Furnace Temperature Research Articles

Combustion characteristics of low-quality lignite for different bed material sphericities in a circulating fluidized bed boiler: A numerical study

This study delves into the combustion behavior of various lignite types within a circulating fluidized bed boiler (CFBB), with a primary focus on the impact of different bed material sphericity ratios (0.5, 0.7, and 0.9). Utilizing bed material with a sphericity ratio of 0.9 sourced from the Çan power plant and verified through experimentation, the research reveals several key findings. Notably, furnace temperatures tended to rise with higher sphericity ratios, albeit with variations between lignite types, particularly highlighting the complexity of this relationship in the case of GLI-Tunçbilek lignite. Pressure levels in the combustion chamber remained consistent across different sphericity ratios, indicating minimal influence on pressure dynamics. Improved combustion efficiency, especially at the bottom of the boiler, was observed at lower sphericity levels (0.5 and 0.7) for Çan lignite, as reflected in CO2 mole fractions. While NOx emissions generally decreased with lower sphericity, the sensitivity to sphericity varied by lignite type, with Ilgın lignite showcasing low NOx but high SO2 emissions, underscoring the intricate interplay between lignite properties, sphericity, and emissions. Overall, this study advances our understanding of CFBB combustion dynamics, offering insights valuable for optimizing performance and emissions control, particularly in lignite-based power.

Investigation on the reaction characteristics and influencing factors of thermal runaway of di-tert-butyl peroxide

Thermal runaway reactions of organic peroxides often cause accidents. To improve the chemical production safety, pressure vessel test studies were conducted on the thermal runaway reaction of di-tert-butyl peroxide (DTBP). The effects of furnace temperature and sample mass on the runaway reaction characteristics were discussed, and the venting phenomenon was captured by high-speed camera. The results indicated that the thermal runaway reaction of DTBP includes thermal decomposition, explosion, and venting. The combined effects of heat release, gas production, and boiling that occur simultaneously increase the complexity of decomposition process. If DTBP is completely vaporized before venting, an explosion is triggered. For the same sample mass, the higher the furnace temperature, the faster the rise in temperature and pressure, and the shorter the decomposition reaction time. For the same furnace temperature, the larger the sample mass, the later the thermal decomposition, and the greater the pressure rise rate after boiling. Furthermore, as the furnace temperature increases and the sample mass decreases, it is more likely to cause an explosion, whereas there are no significant changes in the venting characteristics during the pressure drop process. This work can provide a reference for process safety and risk control of organic peroxides.

Effects of elevated temperatures’ exposure on the properties of concrete incorporating recycled concrete aggregates

The concrete and its thermal gradient response must be considered when it is subjected to high temperatures. This study examines the impact of exposure to elevated temperatures (500 °C, 700 °C, and 1000 °C) on concrete's physical and mechanical properties incorporating recycled concrete aggregates (RCA). It emphasizes substituting RCAs for natural coarse aggregate (NCA) at 20%, 40%, 60%, 80%, and 100%. The intended behavior is post-heating; a cold sample serves as a control. The evolution of graduating temperature in the muffle furnace is similar to the ISO curve in a fire. The data analyzed indicate that a temperature rise affects the characteristics of recycled aggregate concrete (RAC). A heating level of 500 °C does not significantly affect the initial resistance, which is not the situation at temperatures of 700 °C and 1000 °C. Regarding residual strength, the concrete with 40% RCAs concrete performs quite well. At 700 °C, its strength loss in compressive strength is 24.4%, whereas the control concrete is 29.8%. Mass loss, capillary water absorption, water-accessible porosity and non-destructive tests reveal that elevated temperature damages RAC. Lastly, XRD, TGA, and SEM microstructural analyses are employed to interpret the fundamental mechanisms of heated RAC due to temperature changes.

