B&W IR-CFB Boiler Operating Experience Update and Design

M. Maryamchik D.L. Wietzke Babcock & Wilcox Barberton, Ohio, U.S.A.

Presented to: POWER-GEN International 99 November 30-December 2, 1999 New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.A.

BR-1691

Abstract
This paper presents an annual update of experience with the B&W IR-CFB boiler product. Included in the update is experience from Ebensburg Power, Southern Illinois University, and Kanoria Chemical. Additionally, the IR-CFB boiler process and design is described in this paper. Process features included in this review are the two-stage solids separation system, furnace density and temperature control, boiler turndown ratio, auxiliary power consumption, space requirements, etc. The paper provides a CFB technology comparison of those design features and applications to various fuel and repowering situations. type solids separator arranged as an array of U-shaped beams (U-beams) located at the furnace exit. It is followed by the secondary separation stage located after the convective superheater in the lower gas temperature region (varies from 150C to 500C by project) and employing either a mechanical dust collector (MDC) or the first field(s) of an electrostatic precipitator (ESP). While the bulk of circulating solids collection is carried out by the U-beams, the secondary separator is used for collecting the finest fraction of those solids. The evolution of B&W CFB solids separation system design and corresponding typical solids balances is shown in Figure 1. The first generation of B&W CFB technology was represented by the wood-fired boilers featuring a U-beam separator installed externally to the furnace. Solids collected by the Ubeams were returned to the furnace through non-mechanical flow controllable L-valves.

Background
A unique and distinct feature of B&Ws CFB boiler is a twostage solids separation system. The primary stage is an impact-

Cumulative Efficiency Component Collection Efficiency 100

95% 95%

99.5% 90.0%

Cumulative Efficiency Component Collection Efficiency 0.5 Fly Ash 100

70% 70%

97.0% 90.0%

99.7% 90.0%

Cumulative Efficiency Component Collection Efficiency 0.3 Fly Ash 100

70% 70%

97.0% 90.0%

99.7% 90.0%

5.0

5.0

30 70

3.0

3.0

30 70

3.0

3.0

0.3 Fly Ash

Solids Storage Hopper 95 Solids Flow Control 4.5

Multiclone Dust Collector

Solids Storage Hopper 27 Solids Flow Control

Multiclone Dust Collector 27

Solids Transfer Hopper 2.7

Solids Storage Hopper

Mechanical Dust Collector Solids Flow Control

2.7 A. First Generation B. Second Generation Note: Illustrated values are based on 100 units of solids exiting the furnace shaft.

C. Third Generation

Figure 1

B&W CFB solids circulation schematics.

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Figure 4 Range of overall grade efficiency of B&W CFB solids collection system. Figure 2 Ebensburg CFB boiler.

In the second-generation coal-fired CFB boilers (Figure 2), the first two rows of U-beams were installed inside the furnace (in-furnace U-beams). Solids collected by those rows fall down along the furnace rear wall. Particles collected by the following rows are still recycled externally through the L-valves though the rate of this recycle was reduced several times as compared to the first generation L-valve. In the third (current) generation of B&W CFB boilers all solids collected in the U-beams are Internally Recycled within the furnace, thus the name IR-CFB. The IR-CFB U-beam design is shown in Figure 3. The in-furnace U-beams collect from 60 to 75% of all entering solids. Particles collected by the U-beam rows external to the furnace, located after the furnace exit plane (three to four rows), go through a particle transfer hopper that drains solids to the furnace through discharge ports in the upper furnace wall. This second set of U-beams collects from 75 to 90% of the solFurnace Roof

ids that pass the in-furnace U-beams. Therefore, in-furnace and external U-beams collect 90 97% of all entering solids. The fine solids fractions passing the U-beams are collected in the secondary stage of the solids separation system (MDC or the first fields of ESP). This stage captures typically from 90 to 95+% of solids passing the U-beams resulting in the overall efficiency of the two-stage solids separation system of up to 99.8%. Solids collected at the secondary separation stage are recycled to the furnace at a controlled rate with a variable speed screw or rotary valve. The recycle rate is set to maintain furnace solids inventory and upper furnace solids density. Achieving the desired furnace solids density profile thus results in maintaining the target bed / furnace temperature. Material being collected in excess of the recycle rate is purged from the system. While the overall collection efficiency of the solids separation system is affected by the purge rate, it normally remains in the range of 99.3% to 99.7%. The range of overall grade efficiency of the B&W CFB solids collection system is shown in Figure 4. The system effectively captures and recycles all particles coarser than 80 micron.

Gas Flow

In-Furnace U-Beams U-Beam Support In-Furnace U-Beams External U-Beams Solids Transfer Hopper Solids Transfer Hopper Furnace External U-Beams

Figure 3

IR-CFB primary particle collection system.

