Boiler Installation Research Articles

Combustion of liquid hydrocarbon fuels sprayed into gas generation chamber with superheated steam as low emission technology for energy production

Experimental and numerical studies were conducted to scientifically validate the Steam Injection Method with Gas Generation chamber (SIMGG) as a low-emission combustion technology for energy production in low and medium power boilers using different types of fuels. For the first time, a fully functional prototype of a burner implementing SIMGG was tested under the conditions of a standard low-power boiler installation, and combustion characteristics of fuels with various physical properties (diesel fuel and a mixture of used automotive oils) were obtained under different operating parameters. The results of the studies show that using SIMGG reduces carbon monoxide (CO) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions by up to half or more under closed-combustion conditions for various fuels. The lowest total emissions of CO and NOx are achieved at an air excess coefficient of 1.2 and a steam-to-fuel ratio of greater than 0.66.

Automation of transportation of vapor of atmospheric deaerator in boiler installations

At present, when energy prices are unstable and periodically rise, enhancing the energy efficiency of thermal power plants, which implies the production of the same or larger amounts of energy with a lower consumption of energy resources, remains an urgent problem in the field of thermal power engineering. Such tasks aimed at reducing the consumption of energy resources for their own needs are quite urgent for manufacturing enterprises that use energyconsuming equipment, in particular steam boiler plants. Steam boiler houses contain a sufficient amount of energyintensive equipment, be it the boilers themselves or atmospheric deaerators, which are used to purify the boiler feedwater from corrosive gases. The article discusses the option of automating the process of closing the vapor during atmospheric deaeration in boiler plants by installing valves with automatic drives on the vapor removal pipelines. The article also analyzes the annual replenishment flow rate of the deaerator, assesses the quality of the condensate supplied to the deaerator, describes the conditions for opening and closing valves with automatic drives, and provides a calculation of the time delay required to remove vapor from the deaerator before closing the valves. A functional block diagram for controlling automatically driven valves is presented and its components are described. Thus, when implementing the described technology, significant savings in production steam spent on the deaerator will be achieved due to the closing of the deaerator vapor, with no chemically purified water supplied to the deaerator. This solution helps to increase the operating efficiency of the entire boiler installation.

Industrial environmental control of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in organic fuel combustion product

RELEVANCE of this study lies in the computational justification of the choice of the installation location of a multipoint sampling probe in the measuring section of the flue of boiler plants of energy enterprises and thermal power plants that have a significant negative impact of emissions on the environment, in order to increase the reliability and representativeness ofinstrumental measurements during industrial environmental control (PEC) of polluting emissions (PE). PURPOSE. Improving the environmental safety of thermal power plants in the current conditions of the introduction of state principles of technological regulation of emissions is associated with the establishment of technological emission indicators for each source of atmospheric pollution at energy enterprises with a significant negative impact on the environment. In this regard, energy enterprises should carry out round-the-clock monitoring of PE, which requires reliable instrumental control of the content of marker substances in the combustion products of power boilers by determining a representative sampling point on the flue or chimney of an energy boiler installation. METHODS. The paper uses methods of computer simulation of gas dynamics to determine the local fields of concentration of PE and flow velocity and assess their unevenness in the flue of an energy boiler. RESULTS. Using the example of an operating energy boiler plant of a thermal power plant, a control section of the flue was determined to ensure industrial environmental control of marker substances in the combustion products of organic fuels. The average values of the concentration of PE and the flow rate of combustion products of local fields in the calculated sections and their values on the longitudinal axis of the boiler flue are determined, and their uneven distribution is estimated. CONCLUSION. The obtained research results can be used at energy enterprises and thermal power plants to justify the choice of a control representative measuring section for conducting a PEC, and to develop an environmental efficiency improvement program (EEIP).