Hazard assessment of thermal decomposition behavior of cumene hydroperoxide under heterogeneous temperature system

To accurately evaluate the thermal hazards of cumene hydroperoxide (CHP) under heterogeneous temperature systems, a pressure vessel test device was employed to analyze the decomposition behavior of CHP in the heterogeneous temperature vessel. The influences of furnace temperature (200°C–300 °C) and sample mass (1 g–5 g) on the decomposition behavior were discussed respectively. The results show that in the 10 groups of experiments, CHP begins to accelerate autocatalytically after a long period of initiation step, with a rapid increase in temperature and pressure, and reach the maximum temperature and pressure rise rates in the later period. The maximum temperature and pressure are 248.39 °C and 324.1 kPa, and the maximum temperature and pressure rise rates reach 8.477 °C/s and 71.6 kPa/s, respectively. At a sample mass of 3 g, with the increase of furnace temperature, the maximum temperature and temperature rise rate increase, while both the maximum pressure and pressure rise rate are close; the thermal decomposition reaction time decreases exponentially, which obeys an equation of Δtd=2.592×107exp(−Te/18.051)+184.325(200°C≤Te≤300°C). At a furnace temperature of 300 °C, the maximum values of temperature, temperature rise rate, pressure, and pressure rise rate all increase with increasing sample mass.

Study on thermal conversion and detoxification mechanism of fluorine during co-combustion of meager coal and spent cathode carbon block

Fluoride is a toxic and harmful ingredient in the spent cathode carbon blocks (SCCB). Gaseous fluoride pollution is a significant potential pollution source in the process of boiler collaborative disposal of SCCB. In this paper, meager coal and SCCB were used as fuel, the mixing ratio and temperature were variables, the law of thermal conversion of fluorine during the co-combustion process was studied, and the properties of ash residue were discussed. At the same time, CaO was added to the furnace to reveal the influence of temperature on the effect of fluorine fixation in the furnace. The results showed that combustion was the most suitable method for removing soluble fluorine from SCCB, and the thermal conversion rate of soluble fluorine was up to 99.68–99.98%. The higher the combustion temperature, the higher the conversion of gaseous fluoride, and the worse the effect of fluorine fixation in the furnace. It is not suitable for fluorine fixation in the furnace when the furnace temperature exceeded 1100 ℃. The higher the mixing ratio of SCCB, the higher the production of gaseous fluoride, and a proper mixing ratio is vital for co-combustion. Ash residue after mixing 10% SCCB combustion belongs to general industrial solid waste. This study has important theoretical significance for determining the applicable furnace type, the appropriate mixing ratio and effective fluoride treatment measures in the co-combustion process of coal and SCCB.

A knowledge transfer online stochastic configuration network-based prediction model for furnace temperature in a municipal solid waste incineration process

To alleviate the concept drift of an offline prediction model for the furnace temperature in a municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) process caused by changes in working conditions, a prediction method for the furnace temperature based on a knowledge transfer online stochastic configuration network is proposed in this work. The proposed method includes offline learning and online learning. First, a stochastic configuration network is utilized to construct the offline furnace temperature prediction model, and a knowledge transfer method is employed to update the model under new operating conditions in the offline learning stage. Then, the updated model is used as the initial state of online modeling. Second, the recursive solution of the model output weights is presented to adapt to the dynamic change in incineration conditions, and a direction forgetting mechanism is utilized to enhance the result of the prediction model for the furnace temperature under nonpersistence of excitation in the online stage. Finally, to further verify the proposed online modeling method, the real historical data of an MSWI plant are utilized to finish the comparative experiments. The experimental results with the other methods show that the proposed prediction method for the furnace temperature presents a smaller error. Hence, the proposed method can reduce the influence of working conditions on the accuracy of furnace temperature prediction models.

Design of vacuum annealing furnace temperature control system based on GA-Fuzzy-PID algorithm.

As is well known, the metal annealing process has the characteristics of heat concentration and rapid heating. Traditional vacuum annealing furnaces use PID control method, which has problems such as high temperature fluctuation, large overshoot, and long response time during the heating and heating process. Based on this situation, some domestic scholars have adopted fuzzy PID control algorithm in the temperature control of vacuum annealing furnaces. Due to the fact that fuzzy rules are formulated through a large amount of on-site temperature data and experience summary, there is a certain degree of subjectivity, which cannot ensure that each rule is optimal. In response to this drawback, the author combined the technical parameters of vacuum annealing furnace equipment, The fuzzy PID temperature control of the vacuum annealing furnace is optimized using genetic algorithm. Through simulation and comparative analysis, it is concluded that the design of the fuzzy PID vacuum annealing furnace temperature control system based on GA optimization is superior to fuzzy PID and traditional PID control in terms of temperature accuracy, rise time, and overshoot control. Finally, it was verified through offline experiments that the fuzzy PID temperature control system based on GA optimization meets the annealing temperature requirements of metal workpieces and can be applied to the temperature control system of vacuum annealing furnaces.

