Ash Handling

System

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 What is Ash?

• Ash is the residue remaining after the coal has been

incinerated to constant weight under standard
conditions.
• Ash is oxidised form of the mineral matters present
in coal.
• Typical ash composition : SiO2, Al2O3, Fe2O3, CaO,
MgO etc.
• Coal with more SiO2 & Al2O3, Ash MP > 1400ºC
• Coal with more Fe2O3, CaO & MgO, Ash MP <
1100ºC

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 Challenges of Ash Handling
• Indian coal presents high ash content (30% -40%)
generally which tends to be inconsistent. Design of the
system has to adequately cover anticipated variations and
be capable of handling the worst scenario.
• A typical 2000 MW station produce around 9000T to
12000T of ash per day.
• This huge amount of ash needs to be disposed off
continuously in environment friendly manner.
• System has to be reliable with least maintenance
problems.
• System has to be energy efficient.
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 Types of Ash
• 20 % Of the ash falls at the bottom of the furnace known
as Bottom Ash (BA).
• 80 % of the ash carried away with flue gas known as FA.
• BA can form slag and clinker depending on the
temperature of the combustion zone and environment
inside.
• Reducing environment (Less O2) reduces ash MP.
• BA is disposed off through BA disposal system.
• FA is collected through ESP and disposed through FA
disposal system.

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 Ash Generation Process
Overburden Surge Pile
Coal Seam Pulverize (-150)

Electrostatic Precipitator Boiler

Flue Flue Gas
Gas Fly Ash
Fly Ash Bottom Ash

Bottom
Fly Ash
Ash
Smoke
Stack

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 Ash Volumes and Properties
Furnace ESP
(1300 - 1500°C)

Economizer Electrostatic Stack

Precipitator
Air
preheater
Pulverize APH
d

Stage B: 17 %
Stage A: 80 %

Stage C: 3 %
Coal

Coal Bottom Ash Eco Ash APH Ash Fly ash

100 % 10-20 % 1% 1% 80-90 % Ash
Fineness
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 Ash Quantities
• System capacity based on maximum ash produced
in each unit
– worst coal firing at BMCR
• Typical ash data (tph)

210 MW 500 MW 660 MW

TOTAL ASH 75 180 240
BOTTOM ASH 11.25 28 36
ECONOMISER ASH 2.25 6 7
AIR PREHEATER ASH 1.5 4 5
ESP ASH 60 144 192
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Ash Accumulation Points and Typical Ash
Distribution of A Dry Bottom Furnace

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 Subsystems
• Bottom Ash
• Fly Ash
– Economiser Ash
– Air Preheater Ash
– ESP Ash
• Ash Disposal
– Wet Form – Slurry To Ash Pond
– Dry/Moist Form – Ash Mound In Dump Area
• Ash Water,etc.
– LP– Bottom Ash, Slurry Sump(s) Make-up,
Disposal Line Flushing
– HP – Bottom Ash , Fly Ash Sluicing
– BA Overflow Water Clarification and Recycling
– Sealing/Cooling – Various Equipments
– Instrument Air
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Bottom Ash
Handling

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 Bottom Ash Handling Systems

• Wet Type

• Continuous Types
–Scraper-chain Conveyor With Trench
Sluice/Centrifugal Pumps
–Screw Conveyor With Trench Sluice

• Intermittent Types
–Water-impounded Hopper With Jet Pumps
–Open-hearth Hopper With Trench Sluice
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Scraper-Chain Conveyor

Scraper Chain
Conveyor

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 Screw Conveyor
• One transition hopper per unit

• Water sprayed on bottom ash falling through

hopper for quenching

• Ash falls into trough below hopper

• One screw conveyor ,inclined upwards, provided

in trough to remove the ash continuously

• Dewatered ash sluiced via trench to slurry

disposal pump house
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 Water - Impounded Hopper With Jet Pumps
• One refractory-lined storage hopper per unit
• Hopper sized for 5-8 hours capacity on dry ash basis
depending on space available below boiler furnace
• Hopper continuously supplied with water from dedicated
pumps
– For cooling the refractory lining
– For cooling hot bottom ash
– to quench and shatter clinkers
• Hopper overflow water recycled in ash handling plant after
settling out the carryover ash
• Hopper evacuated once in 4 hours or 8 hours using jet
pumps supplied with high pressure water from dedicated
pumps. Ash sluiced via pipelines to main slurry pump
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Various Components of BA Handling

