Furnace design and
operation
Fuel handling systems
Fuel handling systems
Safe and effective fuel handling systems are an essential
requirement of any industrial combustion system
For gas, which is usually provided under pressure at the
factory gate, the fuel handling system consists simply of
pipework and one or more valve train assemblies
For oil, the system is more complicated and requires
storage tanks, normally with heaters, pumping and
heating units, pipework and valve train assemblies
Coal handling and firing systems are much more
complex than either oil or gas handling systems and
require a great deal of mechanical handling plant.
Gas systems
In most countries, prescriptive national standards
specify the design of gas valve trains and the
components that shall be used
It is important that these standards are referred to
when designing, specifying or maintaining fuel gas
systems, since failure to comply can cause significant
cost and long delays
Gas systems
Pipework and valves are sized using normal velocity and pressure
drop considerations
Higher velocities and pressure drops require smaller valves and
pipework and hence results in a cheaper valve train. However, higher
velocities and pressure drops also produce higher noise levels, owing to
vortex shedding off internal ridges and nozzle noise caused by flow
valve orifices, etc
All flexible hoses should be smooth bore with corrugated metallic hoses
lined using a smooth bore liner
In addition to the main gas valve train most installations require a
pilot valve train. This is usually a branch off the main line with its
own pressure regulator and double block safety shutoff valves
Gas valve trains
This system will operate with premixed burners in combustion chambers
with negative, neutral, or positive pressures up to 2” W. C.
Gas valve trains
This system will operate with diffusion gas burners. Double block and
bleed safety shut off
Gas safety systems
The safety integrity is normally achieved by either double block and
bleed valves or by using two valves in series with leak testing,
together with position proving for the valves
Double block and bleed - When the gas to the burner is shut off both
the main valves are closed and the vent valve is open. Thus if gas leaks
past the upstream valve it vents safely to atmosphere even if the
downstream valve is leaking. When gas is to be supplied to the burner,
the vent valve closes and the main valves open. The main gas valves
normally have to be proved closed with the vent valve open, before the
start up sequence can commence.
Gas safety systems
Leak testing - This system dispenses with the vent valve by
undertaking a leak test on both safety shutoff valves during the pre-
start purge. The system functions by evacuating or discharging the gas
trapped between the valves. The pressure in this part of the valve train
is checked for a pre-set period. If the pressure rises, it indicates that
the upstream valve is leaking and the start up is abandoned and
lockout occurs. Once the integrity of the upstream valve is proven, the
space between the valves is refilled and the pressure again measured
for a predetermined time. If the pressure falls it shows that the down
stream valve is leaking and again lockout occurs. Thus if a leak is
detected in either valve the start-up is aborted.
Fuel oil systems
Oil fuels are subdivided into distillate fuels, such as
kerosene and diesel oil, and residual fuels. In addition,
waste lubricating oil is increasingly used as a
supplementary fuel in a number of plants
Distillate fuels do not require heating, owing to their relatively low
viscosities at ambient temperature
Residual oils and waste lubricating oils must be heated to reduce their
viscosity to approximately 15-25 cSt to achieve satisfactory atomisation
and combustion
The only exception to this requirement is the rotary cup atomiser, which
can tolerate higher viscosities, up to 40-50 cSt but is rarely used for firing
furnaces
Heating and filtration
The higher asphaltenes content of today's "cracked" and
"reformed" fuels requires better filtration and heating to
a higher temperature to reduce the viscosity relative to
straight run fuels
Failure of the oil pumping system can cause serious
problems since once cold, solidified oil can be impossible
to move solely by pumping
Oil supply systems are divided into two parts
Storage pumping and heating
Burner oil valve trains
Storage
Residual fuel oils are far too viscous to pump at ambient
temperature, they therefore have to be stored and
pumped at elevated temperature in order to reduce the
viscosity around a ring main
Since fuel oil is an emulsion, it should be stored at the lowest practical
pumping temperature to prevent it deteriorating
The velocity in the ring main is normally between 1 and 3 m/s
depending on the allowable pressure loss
Pumps, filters, heaters, etc. are normally duplicated to allow servicing
while the furnace remains operational
Fuel oil supply
Typical oil system ring main with multiple furnace take-offs and steam
trace heating
Fuel oil heating
The pumping and heating unit is a vitally important
feature of a heavy fuel oil system and the importance of
adequate heating of the oil to the correct atomising
temperature cannot be stressed too strongly
The oil is normally heated by saturated steam or
electricity and many heater units incorporate both to
ensure the ability to start in the event that steam is
unavailable
Usually the heaters are factory assembled, together with
the filters and high pressure pumps, into a conveniently
packaged pumping and heating unit
Fuel oil supply heating
Typical oil pumping and heating unit
Fuel oil valve train
The flow of oil to a plant unit, or an individual burner, is
normally controlled by a valve train, which allows fuel to
flow to the burner(s) only when instructed by the burner
management system
The valve train also controls the flow-rate of fuel and
hence the heat output of the burner
All valves and components used in the valve train should
be “Fire Safe”. That is in the event of fire, the valves
seal tight and do not leak oil to further feed the fire.