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Table 1 CFB Boiler Comparison

B&W IR-CFB Hot-Cyclone CFB FW Compact Cold-Cyclone CFB

Solids Separation System

Two-stage (100% efficiency for particles of d>80 micron*)

Single-stage (100% efficiency for particles of d>100 micron)

Single-stage (100% efficiency for particles of d>100 micron)

Single-stage (100% efficiency for particles of d>100 micron)

*Recycling finer particles increases furnace heat transfer rate, improves combustin efficiency and limestone utilization. Upper Furnace Density, lb/ft3 (kg/m3) Furnace Temperature Control 0.7-1.0 (11-16) Desired temperature can be maintained within +/-5C interval for wide range of fuels and operating conditions by adjusting secondary recycle rate. 5:1 0.5-0.7 (8-11) Temperature is predetermined by furnace and heat exchanger design along with fuel and limestone properties/sizing. 3.5 : 1 0.5-0.7 (8-11) Temperture is predetermined by furnace and heat exchanger design along with fuel and limestone properties/sizing. 3.5 : 1 0.3-0.5 (5-8) Lower bed temperature is controlled by adjusting cold cyclone ash recycle rate. Temperature span across furnace height is up to 100C. 3.5 : 1

Boiler Turndown Without Auxiliary Fuel Refractory: Thickness, in. (mm) Covered Areas

0.6-2.0 (15-50) Lower furnace, U-beam zone enclosure walls

~3 (~75) Lower furnace, cyclone, recycle loop (5-10 times more than @ B&W CFB) 3-5 per cyclone 16-18 (4.9-5.5) 75-85 (22-26) Required for J-valves 6-8 (1.5-2.0)

~3 (~75) Lower furnace, cyclone, recycle loop (3-5 times more than @ B&W CFB) Number varies with arrangement 16-18 (4.9-5.5) 75-85 (22-26) Required for J-valves ~6 (~1.5)

~2 (~50) Entire furnace, cyclone (3-4 times more than @ B&W CFB) None 13-15 (4.0-4.5) NA Required for siphons 4-6 (1.0-1.5)

Hot-Temperature Expansion Joints Furnace Shaft Velocity, ft/s (m/s) Furnace Exit Velocity, ft/s (m/s) High-Pressure Air

None 16-24 (4.9-7.3) 21-32 (6.4-9.8) Not required

Total Pressure Drop 4 (1.0) Across Solids Separator(s), (U-beams + MDC) in. wc (kPa) Aux. Power Consumption Lower

Higher

Higher

Moderate

CFB Boiler Technology Design & Performance Comparison

A comparison of B&W IR-CFB design and performance features with those of other major commercial CFB combustion technologies is shown in Table 1.

Experience Update
There are currently two IR-CFB boilers in operation. The first one, shown in Figure 5, is located at Southern Illinois University (SIU) in Carbondale, Illinois, U.S.A. and is designed for 35 MWt output for cogeneration application, utilizing highsulfur, low-ash Illinois coal. The second boiler (see Figure 6) is

located at Kanoria Chemicals & Industries Ltd. (KCIL) in Renukoot, India and is designed for 81 MW t output for captive power requirement, firing high-ash, low-sulfur coal. This boiler was supplied by Thermax B&W Ltd., a joint venture company of B&W and Thermax of India. Other B&W IR-CFB projects ranging up to 125 MWe with reheat are currently in various stages of contracting and design. While sharing all IR-CFB design features, the SIU and KCIL boilers have the following major differences: SIU boiler features secondary solids recycle from MDC, and on the KCIL unit these solids are recycled from the ESP. Bottom ash removal/cooling is carried out with a watercooled screw at SIU and with fluid-bed coolers at KCIL.

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Figure 5

Southern Illinois University IR-CFB boiler.

Figure 6

Kanoria IR-CFB boiler.

While the KCIL boiler includes a tubular air heater, low feed water temperature at SIU resulted in not needing an air heater. Both the SIU and KCIL boilers were put in commercial operation in 1997. Their performance and availability data are shown in Table 2 and Figures 7 and 8. Long-term B&W CFB performance can be illustrated by the operational data from the boiler at Ebensburg, Pennsylvania, firing waste bituminous coal (Figure 2). This second-generation CFB unit, originally designed for 55 MW e capacity (211 t/ hr steam flow), has operated at ~10% overload (61 MWe; 239 t/ hr) due to increased load demand. The Ebensburg boiler performance and availability are shown in Figure 9 and Table 3, respectively. While typical furnace full load velocity at B&W CFB boilers is 6 m/s, it ranges from 4.9 m/s for the SIU boiler (per customer specification) to an overload velocity of 7.3 m/s at Ebensburg. The existing operating experience justifies use of any furnace velocity from this range to better suit the requirements of a given project.