INCREASING THE EFFICIENCY OF BOILER PLANTS WITH FLUE GAS RECIRCULATION AND DEEP HEAT RECOVERY

The thermal calculation results of a heating boiler plant with recirculation and heat recovery of flue gases are presented. The thermal efficiency of the complex heat recovery system use designed for heating the return heat-network water and blown air is investigated. Various options of flue gas selection for recirculation into the blowing air are considered, namely: after the boiler, after the water-heating heat recovery exchanger and after the air-heating heat recovery exchanger. The changes in the temperature of the exhaust gases regularities of the studied boiler plant various elements in the case of using the considered options for recirculated gas selection under conditions of changing their share in the air-gas mixture from 10 to 20 % and the relative heat load of the boiler from 30 to 100 % were established. Under these conditions, the levels of increase in efficiency in all elements of the boiler installation and the total efficiency with and without the proposed heat recovery system were determined. It is shown that the use of this system provides deep cooling of exhaust gases in the heat recovery process. The lower the temperature of the flue gas admixed in the options considered and the higher the share of gas recirculation, the lower the temperature of the exhaust gases for all elements of the boiler plant. The increase in the boiler plant efficiency due to the use of the proposed heat recovery system varies from 3 to 5 % in the case of a water-heating heat recovery exchanger and from 1 to 3 % in the case of an air-heating heat recovery exchanger, depending on the boiler load, the part of admixed gases and the options of their selection. The resulting increase in the boiler plant efficiency with a heat recovery and flue gas recirculation system is 1.4–4.7 %.

화목보일러 연통 과열 화재위험성에 관한 연구

Recently, economic downturn and the era of ultra-high oil prices caused by the global pandemic, demand for the installation of wood boilers in home or rural houses is increasing as a means of reducing heating costs in winter. In general, wood boilers, which have been used a lot in factories and warehouses, not only reduce the burden of heating costs, which account for a large part of household spending in winter, but also are simple and economical, so the demand is gradually increasing. However, due to the nature of the fuel, it is difficult to control the fire power, and there is no accurate installation manual, so there is a high possibility of fire, such as overheating of the stovepipe and splashing on nearby combustibles. In addition, there are many problems that were not initially expected during the manufacture and installation of the wood boiler due to legal defects. This study aims to analyze fire hazards according to communication structure, material, and boiler room construction materials by conducting fire re-experiments based on fire cases by wood boilers, and provide basic data for safe installation and use of fire boilers.

Monitoring energy performance improvement: insights from Dutch housing association dwellings

The Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) enhanced the sustainable improvement of dwellings in the European Union. Member states formulated measurable goals to improve the housing stock, and monitoring systems were developed to give insights into the improvements. In the Netherlands, non-profit housing associations agreed to improve the quality of their housing stock to an average Dutch energy label B (energy index (EI NV) = 1.40) by 2020. Research assessing this progress over time is presented using an annual monitoring system based on 2.0 million energy performance calculations of 264 Dutch non-profit housing associations between 2017 and 2020. The assessment includes: a detailed description of the development of the state of the stock over time; the effect of changes to the stock (construction and demolition) and changes within the stock (different types of retrofit measures); and the different characteristics of non-profit housing associations. Insights from this research show which specific retrofit and other measures are adopted and have substantial impact over time. This provides a useful frame of reference for building stock analysis and accelerating the improvement of the building stock. It also creates a baseline of information for the future sustainable development of this particular stock. Practice relevance This research reveals which energy saving measures are most and least employed over time in Dutch non-profit housing associations sector. Large urban housing associations own a large share of the Dutch non-profit housing stock, and their dwellings have on average a lower energy rating. However, the improvement of their dwellings between 2017 and 2020 is higher than for smaller housing associations, which already have on average a higher energy rating. While the construction and demolition of dwellings contribute to 15.6% of the annual improvement, most of the improvement of the energy performance depends on retrofitting the existing stock. The trends are found to rely most on traditional measures (e.g. the installation of high-efficiency gas boilers and improved insulation). However, the rate of adding photovoltaic (PV) solar systems has increased rapidly in recent years, while futureproof systems (e.g. heat pumps and district heating) only have a steady adoption rate in this sector.

