Conversions of fuel-N to NO and N2O during devolatilization and char combustion stages of a single coal particle under oxy-fuel fluidized bed conditions

Abstract

The conversions of fuel-N to NO and N2O during devolatilization and char combustion stages of a single coal particle of 7 mm in diameter were investigated in a laboratory-scale flow tube reactor under oxy-fuel fluidized bed (FB) conditions. The method of isothermal thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA) combing with the coal properties was proposed to distinguish the devolatilization and char combustion stages of coal combustion. The results show that the char combustion stage plays a dominant role in NO and N2O emissions in oxy-fuel FB combustion. Temperature changes the trade-off between NO and N2O during the two stages. With increasing temperature, the conversion ratios of fuel-N to NO during the two stages increase, and the opposite tendencies are observed for N2O. CO2 inhibits the fuel-N conversions to NO during the two stages but promotes those to N2O. Compared with air combustion, the conversion ratios of fuel-N to NO during the two stages are lower in 21%O2/79%CO2, and those to N2O are higher. At <O2> = 21–50% by volume, the conversion ratios of fuel-N to NO during the two stages reach the maximum values at <O2> = 30% by volume, and those to N2O decrease with increasing O2 concentration. H2O suppresses the fuel-N conversions to NO and N2O during the two stages. A higher coal rank has higher total conversion ratios of fuel-N to NO and N2O. Fuel-N, volatile matter, and fixed carbon contents are the important factors on fuel-N conversions to NO and N2O during the two stages. The results benefit the understanding of NO and N2O emission mechanisms during oxy-fuel FB combustion of coal.