A good design of Burner

 Occurrence of complete combustion.

 Correct installation and commissioning of the
appliance
 Appliance performs safe and efficient Operation.
 Ease of Maintenance
 Fail safe operation
 Minimum MTTB

Appliances and burners are designed and
certified

3-1
Simple rule of Burning

Burning Velocity

Air Flow velocity

Fuel
• Burning Velocity > Flow Velocity (Flame Flash Back)
• Burning Velocity < flow Velocity : ( Spontaneous Blow Off )
• Burning Velocity = Flow Velocity : (Stable Flame).
Stability & Flammability Limits

Rich Mixture
Fuel Flow rate

Zone
Flash
Back Stable Flame Blow off

Lean Mixture Zone

Air Flow rate

Flame behaviour depends upon “Aeration
System”
 Aeration of  burner 
Air necessary for combustion, called AERATION.
i. The primary air to initiate reaction, normally entrained by the gas jet
and mixed with the gas before the burner port;
ii. The secondary air to propagate reaction, to balance amount of
stoichiometric air and generate maximum amount of heat from the fuel.
Types of Aeration
1. Post-aerated

Gas is supplied at the burner head;

Air for combustion is supplied from the surroundings of burner
head.
2 . Split aerated

Approximately half the air enters in the burner and
mixed with the gas prior to burning.

The remaining air is supplied at the point of
combustion i.e. burner head. 3-4
Aeration of burners
 Burner adjustment
An adjustable aerated
burner helps to achieve
correct flame
.
a. Correct flame

b. Over-aerated

c. Under-aerated

3-6
Components of an
accurate FLAME

1-7
 Oxy-fuel combustion

Oxy-fuel combustion is a step towards CES

• Pure oxygen is supplied instead of air during the
combustion Process
• The products of combustion are nearly pure CO2 and
water.
• CO2 can be easily isolated simply by cooling the flue
gases.
• The efficiencies of a power plants improve up to 30%
• A step towards zero emission technology and CO2
production can be attained..

1-8
 Oxy-fuel combustion process


Oxygen up to 95% purity supplied to combustor to produce
mainly CO2, water and NOx emission reduces to zero.

Recycling of flue gas enhances combustion efficiency,

Oxy- combustion also control the flame temperature

Absences of nitrogen correspondingly reduces heat losses.

Addition of Oxygen separation plant increases
capital and operating costs
 Merits of Oxy-fuel combustion


Oxy-fuel combustion is technically feasible with current
technologies

CO2 in flue gas is relatively pure and can be utilized for
other processes;

Potential to reduce pollutant emissions, especially Nox

However, SOx removal might be required

Higher heat capacities of CO2 & H2O than N2, which
strengthen the process of heat transfer.
 General Guide Lines for Design

The parameters should satisfy

 Sufficient time & physical environment to complete

the combustion of fuel.

 Adequate radiative heating surfaces to cool the flue

gas sufficiently to ensure safe operation.

 Aerodynamics should prevent impingement of

flames.
 Provision of reliable natural circulation

 An exit path for free fall of ash, without major heat

loss.
 The configuration of the furnace should be compact

enough to minimize the construction material.

 Assignment
• Explain the problem of depletion of energy resources and future
solutions.

• Describe the environmental damage associated with the use of fossil

fuels such as Global warming, acid rains, dangers posed by leaded
fuels, oil spills, gas leaks and explosions, water pollution caused by
poorly managed coal mines, and air pollution.

• Discuss the environmental damage associated with the use of fuel-

wood, wind and uranium as a source of energy.

• Suggest quantitatively the possible solutions of the

energy related problem.

Date of submission: 3rd June, 2021

1-12
 Combustion Calculations
Air to fuel ratio during Combustion

13
Combustion calculations (Combustion is a Chemical reaction)

Practical point of view Theoretical point of view

Major aspects of Calculations

regarding combustion.
Stack A - COMBUSTION STOICHIOMETRY
i. Stoichiometric fuel/air mass ratio;
Volume fraction on ii. Flue gas composition after combustion
Dry Flue Gases iii. Excess of air evaluation
iv. Chemical Equilibrium
Air B - COMBUSTION THERMODYNAMICS
To
v. Heat production equipment efficiency
analyzer
vi. Combustion control & dynamics
vii. Calculation of higher & lower
enthalpies of combustion.
Flue Gases
C – COMBUSTION KINATICS
Analysis Device
viii. Chemical kinetic reaction mechanism
Combustion ix. Order of reaction & rate of reaction
Chamber Purging x. Reaction equilibrium constants
xi. Catalytic oxidation,
xii. SCR ( Selective cat. Reduction)