Comparison of emissions from smokeless coal combustion in a household heating boiler used in Central Europe

The objective of this work was to evaluate the relationship between the fuel quality and the gaseous and particulate pollutant emissions generated from a hot-water boiler during the combustion of different types of innovative processed fuels: smokeless coal, smokeless briquettes 1–3, smokeless pellets and unprocessed hard coal. The aim of our research was to prove the presumption that smokeless processed coals produce less gaseous and particulate emissions. By using modern fuels in already used and manufactured older boilers, there is a possibility to significantly reduce emissions of organic gaseous compounds (OGC) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The emission situation in the heating season can be significantly improved even without costly production, and thus consumption of natural resources and energy, and installation of modern boilers. Physical and chemical characterization of solid-fuel samples, including determination of moisture content, ash, volatile organic content, calorific value and elemental composition analysis, were performed. Fuels were burned in one type of hot-water boiler class 1 according to EN 303-5 to determine the impact of applied fuel types on pollutant emissions. The pollutant emissions were characterized by the contents of gaseous components: nitrogen oxides NOx, sulfur dioxide SO2, carbon monoxide CO, carbon dioxide CO2, organic gaseous compounds OGC and particle components: total suspended particles TSP, particulate matter less than 2.5 µm and 10 µm (PM2.5 and PM10, respectively) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons PAHs in both phases. The emission factors from six types of fuel were compared with applicable European standards. The lowest NOx content was observed for smokeless briquette 1, while the lowest SO2 content was observed for smokeless pellets. The emission of CO was at a similarly low level of 200 g/kg for smokeless briquette 1, smokeless briquette 2 and hard coal. Gaseous and pollutant emissions described by PM2.5 and TSP were observed to be the lowest for smokeless coal, smokeless briquette 1 and smokeless briquette 2.

Advanced process control of boiler installation

In production processes, it is important find solutions to improve economic performance. This is especially topical for energy facilities, such as boiler plants. These problems are complex in nature and require solutions in the field of technology, apparatus designs, modes and algorithms of equipment operation. If it is required to improve the performance of an operating object without significant changes in the design of the apparatus, then often the solutions lie in the plane of the work algorithms. Thus, modernization of the object’s automatic control system using a programmable logic controller and a control program will optimize processes without significant investments. In this regard, one of the rational and effective solutions for modernizing the automatic control system can be the use of predictive models. Predictive model control has excellent adaptability, although it uses a relatively simple control scheme. Such a system is a superstructure over an existing automatic control system. This paper proposes a method for implementing control with predictive models by using a virtual analyzer interfaced with a controller. This makes it possible to take into account and correct many disturbances in the control system of the boiler plant, which favourably affects the stability of the process and economic indicators.

ЕНЕРГОМОДЕРНІЗАЦІЯ ПРОМИСЛОВОЇ КОТЕЛЬНІ

The current state of the energy sector is analyzed, the physical and moral obsolescence of the main equipment is revealed, the losses of electricity in the networks are increased. Coal combustion at power plants is accompanied by increased man-made load on the environment. To increase the energy, economic and environmental efficiency of energy supply of industrial enterprises, the use of decentralized cogeneration based on gas industrial boilers or the use of biomass boilers is proposed. Options for energy modernization on the example of an industrial dairy boiler house are considered. 8 variants of increase of reliability, energy efficiency, economy and environmental friendliness are offered, namely installation of boilers on biomass, gas turbine and gas-piston heat engines, creation of thermal power plant with steam turbine installation on saturated and superheated steam. The analysis of advantages and disadvantages of variants, and also rationality of their introduction on boiler houses of the industrial enterprise is executed. Calculations of economic indicators of different options for energy modernization of the boiler house allowed to identify effective methods to increase the efficiency of energy equipment. The analysis also takes into account the possibility of diversification of energy supply and reduction of dependence on electricity suppliers.

