DEVELOPMENT OF A FLAMELESS COMBUSTION SYSTEM WITH REGENERATIVE BURNER

• Grant number: 12/12374-0
• Support type: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctorate
• Effective date (Start): March 01, 2013
• Effective date (End): February 29, 2016
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Mechanical Engineering - Transport Phenomena
• Principal researcher: João Andrade de Carvalho Junior
• Grantee: Anton Skyrda Veríssimo
• Home Institution: Faculdade de Engenharia (FEG). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Guaratinguetá. Guaratinguetá , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The Flameless Combustion regime has a number of advantages compared with conventional combustion regimes. Among of the advantages there are the reduction of NOx and CO, fluctuations and noise. In this combustion mode, the reaction zone is distributed in a volume instead of in a thin flame front as it is in conventional combustion. This is an innovative combustion technology has received global attention of several researchers and industrial groups. One of the reasons is the possibility of reducing fuel consumption and, consequently, decreasing CO2 emissions, through the heat recovered from the combustion products from pre-heating of the combustion air. It is also possible to increase the useful lifetime of the combustion chamber due to higher uniformity of temperature field and reduction of oxygen concentrations inside of the combustion chamber, avoiding, in this way, oxidation of the walls.Some European countries, the USA and Japan are currently at the forefront of worldwide research on this new technology. In spite of the works conducted on the subject, flameless combustion needs to be be better characterized and optimized. It is still necessary improve the understanding of the physical and chemical phenomena that govern the flameless combustion mode and that are not modeled correctly yet. The project aims to develop a system, in a pilot scale furnace, to burn natural gas in the flameless combustion mode. The purpose of this combustion system is reheating products for lamination. As mentioned above, flameless combustion mode provides a homogeneous temperature field in the combustion chamber and reduces, drastically, the NOx emissions. The goal is to reach European emission limits for NOx planned to December 2015. The proposed system will operate at a power of around 150,000 to 250,000 kcal/h.