Fuel 14
Determine the stoichiometric fuel/air mass ratio and product gas
composition for combustion of octane (C8H18 ) in air.
Solution: Write an overall stoichiometric reaction;
C8H18 + 12.5(O2+ 3.78N2) ----+- 8CO2 + 9H2O + 47.25N2

For each mole of fuel burned, 59.75 mole of air is required. The molecular
weight of octane is 114.
The fuel/air mass ratio for stoichiometric combustion is, therefore,
(mf /ma ) = 114 / [12.5(32 + 3.78 x 28)] = 114/ 1723 = 0.0662

Total number of moles produced during combustion;

= 8 + 9 + 47.25 = 64.25
Finally, the product gas composition (in mole fraction )

YCO2, = 8/ 64.25 = 0.125 = 12.5% 12.5 + 3.78x12.5 =

59.75
YH2O = ( 9/ 64.2) = 0.140 = 14.0%
YN2 = 47.25/ 64.25 = 0.735 = 73.5%
15
 Significance of the Combustion Calculations
An initial tool to design a COMBUSTOR/ BURNER
A challenge for the engineers, to design state of the art
combustor;
 To accomplish a complete, stable, safe & efficient combustion
operation at high/low flow rates.

Main Attributes of a combustor.

• Intimate mixing of air and fuel before ignition
• Secondary air supply for complete combustion.
• Adjustment of optimum operating characteristics,
• Design must address the fallowing;
i. Improve fuel efficiency,
ii. Quick transient response during fluctuating conditions e.g.
(fuel & air flow rates & fuel quality).
iii. Minimize production of low level of emissions, i.e. unburnt
fuel, CO and soot emissions.
16
 Cont.…

The flame should remain inside the combustor

(outside combustion is unsafe and may reduce combustion
efficiency)
 Compact size and light in weight.
 Uniform exit temperature profile.
 NO specific hot spots (may damage a combustor
internally)
 Capable to operate at wide range of pressures,
temperatures, and mass flow rates.

• Combustion efficiency - measure of effective heat content of a

fuel is transferred into usable heat.
• Stack temperature and flue gas composition (O2.N2, CO, CO2) are
primary indicators of combustion efficiency.

17
 I. Combustion – Chemical reaction : Fundamental laws

Combustible Elements in Fuels :

 
C S H2 CO CH4 C2H4 C2H6 C3H8 ......
Alkanes : CnH2n+2
Alkenes : CnH2n
Aromatics ...
Combustion :  Chemical Reaction of Oxidation + HEAT
 
C + O2  CO2
S + O2  SO2
H2 + ½ O 2  H2O
CO + ½ O2  CO2
CH4 + 2 O2  CO2 + 2 H2O
C2 H4 + 3 O2  2 CO2 + 2 H2O
........
CnH2n+2 + ½ ( 3n + 1 ) O2  n CO2 + ( n + 1 ) H2O
18
Combustion Calculations are based on balanced equations and reaction
 Some important laws relevant to combustion :
i) Avogadro Theorem
At same pressure and temperature, 1 kmole of every gas occupies the same volume.

For Normal Conditions/STP ( t= 273 °K, p = 760 mm Hg) : Vkmole  22.414 m3

ii) Law of Conservation of Mass The total MASS in reaction remains constant
iii) Law of Conservation of Energy
iv) 1st and 2nd Laws of thermodynamics

Application to air composition (combustion) :

O2 N2 ( Ar Ne Xe … )

19
 Air required for Combustion – Production of flue gases

Fuel composition

 For solid and liquid fuel : elementary mass composition

 Combustible Elements : C (H) (S) ... n

 Oxygen in Fuel : (O)
 Humidity : (H2O)
 i  1
i 1
 Inert Elements : (N) (Ash)

 For gas fuel : molar (volume) composition

 Combustible components : [H2 ] [CO ] [CH4 ] [C2H4 ] [C2H6] ...