The in vacuo release of Ar and rare gases from minerals: 3. The degassing of He, Ne, Ar, Kr and Xe from irradiated apatite

The mechanisms of in vacuo release of Ar are investigated by bringing them into context with nine other rare gas isotopes and by studying the mineralogical modifications that occur in their host mineral. A 200 mg shard of Durango fluorapatite was step-heated after neutron irradiation. It contained radiogenic 4He from natural U decay and artificially produced major rare gas isotopes: 20Ne from F, 37Ar from Ca, 38Ar from Cl, 80Kr and 82Kr from Br, 128Xe from I, 131Xe from Ba and 134Xe from U. The 4He release rate was compared with that from an unirradiated aliquot.Helium was expected, and observed, to degas at the lowest furnace temperatures, with nearly complete exhaustion by 1300 °C. Neon followed a bimodal degassing pattern, with a peak of the release rate at 1178 °C and a higher one at 1406 °C. Argon degassing showed a similar bimodality. Krypton and xenon were both mostly released in a single, concentrated burst between 1362 and 1460 °C.The two Xe isotopes 128 and 131, produced from I and Ba, respectively, followed exactly the same degassing pattern. The crystallographic site of the target element had no control on the movement of the irradiation-produced rare gas atom.The He release from the irradiated and unirradiated aliquots gave two overlapping alignments in the Arrhenius diagram at temperatures between 450 and 1300 °C. The two slopes are indistinguishable at the 1 sigma level and yield an average activation energy of 62 ± 5 kJ/mol. In the 450–1300 °C temperature interval, all five rare gases showed parallel trends with an activation energy around 62 kJ/mol and release rate constants decreasing from He to Xe by about 4 orders of magnitude. Arrhenian trajectories for the Kr and Xe degassing rate merge and sharply steepen in the 1362 °C step, with a degassing rate in the 1406 °C step about 400 times higher than at lower temperatures and an activation energy of 1.28 MJ/mol. The high-T modes of the bimodal Ar and Ne release also merge on the same steep Arrhenius line, with release rate constants indistinguishable from those of Kr and Xe. This break in Arrhenius slope and the merger of four trajectories that were widely separated below 1300 °C indicate a major, energetically very costly event between 1300 and 1362 °C.The possible structural reordering was investigated with four mineralogical techniques: Raman spectroscopy, X ray diffractometry, transmission electron microscopy, and microchemical analysis by laser induced breakdown spectroscopy. Total loss of F may have transiently modified the apatite structure. Complete outgassing of Ne, Ar, Kr and Xe was only achieved after the defluorination reaction and attending displacive structural reorganization. Like in hydrated minerals, in K-feldspar, and in leucite, degassing of heavy noble gases in apatite occurs by at least two different physical mechanisms. In all of these minerals downslope extrapolation of in vacuo Ar degassing in the laboratory to temperatures of geological interest does not appear warranted.

Superheater ash deposit ageing – Impact of melt fraction on morphology and chemistry

The initial melting behaviour of synthetic ash deposits, with a focus on how the amount of melt formed, affects the final deposit morphology, was studied. Binary and ternary reciprocal deposits were exposed to a temperature gradient with varying exposure time, steel temperature, and furnace temperature. Two different archetype deposit morphologies emerged. The final deposit morphology was identified to depend on the amount of melt formed during the experiment. A skeletal deposit morphology developed in systems with less than 30 wt-% melt. Short-term experiments proved that the formation of the skeletal structure is accelerated by the presence of melt, accumulating at contact points of distinct particles. If melt fractions exceeded 30 wt-%, a molten morphology developed, as the amount of melt present was sufficient to fill the pores within the deposit. For molten deposits of ternary reciprocal systems, enrichment of K in the formed melt and concurrent movement toward the steel was observed. The results confirmed a deposit ageing mechanism that has been proposed earlier, based on full-scale superheater deposit samples. The experiments showed that deposit melting and ageing behaviour are strongly connected, as the two identified morphologies differed in their ageing behaviour. The presented results improve the understanding of the initial melting behaviour of deposits and illustrate the connection between deposit morphology and deposit ageing. The results can be utilised as input data for deposition models and help in predicting the final deposit morphology and its associated ageing behaviour, aiding boiler operators and manufacturers dealing with deposit-related issues.