Fuel oil valve train
Typical oil valve train for twin fluid atomiser
Note - For clarity, the train is shown without trace heating and lagging
Fuel oil valve train
Great attention must be paid to the elimination of "dead
legs" in valve trains and fuel oil systems, since such
"dead legs" can cause major problems, especially on
start-up from cold
Provision for automatic purge of oil from the burner
should be provided to ensure no plugs of cold oil remain
after shutdown
Solid fuel systems
Any pulverised coal firing system is both more complex,
and more hazardous, than other fuel systems
Few codes and standards are available for PF systems.
The most relevant general code is NFPA 8503: Standard
for Pulverised Fuel Systems (1997)
Like fuel oil, the fuel handling can be divided ito two
functions
Reception, handling and storage
Recovery, milling and feeding to the burner
Coal storage
Care should be taken to ensure that the coal is not
degraded by contamination with soil and rock, nor
allowed to degrade by spontaneous combustion
Any deterioration in the coal is a severe, but often
unnoticed, financial loss
Coal storage is a subject in its own right, so will only be
touched on in this course
Design must match type of coal
open stockpile
inerted coal store
Coal is reclaimed from the store as required into a raw
coal bunker
Raw coal bunker and
feeder
The critical issue with designing raw coal bunkers is to ensure mass
flow, rather than rat-hole flow
Mass flow ensures “first in-first out” utilisation
Rat-hole flow implies “last in-first out” and leads to stagnant coal
remaining in the bunker indefinitely
Raw coal bunker and
feeder
To ensure mass flow, raw coal
bunkers need very steep sides and
large discharge openings
Bunkers are usually lined to minimise
the friction between the coal and the
walls. Glass and basalt tiles, rubber,
PTFE and austenitic stainless steel
are commonly used materials
The most suitable feeders are
enclosed drag chain type such as the
Besta or Redler feeder. Open belt
feeders and pan feeders are also
used but introduce an increased risk
of coal spillage and an associated fire
and explosion risk
Drying and milling
To produce pulverised coal the
raw coal must be dried, ground
and classified
The coal must be dried so that
the particles of fine coal do not
stick together and form a
coagulated mass
Drying and grinding are both
carried out in the mill, normally
using a hot air or hot gas stream
to dry the coal
Coal has two types of moisture,
surface or free moisture and
inherent or hydroscopic moisture
Coal drying curves
Determined by heat
balance across mill
Mass flow through mill
Differential
temperature across
mill
In-leakage air is a
major cause of poor
drying
Classification
Open Circuit - no classifcation
Grinding Mill
Closed circuit - classification in circuit
Grinding Mill Classifier
Rejects return
Coal milling
Coal is ground by three basic mechanisms
Crushing between balls cascading in a rotating tube
(ball mills)
Crushing between rollers and a rotating table or bowl
(vertical spindle mills)
Impact with high speed rotating elements (high
speed mills)
Following grinding, classification usually takes
place with the oversize returned for regrinding
Ball mill
Rugged & easily maintained
High power consumption
Limited drying capacity
Roller & vertical mills
High drying capability
Greater air mass flow possible
Higher mill inlet temperatures acceptable
Drying takes place after grinding
Lower grinding energy consumption
More complex mechanically
Require more skilled maintenance
Vertical spindle mill
High speed mill
Low capital cost
Low power consumption
High speed
High wear rates
Limited drying capacity
High speed mill
Comparison of mills
Air swept ball mill Vertical spindle mill High speed mill
Drying method In drying chamber In air stream after In grinding chamber
before grinding grinding
Drying capacity 10-14% max 20-25% max 8-12% max
Mill air flow range 1.5 – 2.5 kg air/kg coal 1.5 – 3.5 kg air/kg coal 2.6 – 4.8 kg air/kg coal
Maximum mill inlet 250-300oC 300-400oC Up to 510oC
temperature
Classifier External Internal None
Classifier returns To mill inlet or outlet To grinding zone with -
raw coal
Turndown ratio Very restricted 2:1 Large turndown