 (Oxygen in Fuel : [O2 ])
 Humidity : [H2O ] n

 Inert Elements : [N2 ] [CO2 ] …  [i ]  1

i 1

20
Definition : Excess of air

Practical Air Requirement


Theoretical need of Air

  1  Stoechiometry

actual A / F ratio  stoichiometric A / F ratio

100%
stoichiometric A / F ratio

(l - 1) * 100
21
 SOLID and LIQUID FUEL - Combustion Calculations

Elements before combustion Elements after combustion - Flue gases

1 kg of fuel kmole of fuel kmole of O 2 kmole CO 2 kmole SO 2 kmole H 2 O kmole N 2 kmole O 2
(C) (C)/12 of C (C)/12 (C)/12 - - - -
(H) (H)/2 of H2 (H)/4 - - (H)/2 - -
(S) (S)/32 of S (S)/32 - (S)/32 - - -
(O) (O)/32 of O2 -(O)/32 - - - - -
(N) (N)/28 of N2 - - - - (N)/28 -
(H2O) (H2O)/18 of H2O - - - (H2O)/18 - -
(Ash) - - - - - - -
…. … … … … … … …
Stoechiometry O2 (C)/12 (S)/32 (H)/2+(H2O)/18 (N)/28+3.76  O2 -
Excess of Air (-1) O2 3.76( -1)  O2 ( -1)  O2
TOTAL O2 (C)/12 (S)/32 (H)/2+(H2O)/18 (N)/28+3.76  O2 ( -1)  O2

3
Air requirement for combustion in m N /kg of fuel

22.414 [lS O 2/0.21]

3
Flue gases produced by combustion in m N /kg of fuel

22.414 [(C)/12+(S)/32+(H)/2+(H2O)/18+(N)/28+3.76O2+(-1) O2]

22
 Theoretical Calculations

The complete relationship for stoichiometric combustion:

CH4 + 2O2 + 7.52N2 → CO2 + 2H2O +7.52N2

volume of N2 will be 2×79÷21=7.52.


A very small amount of N2 is oxidized

The resulting oxides of nitrogen (NOX) are not formed in
sufficient quantities; which can be ignored.

However, they are highly significant in terms of air

pollution.

23
• Complete combustion means that 1 volume of CH4 requires
(2+7.52=9.52) volumes of air,
• Therefore, stoichiometric air-to-fuel (A/F) ratio for CH4 is
9.52.
• In practice it is impossible to obtain complete combustion
under stoichiometric conditions.

Excess air is Essential


Excess air (%age) is required and can be estimated
by:

actual A / F ratio  stoichiometric A / F ratio

100%
stoichiometric A / F ratio


Excess air will always reduce the efficiency of a
combustion system.
24

Example:

A gas consists of 70% propane (C3H8) and 30% butane

(C4H10) by volume. Find:
(a) The stoichiometric air-to-fuel ratio and
(b) The percentage excess air present if a dry analysis of
the combustion products shows 9% CO2 (assume
complete combustion).


Solution:

The combustion reactions for propane and butane are:

C3 H 8  5 O2  18.8 N 2  3 CO2  4 H 2O  18.8 N 2

C4 H10  6.5 O2  24.5 N 2  4 CO2  5 H 2O  24.5 N 2

25

(a) Stoichiometric Air Requirement
Basis of Calculations : 1 volume of propane content requires
0.7 × (5 + 18.8) = 16.7 vols air and the butane requires
0.3 × (6.5 + 24.5) = 6.3 vols air ( stoichiometric air-to-fuel ratio is 23:1)

(b) Excess Air
The combustion products (dry) will contain
i) (0.7 × 3) + (0.3 × 4) = 3.3 vols CO2
ii) (0.7 × 18.8) + (0.3 × 24.5) = 20.5 vols N2
i + ii = 23.8
plus υ volumes excess air, giving a total volume of products of
(23.8 + υ ).
 Given that the measured CO2 in the products is 9%, we can write:
hence υ = 12.87 vols

The stoichiometric air requirement is 23 vols so the
9 3.3
percentage excess air is 100 (23.8   )


12.87
 100%  55.9%
23
26
Example 2:

Combustion Calculation for a Coal

A coal has the following ultimate analysis:
% by mass
Carbon 90
Hydrogen 3
Oxygen 2.5
Nitrogen 1
Sulfur 0.5
Ash 3

Calculate:
(a) the volumetric air supply rate required if 500 kg/h of coal is to be burned at
20% excess air and
(b) the resulting %CO2 (dry) by volume in the combustion products.