Numerical study on oxy-fuel combustion characteristics of industrial furnace firing coking dry gas

One of the most promising methods for clean utilization of hydrocarbon fuels and CO2 capture is oxy-fuel combustion. However, report on oxy-fuel burning of industrial gas is still limited. In the study, numerical simulation was conducted to explore the oxy-fuel combustion performance of a coking dry gas fired industrial furnace. A modified weighted sum gray gas (WSGG) model with a four-gray body and fourth-degree temperature polynomial was proposed for both air and oxy-fuel combustion with the introduction of the fourth graybody. The impacts of oxygen content, excess oxygen ratio, oxygen purity, and dehydration efficiency on combustion and heat transfer were mainly investigated. The maximum furnace temperature increases significantly, and the high temperature region inside the furnace shrinks and moves downward as the oxygen content rises. The H2O content increases from ∼20% to ∼37%, and the CO2 content decreases from ∼77% to ∼60%. The furnace temperature is up to 1835 K under air conditions, while the furnace temperature is reduced by 195 K under oxy-fuel condition of 21% O2 content. The composition of flue gas barely changes as the excess oxygen ratio increases from 1.02 to 1.20. Although the CO2 enrichment in flue gas and the improvement of oxy-fuel combustion performance benefit from an increase in oxygen purity, the combustion performance further advances little when it is raised to over 98%. Additionally, when dehydration efficiency grows, radiant heat transfer decreases and the flue gas temperature at the furnace outlet rises. The content of O2 and N2 has little relationship with dehydration efficiency. This study aids in understanding the actual oxy-fuel combustion process of an industrial gas-fired boiler and offers a possible theoretical basis for clean burning of petrochemical combustible gas and carbon capture.

Justification of methodical approaches to determining the theoretical fuel combustion temperature in a blast furnace when changing the parameters of the melting mode

Justification of methodical approaches to determining the theoretical fuel combustion temperature in a blast furnace when changing the parameters of the melting mode

Thermal stresses of large-dimension lithium hydride ceramics during the sintering process and strength analysis based on process-based failure assessment diagram

Lithium hydride (LiH) is an important hydrogen storage, heat storage and neutron shielding material. When used in neutron shielding structure, its size and strength have certain requirements, which would be met by LiH ceramics. However, it fails easily during sintering due to severe thermal stress and high brittleness. In this study, the influences of the dimension, furnace temperature cooling rate, and convection condition on the mechanical behavior were systematically examined. The results indicated that larger dimensions and faster furnace temperature cooling rates resulted in higher maximum stresses. Furthermore, convection was beneficial for reducing the thermal stress. Accordingly, a process-based failure assessment diagram method was proposed to evaluate the safety of LiH ceramics, and a bilinear precise temperature control approach was proposed. Based on this method, the tube thickness was increased by 25 % and the cooling time was reduced by 32 % compared to those using linear temperature control in an example. The conclusion and method could be applied to optimize the temperature control for more practical large-dimension sintering.

Experimental study on fire resistance of high strength Q960 steel columns under axial compression

In order to obtain the mechanical behavior of H-shaped high-strength Q960 steel column under axial compression in fire, the bearing capacity tests of two Q960 steel columns at ambient temperature and fire resistance tests of six Q960 steel columns at elevated temperature were carried out. By considering different slenderness ratios, load ratios, and heating rates of the test columns, the furnace temperature, column temperature, lateral displacement, and axial displacement were measured and recorded. Then, critical temperature, fire resistance, and failure mode of the columns were obtained. The thermal-mechanical coupling analysis model for the Q960 steel column was established by using ABAQUS finite element analysis software. After verifying the accuracy of the model, parameter analysis was carried out to investigate the effects of load ratio, slenderness ratio, geometric imperfection, thermal creep, residual stress, and steel strength on the fire resistance of steel columns. Based on the test data and analysis results, a fire resistance design method for high-strength Q960 steel columns under axial compression is proposed.