CURRENT TRENDS IN ENSURING SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TRANSPORT AND ENERGY SYSTEM OF UKRAINE

The article considers the peculiarities of the development of the transport and energy system of Ukraine in the conditions of external geopolitical and pandemic threats to energy security. The main problems of development of thermal energy and gas transmission system of Ukraine are analyzed. The directions of improving the management of the transport and energy system of Ukraine based on the need to comply with national interests in the European energy market are substantiated. The aim of the article is to study the current state of functioning of the transport and energy system of Ukraine and to form recommendations for improving its efficiency in the context of solving the problems of energy security of the state. Research methods. Methods of scientific analysis are used - in the critical assessment of scientific sources to determine the essence of the transport and energy system; comparison - in the study of the dynamics of energy production and the formation of coal reserves in thermal power plants; graphical method for displaying and comparing indicators of development of the transport and energy system of Ukraine; method of generalization in the development of proposals to improve the efficiency of the transport and energy system of Ukraine. Results. The directions of improving the management of the transport and energy system of Ukraine in the conditions of geopolitical and pandemic threats to energy security are proposed, in particular: the necessity of mass transition of apartment buildings to individual heating is substantiated, which will significantly reduce heat consumption; proposed vectors to stimulate the installation of gas boilers for individual heating through the introduction of special credit programs of banks and state target programs; the expediency of developing shale gas fields and increasing its production is substantiated; the expediency of intensifying the development of energy with the use of renewable energy sources is argued.

Does the Balance Exist between Cost Efficiency of Different Energy Efficiency Measures? DH Systems Case

The main aim of this study is to evaluate the results achieved by implementation of different support policies in form of subsidies for energy efficiency improvements and transition to renewable energy sources. The article compares the energy efficiency measures in district heating systems with other support program. In order to assess the effectiveness of implementation of different renewable energy technologies and energy efficiency projects, the levelized costs of saved energy for different support programs were determined. Authors compared different co-financed projects related to replacement of fossil fuel energy sources in district heating (mainly to biomass) and the installation of new biomass boilers, heat pumps, solar collectors and other local technologies in municipal buildings. Results show that financial support for energy efficiency measures in industrial enterprises and district heating systems has been most cost-effective, mainly due to the low co-financing rate (30%) and the high potential for energy savings in different production processes. Authors have identified the blind-spots within the funding allocation for different municipalities, which is not always dedicated to achieved energy savings.

Proposal development for the boiler modernization at the Far North enterprise

The article presents the transfer relevance of the boiler from diesel to natural gas. There is an economic calculation of the efficiency in using a gas-equipped PKN-2 boiler with a GG-1 type burner, as well as the environmental efficiency of modernizing the boiler installation. Place: Novo Energy Services LLC enterprise, the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District, the Yurkharovskoye oil and gas condensate field, bush No. 2.

Analysis of the Impact of Residential Property and Equipment on Building Energy Efficiency and Consumption—A Data Mining Approach

Human living could become very difficult due to a lack of energy. The household sector plays a significant role in energy consumption. Trying to optimize and achieve efficient energy consumption can lead to large-scale energy savings. The aim of this paper is to identify the equipment and property affecting energy efficiency and consumption in residential homes. For this purpose, a hybrid data-mining approach based on K-means algorithms and decision trees is presented. To analyze the approach, data is modeled once using the approach and then without it. A data set of residential homes of England and Wales is arranged in low, medium and high consumption clusters. The C5.0 algorithm is run on each cluster to extract factors affecting energy efficiency. The comparison of the modeling results, and also their accuracy, prove that the approach employed has the ability to extract the findings with greater accuracy and detail than in other cases. The installation of boilers, using cavity walls, and installing insulation could improve energy efficiency. Old homes and the usage of economy 7 electricity have an unfavorable effect on energy efficiency, but the approach shows that each cluster behaved differently in these factors related to energy efficiency and has unique results.

