industrial systems and control Project: emrsn0001

In what is referred to as the indirect method (Equation 3), analysis is carried out in fuel and
stack gas to perform a per-unit-basis calculation of all heat losses which are then subtracted
from the heating value of the fuel and the percentage against the latter is obtained.

Heatinput with fuel Heatlosses

Efficiencyboiler , 100 ,
Heatinput with fuel (3)

More details on the indirect computation of boiler efficiency can be found in various sources3,
4, 5
.

There are various factors that contribute in the overall efficiency of industrial boilers. This
study only considers those which can be improved through advanced combustion control
strategies as listed below.

Thermal Losses; the main thermal losses during combustion that account for efficiency
degradation are listed below3:

Dry Flue Gas Loss: heat carried out of the stack with the combustion air and
products.

Moisture Loss: loss due to evaporation of moisture in fuel (for Biomass) and the
moisture produced from combustion of the hydrogen in the fuel.

Unburned Carbon Loss: loss due to carbon that is not combusted and ends up in the
refuse (ash).

Moisture in the Combustion Air Loss: loss due to heating up water vapour produced
from the combustion chemical reaction contained in the combustion air.

Radiation Loss: heat lost from the external furnace walls to the surrounding air and
other surfaces.

A summary of these losses in significance order for a conventional boiler can be seen in
Figure 36.

Figure 3: Typical Industrial Boiler losses6

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Excess air: The regulation of excess air inside the furnace is of great importance for
efficiency. This is defined as the additional air supplied to the burner beyond the amount
that theoretically ensures complete combustion. It is within the safety features of boilers to
operate at some level of excess of air. This guards against incomplete combustion due to
equipment faults, O2 measurement loss, fast variations in load demand etc. Air leakages
into various parts of the furnace5 (e.g. at the seals between the burner or stoker and the
furnace) also contribute to the excess.

Figure 4 shows how efficiency in a typical fully loaded large boiler degrades with respect to
excess air and fuel type5. It is calculated that 5% loss in efficiency due to only a small
increase of 2% in excess air results in an increase of the yearly operating cost of about
$50K in a 45,000 kg/hr boiler, converted into present rates3.

Figure 4: Boiler efficiency vs. excess air in large boilers5

Figure 5 indicates the optimal air-fuel ratio range to achieve a reasonable performance3.
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Figure 5: Operational trade-offs vs. excess air levels5

2.1.2 Combustion Emissions

In industrialised countries specific standards are implemented for the hazardous by-
products of combustion which includes carbon monoxide and particulates, as well as
greenhouse gases such as CO2 and for SO2 and NOX. Industrial facilities that fail to comply
with certain directives7, 8 against these air pollutants are at risk of austere incurring
penalties9. A recent study showed that Enel’s European thermal power plants generated
overall costs due to emissions of up to €169 billion in 200910. On the other hand, methods
that address this problem are often very expensive and technically challenging within short
timescales which can force companies to compromise their competitiveness11, 12.

Emissions in large industrial plants depend mainly upon the primary fuel type and boiler
capacity, also upon the reliability and performance of controls. Poor implementation can
lead to poor combustion which is not only inefficient but also a serious cause of harmful
emissions. Advanced control can help provide proper conditions and improve emissions
regulation within the acceptable limits, increasing savings and reducing damage to the
environment.

2.1.3 Fuel Type Trade-offs

Typical fuel types for combustion are fossil based hydrocarbons like oil and gas which can
either be used individually or in combination with selection based on availability and pricing9.
In industrialised countries more than 50% of the industrial boilers use natural gas as the
primary fuel. However, industrial boilers that primarily operated on fossil fuels are now
often designed to use combinations of fossil, biomass and waste based fuels (by-products of
site processes) to reduce costs. For a full load steam system, with a typical 86%-94% boiler
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utilisation, fuel costs are by far the main contributor in the total life cycle cost9 with a typical
overall breakdown as shown in Figure 6.