A novel online method incorporating computational fluid dynamics simulations and neural networks for reconstructing temperature field distributions in coal-fired boilers

Three-dimensional (3D) reconstructions of temperature distributions can be used to effectively design power plants and ensure production safety. Typically, 3D temperature reconstruction based on the flame image processing technology and finite element calculation of furnace combustion using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation are performed to obtain the furnace temperature field. In this study, a novel online method that overcomes the defects of image detection devices was proposed for reconstructing the temperature field with improved evaluation accuracy. Numerical simulations were used to perform numerous calculations. In this method, deep neural network (DNN) models were used for reconstructing the 3D temperature distribution. The training set was derived from offline CFD simulations that were set for a specific boiler and a series of typical working conditions. Based on established DNN models, the online calculation of 3D temperature distribution was realized for current operating conditions. The result revealed that the furnace temperature field could be accurately reconstructed online in a 350-MW tangentially fired boiler. Compared with the numerical simulation results, the mean absolute percent error under the tilt angles of 0°, 10°, and −10° were 3.61 %, 4.25 %, and 4.52 %. The proposed integrated method was applied to actual boilers with average error 3.448 % and achieved feasible solutions within 20 s.

Temperature control in electric furnaces: Methods, applications, and challenges

Temperature control of electric heating furnaces, a common piece of equipment in industrial production, is essential for assuring product quality and enhancing production effectiveness. In order to better understand the similarities and differences in temperature management between various types of electric heating furnaces, this paper first discusses the fundamental concepts and classifications of electric heating furnaces. Following that, it systematically describes the applications of the various temperature control techniques now used for electric heating furnaces, such as PID control, fuzzy logic control, genetic algorithm control, and model predictive control. This paper further analyzes the difficulties in controlling the temperature of electric heating furnaces and identifies potential future development trends in light of the issues that currently used control methods must deal with in practical applications, such as insufficient control accuracy, slow response speed, and poor stability. Finally, it summarizes the information in the entire paper and considers the direction of temperature control research for electric heating furnaces. This research will focus on new control theories and algorithms, furnace body design optimization, control system integration, and intelligent adaptive temperature control. In order to advance the development and advancement of technology in this area, the goal of this article is to provide a thorough theoretical reference and practical advice for the temperature management of electric heating furnaces.

An experimental study on parabolic trough solar cookers with materials collector of chrome stickers and glass mirrors

Cooking, a fundamental human necessity, frequently relies on environmentally harmful energy sources. Concentrated solar power offers a promising solution through solar cookers to address this issue. This study assesses a Parabolic Trough Collector (PTC) solar cooker's performance with two reflector materials: chrome stickers and glass mirrors. The PTC-type solar cooker comprises essential components, including an absorber tube, a flexible conduit, and a spiral-shaped cooking container holder that accommodates a diverse range of cooking vessels. In the configuration of the PTC collector, reflectors fabricated from chrome stickers and glass mirrors are strategically employed to harness and concentrate solar radiation effectively. The absorber tube, crafted from copper, is filled with a heat-transfer fluid consisting of soya oil. Experimental investigations were conducted in a two-stage process, encompassing trials without any applied load and subsequently with varying loads. In the no-load experiments, alterations were made to the PTC collector's inclination angle, spanning the ranges of 15º, 20º, 25º, and 30º. In contrast, the load-bearing tests encompassed the assessment of the PTC solar cooker's performance under a diverse array of cooking scenarios, including boiling water, heating oil, frying eggs, and crisping crackers. The evaluated parameters encompassed key metrics such as incident solar radiation (Ir), ambient temperature (Ta), receiver temperature (Tr), fluid temperature (Tf), spiral furnace temperature (Tsf), and load temperature (To). Subsequently, the outcomes of the experiments were employed to determine the efficiency of the solar cooker. Analysis of the no-load test results indicates that the most favorable performance, as observed in the parameters Tr, Tf, and Tsf, is achieved at a collector inclination angle of 15º for both chrome sticker and glass mirror reflector materials. The solar cooker demonstrated commendable proficiency in boiling water, heating oil, frying eggs, and crisping crackers, accomplishing these tasks within a time frame ranging from 5 to 20 minutes. Notably, the solar cooker featuring the glass mirror reflector exhibited a superior thermal efficiency of 33.7%, surpassing the efficiency of the counterpart with the chrome sticker reflector, which registered an efficiency of 30.9%. These findings underscore the efficacy of the glass mirror reflector in harnessing solar energy for enhanced cooking performance within this solar cooker configuration.