Design Applications
The wide range of furnace design velocity when combined with the two-stage solids separation system provides exceptional flexibility with the B&W CFB boiler design. In order to accommodate project-specific space requirements without sacrificing boiler performance, the furnace height and/ or plan area can be adjusted along with the furnace velocity to provide sufficient residence time for combustion and sulfur capture. When replacing an existing PC-fired boiler, the B&W CFB boiler can utilize available plant space while meeting or exceeding the capacity of the unit and burning much lower grade fuels than the original plant. For most of the fuels, a cost-optimized IR-CFB design would utilize a higher-temperature MDC. The higher temperature MDC is located upstream of the economizer in the gas temperature

zone of 400 to 500C (as opposed to the 200 to 300C zone, downstream of the economizer). While cost of the MDC increases slightly due to higher gas volume and possible use of low alloys instead of carbon steel, it provides overall cost benefits for the following reasons: Lower cost of economizer because of lower heat duty and higher possible gas velocity (both resulting from reduced solids loading) Fewer rows of U-beams (total 5 instead of 6) with increased MDC solids collection Inclined screws, utilized as a feeding and metering device for secondary recycle solids, also serve to convey solids to the furnace thus eliminating the need for a separate conveying system, like air-assisted conveyors. Those design features are illustrated in Figure 10 showing a boiler arrangement for one of the new projects. This boiler also features extensive in-furnace superheating surface providing effective heat transfer due to high solids bulk density in the upper furnace. A cavity downstream of U-beams is provided for selective non-catalytic reduction of NOx by spraying ammonia into the gas flow. An alternative arrangement may be used when firing fuels like oil shale featuring such properties as: High amount of solids generated per unit heat release High reactivity High internal Ca/S molar ratio Extreme fouling tendency of the fine ash fractions. Massive generation of bed material when firing oil shale allows sufficient furnace solids inventory at reduced solids recycle ratio. High reactivity of the fuel permits the reduced recycle ratio without sacrificing the combustion efficiency. High internal Ca/S ratio provides excellent sulfur capture without using sorbent, e.g. limestone, thus eliminating concerns about the efficiency of the sorbent utilization at the reduced solids recycle ratio. On the other hand, ash fouling properties would demand selfcleaning operation of the boiler convection pass in order to avoid high-maintenance cleaning of those heating surfaces. Such self-

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Table 2 IR-CFB Boiler Performance @ 100% MCR KCIL Steam Flow, kg/hr (klb/hr) Steam Pressure, MPa (psig) Steam Temperature, C (F) FW Temperature, C (F) Steam Temperature Control Range, % MCR 60-100 Turndown 3.5:1 Flue Gas Temperature Leaving Airheater, C (F) 140 (284) Flue Gas Temperature Leaving Economizer, C (F) Coal Flow Rate, kg/hr (klb/hr) 25,760 (56.7) Furnace Bed Temperature, C (F) 860 (1580) Upper Furnace Temperature, C (F) 878 (1612) Furnace Bottom P, mmwc (in. wc) 610 (24.0) Furnace Upper P, mmwc (in. wc) 340 (13.4) Boiler Efficiency (on Higher Heating Value Basis), % 87.9 Excess Air, % 20 Ca/S Ratio Performance Coal Analysis Proximate Analysis, % by wt Ash 45.0 37.40 Moisture 10.0 Sulfur 0.4 Volatile Matter 18.0 Fixed Carbon 24.0 Ultimate Analysis, % by wt Carbon 32.00 Hydrogen 2.10 Oxygen 9.82 Sulfur 0.40 Nitrogen 0.68 Moisture 10.00 Ash 45.00 37.40 Higher Heating Value, kCal/kg (Btu/lb) 3500 (6300) Coal Size, mm (in.) 6.4 x 0 (1/4 x 0) Mid Size (d50), mm (in.) 0.75 (0.03) Limestone Size, micron (mesh) Emissions NOx, ppm (lb/106 Btu) 100 (0.16) SO2 w/o Limestone, mg/Nm3 (lb/10 6 Btu) <1600 (<1.27) SO2, % removal CO, ppm (lb/106 Btu) Design 105,000 (231) 6.4 (913) 485 (905) 180 (356) Test Data 103,000 (227) 6.2 (884) 483 (901) 180 (356) 60-100 5:1 130-140 (266-284) 21,760 (47.9) 865-880 (1589-1616) 865-880 (1589-1616) 600-680 (23.6-26.8) 300-380 (12.0-15.0) 88.8 16-20 8.50 9.40 0.22 25.70 27.28 40.00 3.20 8.83 0.22 0.91 9.40 8.50 3910 (7038) 6.4 x 0 (1/4 x 0) 1.2 (0.05) <75 (<0.12) <800 (<0.63) Design 46,000 (101.5) 4.7 (675) 399 (750) 109 (228) 50-100 4:1 149 (300) 5400 (11.9) 865 (1589) 875 (1607) 610 (24.0) 254 (10.0) 86.6 20 2.3 12.23 11.30 3.10 34.00 46.20 65.13 4.50 5.96 3.10 1.51 11.30 12.23 6492 (11,686) 12.7 x 0 (1/2 x 0) 3 (1/8) 1180 x 0 (16-) <170 (<0.25) 90 200 (0.18) SIU Test Data 46,000 (101.5) 4.4 (640) 399 (750) 109 (228) 40-100 5:1 155 (311) 5400 (11.9) 870 (1598) 880 (1616) 610 (24.0) 260 (10.2) 86.6 19 2.3

