Heavy Fuel-oil combustion in a HiTAC boiler

project information

Full title:

Heavy Fuel-oil combustion in a HiTAC boiler  

Acronym

HiTAC

Funding/Programme

NWO STW


Duration

2009-2013

Partners

Stork, Shell, Delft University of Technology  

project description

This project concerned the extension of the application of High Temperature Air Combustion (HiTAC) to heavy-oil combustion processes in a boiler. To generate the knowledge needed to be able to develop and design such a boiler, experimental and computational investigations were made of turbulent spray flames under HiTAC conditions. An experimental study of spray flames of light fuel oil burning in a co-flow of hot air diluted with combustion products provided detailed knowledge of the relations between atomization process, ignition, entrainment and burnout. A spray combustion model for the HiTAC regime was developed for heavy fuel combustion, including the prediction of emissions under HiTAC conditions (NOx, CO and soot). This provided a tool to assist in burner and boiler development. The spray model was embedded in the commercial CFD code ANSYS-Fluent and used in combination with appropriated models for turbulence, soot formation and radiative heat transfer. This tool was used to support the preparation of a HiTAC boiler field test. This field test were done at 9 MW scale by Stork Thermeq, using heavy oil characterized and delivered by Shell.

involved in the project