27

Solution:
Lay out the calculation on a tabular basis using 1 kg coal:
Mass (per kg) O2 Required Products
32 44
0.9   3.3
0.9   2.4 12
Carbon 0.9 12
18
0.03 
16
 0.24
0.03   0.27
Hydrogen 0.03 2 2
32 64
0.005   0.005
0.005   0.01
Sulfur 0.005 32 32

Oxygen 0.025 -0.025 -

Nitrogen 0.01 - 0.01
Ash 0.03 - -

28

(a)Oxygen required to burn 1 kg coal = 2.4 +
0.24 + 0.005 - 0.025 = 2.62 kg.
2.62
Air required =  11.25 kg
0.233
Actual air supplied = 11.25 × 1.2 = 13.5 kg
Assuming a density for air of 1.2 kg/m3, the
flow rate will be:
500
13.5   1.56 m 3 /s
1.2  3600

29
 (b) To get the %CO2 in the combustion products we need to
know the amounts of oxygen and nitrogen in the flue gases.
Air supplied = 13.5 kg per kg coal, of which oxygen is
13.5 × 0.233 = 3.14 kg, and nitrogen
13.5 – 3.14 = 10.36 kg.

The combustion products will thus contain:
3.14 – 2.62 = 0.52 kg O2 and
10.36 + 0.01 = 10.37 kg N2.

A second tabular procedure can now be used for the volumetric
composition of the flue gases:
Product Mass/kg coal Mol. Wt. kmoles /kg coal


%volume
CO2 3.3 44 0.075=(3.3/44) 16.25=(0.075/0.4614)
SO2 0.01 64 0.000156 0.03
O2 0.52 32 0.0162 3.51
N2 10.37 28 80.20
0.37
0.4614

30
 Significance of the Flue Gas Composition

Flue gas composition can be determined On-site and off site


Dry volumetric concentration of either CO2 or O2 in the flue
gases.

The data can be used to calculate:


Air-to-fuel ratio (or excess air)depending upon
a. Nature & the composition of the fuel
b. %age combustion of the fuel.
c. %age of O2 or CO2 and other gases in the flue gas,

Influenced by %age of excess air and also by the carbon :

hydrogen ratio present in the fuel.
31
d.
The combustion air is supplied to the grate, flows upwards through the fuel-bed.
The air is first heated by the coal ash, and then reacts with the high
temperature coal char.
The combustion reaction produces CO2 and releases a large amount of heat, resulting
in the rapid rise in the bed temperature.

Various Combustion Conditions

Combustion of Pure / mixed fuel

Combustion under Sub/ super Stoichiometric Conditions
• Incomplete combustion
• Complete combustion with primary / secondary air supply system
• Spontaneous combustion
• Packed bed, fluidized bed combustion
• Rich and lean combustion
• Combustion with recycling with and without purging

32
 Air Preheater (APH) & Staging of Air supply
• The inlet air to the burner gets heated by the
outgoing flue gases,
i. facilitate combustion,
ii. reduce the moisture content,
iii. further increase the burner efficiency.
• Providing air at multi-staging generally
i. reduces the combustion temperature,
ii. provide more convective heat
iii. reduces NOx formation to control pollution
caused by exhaust gases.
• while single stage combustion
• increase the combustion temperature,
• provide more radiative heat as compared to
convective heat transfer. .
• Primary air and Secondary air plays an important
role in fuel combustion,
• May be provided in different ratios according to
the fuel quantity and quality
• In modern burners incorporate an air wash system, in secondary air is supplied –
• the air wash vent is provided at the top of the stove to prevent soot and dirt from
settling.
33
Significance of preheated air supply in a combustor:
• For fuel-fired industrial heating processes, one of the most
effective method to improve efficiency and productivity is
supply preheated air to the burners.
• Air is preheated by utilizing the heat of exhaust gas stream,
which is at elevated temperatures

Significance of 'air wash’

• Washed air prevent to build up of soot and coal-tar that is released
by burning of coal/ wood.
• Air wash occurs on a specially placed vent or vents to draw
in air from the atmosphere,

Problem: If pure carbon is burnt, the only combustion product is

CO2 , in the flue gas.(i.e. stoichiometric combustion of carbon will
produce 21% by volume CO2.)
Hence,1 kg carbon requires 32/12=2.67 kg of “O2” for complete
combustion but 1 kg hydrogen requires 8 kg “O2”
34
Combustion of Pure fuel

Take the combustion of two “extreme” cases: one kmole of carbon
and one kmole of methane. In each case we will consider 100%
excess air.