7.45 2.71 33.64 46.68 64.75 4.52 7.06 2.71 1.28 7.45 6505 (11,709) 20 x 0 (3/4 x 0) 9 (3/8) 1180 x 0 (16-) 90-100 (0.13-0.15) 90 150-200 (0.14-0.18)

Forced Outage Commissioning Outage Planned Outage Boiler Available 0.5* 100 11.0 95 10.3 18.4

Forced Outage Planned Outage Boiler Available 100 8.2 7.5 7.7 1.7

95

Boiler Availability, %

Boiler Availability, %

90 89.7 81.1

90

4.2 6.8

85

89.0

90.6 85 85.0 80 88.3

80

0 1997 (July 15-Dec. 31) 1998

1999 (Jan.-July)

0 1997 1998

* not boiler-related reason

1999 (Jan.-July)

Figure 7

SIU boiler availability.

Figure 8

KCIL boiler availability.

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Forced Outage

Planned Outage

Boiler Availability

100

1.9

1.2

Boiler Availability, Percent

3.9 5.3

2.6

2.2 2.8

1.4 5.6

1.8 4.2

1.5 2.9

95 90

8.4

9.4

4.5 5.6

6.6

95.0

85

89.7

89.4

91.6 89.1

90.8

93.0

94.0

95.6

80 0 1991 (May-Dec.) 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 (Jan.-July)

Figure 9

Ebensburg boiler availability.

Table 3 Ebensburg Operating Data Operating Steam Flow, t/hr (klb/hr) Steam Flow @ MCR, t/hr (klb/hr) Steam Temperature, C (F) Steam Pressure, MPa (psig) SH Steam Temperature Control Range, % Load Turndown Ratio Without Auxiliary Fuel Emissions NOx, ppm (lb/106 Btu) SO2, ppm (lb/106 Btu) CO, ppm (lb/10 6 Btu) Ca/S Molar Ratio 234 (516) 211 (465) 512 (953) 10.6 (1540) 30-110 5:1 <100 (<0.14) <300 (<0.60) <230 (<0.25) 2.1-2.4

cleaning can be provided by medium-size particles flowing through the convection pass. Boiler arrangement for firing oil shale is shown in Figure 11. Only in-furnace U-beams are utilized as a primary separator allowing coarser solids to the convection pass. No external U-beams or recycle are needed. The MDC is located downstream of the economizer thus providing self-cleaning of the convection pass heating surfaces by medium-size particles. Similar to that of the primary separator, MDC collection efficiency and recycle can be substantially reduced.

Conclusion
A two-stage solids separation system with controllable secondary recycle provides efficient boiler operation with precise process control. Coupled with internal recycle of the bulk of circulating solids and a wide range of furnace velocity, it allows a flexible, compact, cost effective and high performance CFB boiler design suitable for multiple fuels in retrofit and greenfield applications.

Figure 10

125 MWe IR-CFB boiler with reheat.

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Figure 11

IR-CFB boiler for oil shale firing.

Copyright 1999 by The Babcock & Wilcox Company, a McDermott company. All rights reserved. No part of this work may be published, translated or reproduced in any form or by any means, or incorporated into any information retrieval system, without the written permission of the copyright holder. Permission requests should be addressed to: Market Communications, The Babcock & Wilcox Company, P.O. Box 351, Barberton, Ohio, U.S.A. 44203-0351. Disclaimer Although the information presented in this work is believed to be reliable, this work is published with the understanding that The Babcock & Wilcox Company and the authors are supplying general information and are not attempting to render or provide engineering or professional services. Neither The Babcock & Wilcox Company nor any of its employees make any warranty, guarantee, or representation, whether expressed or implied, with respect to the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of any information, product, process or apparatus discussed in this work; and neither The Babcock & Wilcox Company nor any of its employees shall be liable for any losses or damages with respect to or resulting from the use of, or the inability to use, any information, product, process or apparatus discussed in this work.

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