Analysis of the causes of the cracking of the tee joint of the header of the utility boiler

The butt joint of the high temperature superheater inlet tee of 330MW Unit Boiler in a thermal power plant cracked. The causes of the weld cracking were analyzed by means of macroscopic morphology observation, fracture SEM inspection, microstructure inspection, mechanical property inspection and chemical composition inspection. The results show that a large number of small thermal cracks are formed in the weld due to improper welding process or operation during boiler installation. At the same time, the improper post weld heat treatment of the joint results in the high hardness of the weld, the insufficient toughness reserve and the decrease of the crack growth resistance. During the long-term operation of the boiler, under the combined action of the primary stress caused by the medium pressure in the pipe and the secondary stress caused by the expansion and contraction of the pipe system, the small crystal cracks in the weld continue to expand, which eventually leads to the macro cracks.

Technical, economic and environmental optimization of district heating expansion in an urban agglomeration

In order to integrate large shares of variable renewable energy sources, district heating can play an important role. Furthermore, in order to increase the efficiency of district heating systems, interconnecting adjacent system could be socio-economically justified. In order to assess the economic and environmental consequences of the latter, a mixed linear integer optimization model was developed with the endogenous decision on the potential interconnectors. The case study was carried out for the city of Zagreb, Croatia. The results showed that all three studied interconnections are economically viable, while the socio-economic cost was 29.2% lower in the case of the implemented interconnectors, all other capacities being equal. Moreover, the optimal thermal energy storage capacity was found to be equal to 25 and 24 days of average heating demand in two alternative scenarios. Finally, compared to the reference case, the CO2 emissions could be lowered by 15.3%.CO2 savings derive mainly from better utilization of low carbon capacities after interconnecting the systems, as well as from installation of heat pumps and electric boilers.

Replacement of electric resistive space heating by a geothermal heat pump in a residential application – Environmental amortisation

This paper reports the life cycle analysis (LCA) of the replacement of a conventional boiler by a geothermal boiler in a standard, medium sized, single-family dwelling, located in a Mediterranean country such as Spain. The geothermal installation analysed is vertical, with two wells of 0.66 m diameter and 125 m depth each. This type of vertical wells has been chosen due to the smaller surface area required compared to horizontal collectors. The LCA studies the costs of the different phases, as well as the costs of the final installation. The system boundaries considered during the study cover the overall production for the creation of a functional unit in a gate-to-gate study. Findings indicate that the greatest environmental impacts are in Marine Aquatic Ecotoxicity category and the lowest corresponds to the Ozone Layer Depletion category. Regarding the phases, the drilling phase has the highest environmental impact and the second one is the boiler installation, while the lowest impact is found in the installation of probes. Finally, an amortisation analysis for environmental impact is developed, concluding that all categories are amortised in 8 years and some of them in less than 3 years.

Simulation of an alternative energy system for district heating company in the light of changes in regulations of the emission of harmful substances into the atmosphere.

At the present time Poland is going through a lot of changes, also from the energy generation and energy law point of view. In the nearest future the polish energy industry, according to the EU 2020 Climate and Energy Package, will have to significantly modernize most of its power plants. Dynamically changing situation results in higher demand for different, both energy and economy, analyses helping with setting the frames for future functioning of power engineering companies.One of the polish power companies, PEC Legionowo, is reshaping its infrastructure to meet the new requirements and from this particular company authors are using data for test case. The first conceptual work related to the development of the PEC Legionowo energy system is underway in terms of increasing its energy efficiency and reducing harmful exhaust emissions. Due to the need of significantly reducing exhaust emissions by 2022, PEC Legionowo is seriously considering the reduction of the heat generative power from coal-fired boilers. Among others the resulting energy gap is planned to be covered by installing high-efficiency combined heat and power (CHP) systems.The article analyzes and verifies the model of an existing CHP plant and checks the modernization possibilities of the existing installation in terms of reducing the emission of harmful gases to the atmosphere. The new installation of gas boilers designed to replace coal-fired boilers is checked to meet the new emission requirements, while maintaining the demand for heat and electricity.For the modelling a test case the combined techno-economic optimization and analysis software energyPRO is used. The software optimizes the operation of the modelled system in accordance to all input conditions such as generation and economic data obtained from a functioning heat and power plant in polish industry.The results show the quantitative and economic difference related to the introduced changes in the heat and power plant system. The analysis also focuses on the size of the investment outlay and the return time of the project.