The combustion of carbon under these conditions is described by:
C+ 2 O2 + 7.52 N2 → CO2 + O2 + 7.52 N2
The percentage of oxygen in the flue gas is thus:
[1/(1+1+7.52)]×100%=10.5%

The corresponding equation for methane is
CH4 + 4 O2 + 15.05 N2 → CO2 +2 H2O +2 O2 +15.05 N2
giving a percentage oxygen of
[2/(1+2+15.05)]×100%=11%

35
 Sub-stoichiometric Combustion
The mechanism of combustion occurs with less than the
stoichiometric air requirement
:
(1) The available oxygen firstly reacts with hydrogen in the fuel to form
water vapor.

(2) The carbon in the fuel is then burned to carbon monoxide.

(3) The remaining oxygen is consumed to convert carbon monoxide to

carbon dioxide.

(4) Further if more oxygen is present, it may produce SOX and NOX

36
Problem : Combustion under Sub-Stoichiometric Conditions


Combustion of a Fuel under Sub-Stoichiometric
Conditions, estimate the wet and dry flue gas
composition if propane is burned with 95% of the
stoichiometric air requirement.

Solution:
the stoichiometric reaction for this fuel is
C3H8 + 5 O2 → 3 CO2 + 4H2O
On a volumetric basis we have (5 × 0.95)=4.75 volumes of
O2 available. This means that the accompanying nitrogen
is 17.87 volumes.

37

Step 1:
All hydrogen in the fuel will react to form water.

This will produce 4 volumes of water vapor and

consume 2 volumes of oxygen, leaving 2.75 volumes
for further combustion of the carbon in the fuel.

Step 2:

Assume that all the carbon initially burns to carbon
monoxide and then the remaining oxygen is used in
burning the carbon monoxide to carbon dioxide.

38

Burning the carbon to CO will produce 3 volumes of CO
and use up 1.5 volumes of oxygen, leaving (2.75-1.5)=1.25
volumes of oxygen for further combustion.


Next reaction is
CO + ½ O2 → CO2
So 1.25 volumes oxygen can burn 2.5 volumes of carbon
monoxide, producing 2.5 volumes of carbon dioxide.

The remaining carbon monoxide is therefore
(3-2.5)=0.5 volume.

39

The products of combustion are thus:
N2 17.87 volumes
CO 0.5
CO2 2.5
H 2O 4.0
Total 24.87


Giving the percentage compositions:
Wet(%) Dry(%)
N2 71.9 85.6
CO 2.0 2.4
CO2 10.0 12.0
H 2O 16.1 -

40
 Heating values of fuels

The Heat of Reaction ( Reaction) also known and Enthalpy of

• The change in enthalpy of a chemical reaction that occurs at a
constant pressure.
• It is a thermodynamic unit of measurement
• Used to calculate the amount of energy per mole either released or
produced during a reaction.

The heat of combustion
 
 when Fuels i.e.  (hydrocarbons or other
organic material) undergoes a complete
reaction with O2 at STP produces CO2, H2O, CO
etc. & release heat.
May be expressed as :
• energy/mole of fuel (kJ/mole)
• energy/mass of fuel
• energy/volume of the fuel

41
 II. Heating values of fuels
Combustible Elements in Fuels :
C S H2 CO CH4 C2H4 C2H6 C3H8 ......
Alkanes : CnH2n+2
Alkenes : CnH2n
Aromatics ...
Combustion :