Suitability for direct Possible, but poor Suitable, except where Suitable, but may need
firing turndown and low inlet limited by low inlet external booster fan to
temperature restrict use temperature or high mill get momentum
air flow
Suitability for indirect Suitable Suitable Possible, but rarely used
firing
Wear rates Low Moderate, but depends High
on design
Typical power 35–55 kWh/t (indirect) 18-25 kWh/t (direct) 16-20 kWh/t (direct)
requirements 25-30 kWh/t (direct)
Mill capacity
The amount of coal
which can be ground
in a mill is dependent
on
the hardness of the
coal
its moisture content
the fineness of the
product
the drying capacity of
the mill
Mill capacity
Hardgrove index
The measure of grindability in common use is the
Hardgrove-Grindability Index
The Hardgrove Index is calculated from the equation:
Y = a + bX
Where:
Y = Hardgrove-Grindability Index
X = residue on 75 micron sieve
a & b are constants for the test machine used, determined by a
standard calibration procedure
The softer the coal the larger the Hardgrove Index, which ranges
from approximately 30 for the very hard coals up to 100-110 for
very soft coals
Mill output is nearly proportional to the Hardgrove Index
Firing systems
Confusion exists regarding the definition of direct and
indirect systems and their variations. Generally, the term
“direct” or “indirect” refers to the coal route:
Direct firing - All systems in which the pulverised coal is fed
direct to the furnace following grinding without any form of
intermediate storage
Indirect firing - All systems in which the pulverised coal is
stored after grinding and metered to the kiln as pulverised coal
from a storage bin
Firing systems
These systems include:
Direct Firing - Systems in which the pulverised coal is transported
direct to the furnace in the mill exhaust which is used as the primary
air
Semi-Direct Firing - As for direct firing but a proportion of the gas
from the mill exhaust is recirculated to the mill inlet, thus increasing
the transport air in the mill and classifier without increasing the primary
air
Indirect Firing - Systems in which the pulverised coal is removed
from the mill exhaust gas and stored in a pulverised coal storage bin.
The mill gas is exhausted to atmosphere through a filter. Recirculation
of the mill exhaust to the inlet may or may not be used. Furnace
exhaust gas or air may be used in these systems
Semi-Indirect Firing - Indirect firing systems are those in which the
filter is omitted and the mill exhaust discharged into the furnace as
primary air. Recirculation of the mill exhaust may or may not be used
Direct firing
Schematic of typical direct firing system applied to a cement kiln
Indirect firing
Schematic of typical direct firing system
Coal fans
Fans handling coal dust in firing systems are a specialist
application and few fan manufacturers have the
necessary expertise. Necessary requirements are
Wear resistant construction so that coal dust does not cause too rapid
deterioration of the fan and create unduly high maintenance costs
Sufficient clearance between the rotor and the case to prevent the risk
of sparking and ignition of the coal dust that could lead to an explosion
Adequate allowance in the design for the reduced fan capacity caused
by the internal friction losses associated with the presence of coal dust
Dust-tight casing and shaft sealing gland to prevent coal dust leakage
Strong casing to contain explosion pressures (at least 350 kPa (50 psi))
Motor adequately protected against dust ingress
Fine coal storage
Dry ground coal is much
more reactive than raw coal
and hence more likely to
catch fire or explode
To minimise this risk, the
capacity of the fine coal
storage should be no more
than absolutely necessary,
typically in the range of 2-12
hours storage
Fine coal bins require
sophisticated instrumentation
including level indicators, fire
detection and fire fighting
systems
Fine coal feeders
Examples of volumetric fine coal feeders showing screw feeder (left) and rotary valve (right)
Fine coal feeders
Example of impact weigh feeder
Fine coal feeders
Example of loss in weight feeder
Fine coal feeders
Phister rotor fine coal weight feeder
Coal distribution
Riffle box for fine coal distribution between ducts