Life cycle environmental and cost evaluation of heating and hot water supply in social housing nZEBs

This paper presents a comparative analysis of different space heating and hot water systems for a social housing project in Santurtzi, Spain. The building, comprising 32 apartment units and currently under construction, has been designed to minimize thermal energy demand, while ensuring comfort and quality of the internal environment for the social housing occupiers. The selection of the heating and hot water energy systems has been carried considering a life cycle perspective both for environmental and economic impacts. Different alternatives have been analysed which compare conventional gas boiler installation, which has been the norm for this type of social housing for the last decades, with various options based on heat pump technology. Life cycle analysis of the environmental effects of electrification of the thermal energy demand through heat pumps show a potential for reducing life cycle CO2 emissions. The economic evaluation done through life cycle costing, comparing investment, maintenance, replacement and operational costs of gas boiler with aerothermal and geothermal heat pump solutions, have shown however that gas heating solutions are still the most competitive economically. Increasing the overall efficiency of those heating and hot water systems that include heat pump technology, while reducing their uncertainty in operation is a key element to ensure competitiveness of heat pumps in the current market.

Enhancement of stability of ignition and burning of high-moisture coal in the furnace of the power boiler

The use of high-moisture coal with a moisture content Wr> 40% as fuel requires additional burning of a more expensive reactive fuel (gas or fuel oil support flaming), caused by the need to maintain a steady ignition and efficient burning of low-grade solid fuel. In this paper, a complex approach to the modernization of the technological scheme for the burning of Tulgansky brown coal (coal rank B1) with Wr > 50% is proposed. It is supposed to improve the furnace aerodynamics, replace the pulverized-coal burners, perform refractory lining of water walls at the burner level, intensify the preliminary drying of the coal in the drying duct. Drying and burning of brown coal in the modernized scheme was studied by computer simulation in the software product ANSYS Fluent using boiler installation TP-14A as an example. The adequacy of the developed computer model was verified by comparing the results of numerical simulation with the results of full-scale tests and thermal calculations of the boiler TP-14A with the basic combustion scheme.The results of the simulation showed the possibility of stable burning of coal without gas support flaming. Reduction of fuel humidity before the mills was 4%,carbon-in-ash loss was 1.2%, concentration of nitrogen oxides in flue gases 300 mg/m3.

Optimal utilization of a boiler, combined heat and power installation, and heat buffers in horticultural greenhouses

In the daily operation of a greenhouse, decisions must be made about the best deployment of equipment for generating heat and electricity. The purpose of this paper is twofold: (1) To demonstrate the feasibility and flexibility of an optimal control framework for allocating heat and electricity demand to available equipment, by application to two different configurations used in practice. (2) To show that for a given energy and electricity demand benefit can be obtained by minimizing costs during resource allocation.The allocation problem is formulated as an optimal control problem, with a pre-defined heat and electricity demand pattern as constraints. Two simplified, yet realistic, configurations are presented, one with a boiler and heat buffer, and a second one with an additional combined heat and power generator (CHP) and a second heat buffer.A direct comparison with the grower is possible on those days where the other equipment that was at the grower’s disposal was not used (63 days in the available 2012 data set). On those days overall costs savings of 20% were obtained. This shows that a given heat demand does not come with a fixed price to pay. Rather, benefits can be obtained by determining the utilization of the equipment by dynamic optimization. It also appears that prior knowledge of gas and electricity prices in combination with dynamic optimization has a high potential for cost savings in horticultural practice. To determine the factors influencing the outcome, different sensitivities to the optimization result were analyzed.