
Ž A reduction in boiler efficiency, and hence in the amount of fuel needed
and in the amount of CO2 formed
Ž Increased possibility of unplanned shut-downs
Ž Increased capital cost (for new plant)
Ž For existing plant, there is a trade-off between cost of a particular coal supply, and
its effects on operating costs of the plant
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4. Possible Solutions
¾ Possible measures on gas-side to remedy deposits potential:
Ž Increase in boiler size (and hence cost) for coals containing particular extraneous
components, or combinations of components;
Ž Increase excess air level to maintain oxidizing conditions
- at least in the zones slagging more probably occurs
- It will result in loss of efficiency, and increase NOx levels
Ž Use offset air to create “air-on-wall” or “air wrapping coal particles” combustion
manner to reduce the chance of collision of PC particles to walls.
Ž Install more sootblowers;
Ž Closer monitoring & testing conditions in a boiler to check factors such as uniform
distribution of fuel to different burners.
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Topic 6. Development Prospects

ISSUES:

1. Improve Thermal Efficiency

2. Meet Higher Environmental Requirement

3. Combustion Control to Improve Boiler Performance

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1. Improve Overall Thermal Efficiency of Power Plant

Increasing thermal efficiency can save energy resources, and can also have
the potential for reducing pollutants emissions per MWe.
¾ By Increasing Main-Steam Pressure & Temperature
Ž Average efficiency is in range of 35-36%
- large existing plants with sub-critical units firing higher quality coals
Ž Increasing steam pressure/temperature from 25MPa/540°C to 30MPa/600°C
can increase efficiency by nearly 2%.
Ž New plants with supercritical units: overall thermal efficiencies in 43-45%
- Denmark is one of the few countries with operating experience of such plants
¾ Using A Second Reheat Stage
Ž Can add about 1% to thermal efficiency
¾ Reducing Excess Air Ratio
Ž Reducing excess air ratio from 25% to 15% can bring a small increase.
¾ Reducing Stack Gas Exit Temperature
Ž Reducing stack gas temperature by 10K can bring about a similar increase.
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Improve Thermal Efficiency

Thermal Efficiency(%) HHV

60
AGMCFC

50 IGMCFC
USC
Supercritical Boiler TC
IGCC IGHTA
40
Ranking Barrier
PFBC
30
AGMCFC -Advanced gasification-molten carbonate fuel cell
IGMCFC -Integrated gasification-molten carbonate fuel cell
20 TC -Topping cycle
Pulverized Coal
USC -Ultra super-critical (DENMARK in leading position)
IGHTA -Integrated gasification-humid-air turbine
10 IGCC -Integrated gasification-combined cycle
PFBC -Pressured fluidized-bed combustion
First Station
0 Years
1880 1900 1920 1940 1960 1990 2000 2020
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2. Meet Higher Environmental Requirement

Environmental problems have attracted widespread attention.

Technologies need to be developed to control emissions, including
¾ NOx, SO2, particulate matter (Traditional)
¾ CO, other PIC (Products of In-complete Combustion) (Traditional)
¾ Trace elements, volatile organic compounds (VOC) (Recently)
¾ CO2 (More recently)
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3. Combustion Control to Improve Boiler Performance

To improve boiler performance, every stage and course of the combustion
process needs to be well controlled, for example
¾ Coal flow and distribution control to ensure an improved distribution
¾ Burner exit temperature
¾ Initial combustion process control
¾ Precise furnace stoichiometry history control
¾ Furnace exit gas temperature
¾ Boiler exit temperature
¾ Predict effects of coal quality on emissions & combustion performance
¾ Boiler slagging, fouling and corrosion control