N° C hem icalR eaction H eat H eat H eat

3
R ef.:StandardC onditions kJ/km ole kJ/kg kJ/m N
1 C+O 2 C O2 404400 33700 -
2 C+½O 2 C O 121400 10117 -
3 S +O 2 S O2 296930 9279 -
4 CO +½O 2 C O2 283000 10107 12626
5 C+2H 2 C H 4 85800 7140
6 H2 +½ O 2 H 2O VAP 241800 120900 10790
7 H2 +½ O 2 H 2O LIQ 285800 142900 12750
8 CH 4 +2O 2 C O 2 +2H 2OVAP 802200 50040 35790
9 CH 4 +2O 2 C O 2 +2H 2OLIQ 890200 55637 39710
42
Principle of Energy balance :
R
e
ac
t
i
on1
=R
ea
c
ti
on2
+Re
a
ct
i
on4
4
0
44
00=1
2
14
00+2
83
0
00

R
e
ac
t
i
on8
=R
ea
c
ti
on1
+2x
Re
ac
t
i
on6
-R
ea
c
ti
on5
8
0
22
00=4
0
44
00+
2x2
4
18
00-8
5
80
0
Heating (calorific) value : Definition
Calorimeter Experiment at constant VOLUME
Fuel + Air Cooling
Patm , t = 25 °C

 Hot flue gas  Þ Cold flue gas

At t = 25°C

Adiabatic combustion
Heat which is extracted = Heating value

Experiment at constant PRESSURE

43
 I. Energy balance and efficiency

1. Scheme of heat production equipment

Heat exchanger
Burner Flue Gas
Fuel

Air

Load to be heated

44
 Fuel
- Mass Flow Rate : qC ( kg/s )
- Calorific Value : HCV or LCV ( kJ/kg )

Air
-
A
i
r
r
e
q
-
S
p
e
c
i
f
u
i
r
e
d
i
c
:
h
A
f
o
r
c
o
(
k
J
/
k
g
m
b
u
s
t
i
o
n
)
:
V
A
,(
k
go
f
a
i
r
/
k
go
f
f
u
e
l) 
Flue Gas
- Flue gas produced : VF, ( kg of flue gas/kg of fuel )
- Specific enthalpy of flue gas : hF=cF.tF ( kJ/kg )

Load to be heated

- Useful Thermal Power transferred to load : QUSE ( kW )

Production de la chaleur -
45
Chaudière
2. Input and Output of Energy

-
I
NPU
T
OF
E
NE
RG
Y

Q
(
CL
CV+
V
A
, h
)
A (
kJ
/
sor
kW)
 
k
g
/
skJ
/
kgk
g
/
kgk
J
/
kg

- OUTPUT OF ENERGY (in kW)

. Useful Thermal Power ( Energy transferred to load ) : QUSE

. Energy Loss in Flue Gases : qC VF, hF

. Energy Loss from Walls (convection, radiation): QWALL = r qC LCV

. Energy Loss from Unburn Fuel (proportion i) : i qC LCW

46
3. Efficiency of heat production equipment

Input of Energy Output of Energy

QC  LCV  VA, hA  QUSE  QCVF , hF  iQC LCV  rQC LCV

Definition QUSE QUSE

of  
Efficiency QAvailable QC LCV

After calculation

  1   Losses  1  (e  i  r ) - i : unburn fuel loss

VF , hF  VA, hA - e : loss in flue gases ( loss in stack )
with e  - r : radiation ( convection ) heat loss
LCV

Production de la chaleur -
47
Chaudière
A coal-burning power plant generates electrical power at
a rate of 500 megawatts (MW) (5.00 × 108 J/s). The plant
has an overall efficiency of 37.5% (0.375) for the
conversion of heat to electricity.
a) Calculate the electrical energy (in joules) generated in 1
year of operation and the heat energy used for that
purpose.
b) Assuming the power plant burns coal that releases 30
kJ/g, calculate the mass of coal (in grams and metric tons)
that is burned in 1 year of operation. Hint: 1 metric ton
= 1 × 103 kg = 1 × 10 6 g
Solution:

The complete combustion of ethane is given in equation.

The heat of combustion of ethane is 52.0 KJ/g. How

much heat is if 1.0 mol of ethane undergoes complete
combustion?
Solution:
Mercury (Hg) is a contaminant of coal ranging from 50-200 ppb.
Calculate tons of mercury in the coal per year based on lower (50 ppb)
and higher (200 ppb) concentrations while considering a typical
power plant that burns 1.5 million tons of coal each year.
Solution:
Suppose x is the amount of Hg in coal that burns over a year

For 50 ppb (for lower concentration):


For 200 ppb (for higher concentration):