Figure 6: Full load steam system costs breakdown9

With respect to cost, alternatives like biomass and waste based type fuels appear to be a
very attractive option and therefore are likely to be encountered more frequently in
industrial multi-fuel boilers in the future. Further, biomass and waste gas fuels tend to be
less affected by global economic instabilities, and can also have reliable availability from
local resources. Studies show that while Gas supply costs rise by up to 15%, fuel like the
wood chip and pellet maintain a rise of 3% annually13. Figure 7 shows typical variations in
fuel costs15.

Figure 7: Fuel Cost Including CO2

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Despite the low CO2 emissions, biomass fuels show higher emissions for other pollutants like
CO, NO2 and various other polyaromatic hydrocarbons especially when combustion is
incomplete14. Another issue related to the use of biomass is the difficulty in physically
handling/supplying the fuels due to their variable properties. Woodchip, for example, has a
maximum fuel content of 35% and its size has to be made consistent for proper deployment.

Figure 8: Fuel calorific content variations15

To allow utilisation of low cost biomass-based fuels while preserving system reliability in
multi-fuel boilers, control strategies need to compensate properly for fuel calorific content
variability. This manifests itself as a load disturbance in the combustion process and can
reduce system efficiency. Even a stable and consistent fuel like natural gas can vary in
calorific value per volume by 10% over time15 and coal has a natural variability of 10%
which can also differ further to the type and blends of coal16. Calorific variations with
respect to fuel type are shown in Figure 8.

Last but not least is the high moisture content in biomass fuel which removes a significant
amount of heat from the process when burning and so impacts the overall efficiency of
combustion as compared with other fuels. Wood and biomass have moisture content often
greater than 40%, resulting in a good annual average efficiency with these fuels of about
60%16. Even when using natural gas the resulting H2O content is high as a result of the
chemical reaction in the combustion process. The effect on combustion efficiency (heat loss)
must therefore be considered. However this is predictable and generally not as variable as
in biomass or solid fuels.
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3. Combustion Control Strategies

In any steam generation process, the load demand (header steam pressure or flow for a
boiler or fluid temperature for a fired heater) must be met by the control system. It is a
critical task as constant header pressure regulation is highly coupled with the overall
stability of plant-wide operation. Driven by the process, this load can exhibit predictable and
unpredictable variations. A good control system can ensure the generating assets, efficiently
respond to these demands while optimising for minimal emissions and overall costs3,
especially when mixed fuel or simultaneous multi-fuel firing is considered.

3.1 Control Loops in Industrial Combustion

This section provides an overview of the main combustion control loops. In boiler
applications a primary control loop will handle steam pressure deviations by adjusting fuel
and air flow commands which drive the final control elements (valve controllers etc.).
Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) controllers are traditionally used, often enhanced with
feedforward to improve responsiveness. The principle objectives of these controls are:

1. To supply the correct amount of fuel as demanded by the process.

2. To maintain proper combustion zone conditions (air/fuel ratio) to support complete

and safe combustion.

3. To attain highest possible efficiency.

There are important issues related to attaining these objectives in multi-fuel boilers,
including:

the varying calorific value of fuels and its impact on efficiency and emissions

the discontinuity in fuel supply

the unreliability or lack of measurements

the guarantee of stability relative to the specific combination of fuels

The individual control loops traditionally used in combustion are explained in the following
sections3.

3.1.1 Load Control - Steam Pressure

The steam header pressure controller is termed the Boiler Master (or Plant Master in the
multi-boiler case) and it outputs a firing demand. This demand corresponds to a change in
air/fuel firing rate and it will naturally trigger the response of combustion controls.

In the intermediate level that computes fuel and air feed commands to regulate steam
pressure variations, general schemes irrespective of the type of boiler can be employed17 as
seen in Figure 9 which will now be discussed in more detail.
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Figure 9: Typical control scheme for firing natural gas and oil17