Bottom Ash Hopper Details

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 Various Components of BA Handling

Bottom Ash Hopper Overflow Details

Bottom Ash Hopper Discharge Door,
Enclosure, and Accessories

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 Various Components of BA Handling

Single-Roll Crusher

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Various Components of BA Handling

Double-Roll Crusher

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Various Components of BA Handling

Ejector

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Various Components of BA Handling

Centrifugal Ash Pump Assembly

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Various Components of BA Handling

Sleeve-Type Coupling

Tangential Clamping-
Type Coupling

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Various Components of BA Handling

Rotary Slide Gate

Straight-Line Slide Gate

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Various Components of BA Handling

Dewatering
Bin

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Schemes - Bottom Ash Handling System

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 Schemes - Bottom Ash Handling System

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 Schemes - Bottom Ash Handling System

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 Schemes - Bottom Ash Handling System

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 Schemes - Bottom Ash Handling System

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Fly Ash
Handling

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 Types of Fly Ash
• Economiser Ash
Particle size varies from 1/4 to 2 inches that mainly result
from soot blowing. The temperature of this ash ranges from
600 to 9000F.
• Air Preheater Ash
Air heater ash is usually finer and more uniformly sized than
economizer ash. The particle sizes range from 100 to 600
microns, while the ash temperature ranges from 250 to
400ºF.
• Electro Static Precipitator Ash
The particle sizes range from 50 to 400 microns at 225 –
350ºF in cold-side ESPs and are about 100 microns at
400–800º F in hot precipitators.
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 Fly Ash Removal Systems

- Flushing Box and Trench Sluice (Wet System)

- Pneumatic Type (Dry System)

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 Fly Ash Conveying System

• Pressure System
• Vacuum System
• Combination Vacuum / Pressure System
• Dense Phase system

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Fly Ash Pressure Conveying System

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Fly Ash Vacuum Conveying System

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Comparison - Pneumatic Vacuum &
Pressure Systems

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Fly Ash Vacuum/Pressure Conveying
System

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 ESP Ash Evacuation
• Single stage conveying to silo by
– Vacuum system if tonnage is within 60 tph and/or distance
is within 150 m
– Otherwise, pressure system for distance within 400m
from ESP

• Two-stage conveying system for distance more than

400m
– Vacuum extraction + pressure transportation
– Pressure extraction + pressure transportation

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Dense Phase Fly Ash Conveying
System

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 Ash Water System
• Raw water, CW blow down, recycled water from
ash pond used for ash sluicing

• Clarified water for sealing/cooling

• Horizontal, centrifugal pumps widely used

– Lesser cost
– Easier to inspect and maintain

• Ash pond water recycled to save on water

consumption and from environment angle

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 Ash Disposal System

• Conventional Lean Concentration Slurry Disposal

(LCSD) System

• High Concentration Slurry Disposal (HCSD)

System

• Dry Ash mound

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Various Components – Fly Ash Conveying
System

Airlock Valve Equalizer Valve

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 Various Components – Fly Ash Conveying
System

Integral Wear-Back Fitting Replaceable Wear-Back Fitting

Adapter

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 Various Components – Fly Ash Conveying
System

Ash Handling
Valve

Pugmill Unloader

Hydraulic
Vacuum Device

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Various Components – Fly Ash Conveying
System

Paddle Mix Unloader

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Various Components – Fly Ash Conveying
System

Rotary Unloader
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 Ash Utilisation
Major usage of ash
•Fly ash bricks / blocks
•Cellular concrete products
•Light weight aggregates
•Concrete and mortar
•In manufacture of cement
•In manufacture of asbestos products
•Road construction
•Embankment/back fills/land development
•Controlled low strength material (CLSM)
•In agriculture
•Mine filling
•Manufacture of fertiliser

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 Ash Utilisation
Other usage
•Manufacture of distemper
•Floor and wall tiles
•Refractory bricks
•Manufacture of ceramics
•Use with Ferro cement
•Recovery of metals
•Use in grouting
•Manufacture of alum
•Extraction of Cenospheres
•Domestic cleaning powder
•In synthetic wood
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THANK YOU

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