CFD modeling of flow, combustion and NOx emission in a wall-fired boiler at different low-load operating conditions

In the context of achieving carbon peaking and carbon neutrality, the implementation of flexible peak shaving techniques is of significant importance to coal-fired units. Operating coal-fired units under different low loads can result in decreased combustion efficiency, unstable combustion, and increased emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) during the combustion of pulverized coal. However, few studies have been carried out wall-fired boiler under low-load operation in most papers. This paper employs numerical simulation to investigate the flow, temperature, composition concentration fields, as well as combustion stability and NOx emission characteristics of a 600 MWe wall-fired under various low-load (specifically, 400, 300, 240 and 200 MWe) conditions. The simulations demonstrate that reducing the boiler load leads to decreases in the amount of filling gas and the average temperature of the furnace. Despite the overall decrease in average furnace temperature with load reduction, the central part of the furnace can reach 1400 K at low load (200 MWe), due to the strong flame stability of centrally fuel-rich burner. The NOx concentrations for 400, 300, 240, and 200 MWe were 475.9, 498.4, 361.9 and 259.7 mg/Nm3, respectively. The NOx concentration initially increases with the load reduction, and decreases as the load is further reduced. Considering the broad industrial application prospect of flexible peak shaving of coal-fired boilers, these research results provide guidance and suggestions for different load operation of wall-fired boilers, and provide theoretical support for low load stable combustion operation of wall-fired boilers.

Thermodynamic study of magnesium (Mg) production by the Pidgeon process: The distribution of MgO and axial thermal field

The magnesium slag of the Pidgeon process is rich in MgO, which restricts their resource utilization. In this paper, the MgO content in the magnesium slag at different positions of the reduction tank was analyzed and the heating model of the reduction furnace was established, which disclosed the distribution of MgO in the magnesium slag and the change of the axial thermal field of the reduction tank with time. Research shows that the content of MgO in the reduction tank firstly increased (from 0.20 m to 0.40 m), and then decreased, finally increased slowly (from 1.20 m to 2.40 m). The MgO content in the magnesium slag within 0.4 m away from the tank mouth is extremely high, which affects the resource utilization of magnesium slag. The MgO residual at different positions in the upper and lower reduction tanks are similar, indicating that the temperature in the reduction furnace is relatively stable. Temperature and heat transfer are the reasons for the uneven distribution of MgO at different positions in the reduction tank. The research results provide a theoretical basis for magnesium smelting and magnesium slag recycling.

A study on the applicability of non-stoichiometric thermodynamic models for the prediction of carbon black yield and off-gas composition in oil furnace process

The effect of feed composition and temperature on the carbon black yield and off-gas amount and composition was studied for oil-furnace process reactor with benzene as a model feedstock. Because of the high furnace temperature (>1200 °C), the reactions were considered as very fast and thus the products close to chemical equilibrium. The equilibrium composition was calculated by a non-stoichiometric thermodynamic model using Gibbs free energy minimization method. The equilibrium and energy balance equations were solved simultaneously to obtain the product composition and reactor temperature under different reaction conditions. The equilibrium carbon black yield increases with gas/air and oil/air ratio whereas the reactor temperature exhibits the reverse trend which are consistent with practical data. Quantitative comparison with real data showed that the product may be kinetically controlled, and thus the thermodynamic model gives the lower limit of carbon black yield. The model can be easily applied to any feedstock including bio-oil without a need for the specific properties.

Improved Waste Heat Management and Energy Integration in an Aluminum Annealing Continuous Furnace Using a Machine Learning Approach.

Annealing furnaces are critical for achieving the desired material properties in the production of high-quality aluminum products. In addition, energy efficiency has become more and more important in industrial processes due to increasing decarbonization regulations and the price of natural gas. Thus, the current study aims to determine the opportunities to reduce energy consumption in an annealing continuous furnace and the associated emissions. To this end, the heat transfer phenomenon is modeled and solutions for the decreasing fuel consumption are evaluated so that the overall performance of the process is enhanced. A heat transfer model is developed using the finite difference method, and the heat transfer coefficient is calculated using machine learning regression models. The heat transfer model is able to predict the heat transfer coefficient and calculate the aluminum temperature profile along the furnace and the fuel consumption for any given operating condition. Two solutions for boosting the furnace exergy efficiency are evaluated, including the modulation of the furnace temperature profiles and the energy integration by the recycling of exhaust flue gases. The results show that the advanced energy integration approach significantly reduces fuel consumption by up to 20.7%. Sensitivity analysis demonstrates that the proposed strategy can effectively reduce fuel consumption compared with the business-as-usual scenario for a range of sheet thicknesses and sheet velocities.