Experimental characterization of an industrial pulverized coal-fired furnace under deep staging conditions

Measurements have been performed in a 300 MWe, front-wall-fired, pulverized-coal, utility boiler. This boiler was retrofitted with boosted over fire air injectors that allowed the operation of the furnace under deeper staging conditions. New data are reported for local mean gas species concentration of O-2, CO, CO2, NOx, gas temperatures and char burnout measured at several ports in the boiler including those in the main combustion and staged air regions. Comparisons of the present data with our previous measurements in this boiler, prior to the retrofitting with the new over fire system, show lower O2 and higher CO concentrations for the new situation as a consequence of the lower stoichiometry in the main combustion zone associated with the present boiler operating condition. Consistently, the measured mean NOx concentrations in the main combustion zone are now lower than those obtained previously, yielding emissions below 500 mg/Nm(3) @ 6% O-2. Finally, the measured values of particle burnout at the furnace exit are acceptable being those measured in the main combustion zone comparable with those obtained with the conventional over fire system.