COMPARISON CHARTS BETWEEN PC FIRED COMBUSTION AND

CIRCULATING FLUIDISED BED COMBUSTION ( CFBC )

I. Coal Acceptance in boiler

S.No. Criteria PC Fired Combustion CFB Combustion

1. Volatile Matter Good combustion above 20% Even lower volatile matter
VM acceptable
2. Ash content 35-40% ash content coal Even higher ash content coal
acceptable (40-45%) acceptable
3. Heat value of Combustion good in the Good combustion achieved
coal range of coals having around for lower calorific value
3800-4500 Kcal/Kg. coals (even below 3000
Kcal/kg.)
4. Coal size Pulverised coal 70% through (-) 6mm coal size with
200 mesh. certain limitations in
accepting oversize & fine.
5. Moisture Moisture content to be Even higher moisture
Content restricted to 30% total content acceptable
moisture with maximum
surface moisture as 12%

II. Coal preparation and movement

S.No. Criteria PC Fired Combustion CFB Combustion

1. Coal Coal preparation system Coal preparation simpler
preparation much more complicated and since it involves only
maintenance prone since crushing and no pulveriser
pulveriser mills are required. mills are required.

III. Ash properties

S.No. Criteria PC Fired Combustion CFB Combustion

1. Fly ash Percentage of fly ash in total
ash generation & its
properties similar to those for
CFBC.
2. Bottom ash Bottom ash is more Bottom ash generated is less
aggressive than in CFBC. aggressive and easier to
handle due to less sintering
in CFBC.
3. Ash erosion Comparable with FBC and Comparable with PC fired
inside furnace avoided to a large extent by combustion.
proper shielding.
4. Ash Melting Low ash melting temperature Better handling possible
Temperature can lead to slagging.
IV. Emmissions

S.No. Criteria PC Fired Combustion CFB Combustion

1. SO2 Emission Uncontrolled, if without a
separate flue gas
desulphurization plant
2. NOX emission Low NOX emission.
Controlled, since sulphur is
retained inside bed as
gypsum by addition of
limestone in furnace.
Even lower NOX emission
than PC fired boilers due to
lower combustion
temperatures.

V. Other comparison criterion

S.No. Criteria PC Fired Combustion CFB Combustion

1. Boiler Above 85% efficiency CFBC boiler eff. is
efficiency achievable comparable to PC fired
boiler
2. Unburnt carbon Low (<2%) CFBC boiler comparable to
losses PC fired boiler.

3. Furnace Good Even better than PC fired

stability during boilers.
sharp load
changes.
4. Oil support Oil support is required when Oil support is not required
requirement burning Indian low VM coals. even with low VM coals (16-
18%).
5. Fuel flexibility Fuel flexibility is much lower Fuel flexibility higher than
than FBC boilers. Requires PC fired boiler. Large range
changes in boiler design to of fuels can be fired in the
burn different fuels. same boiler with adjustments
in air ratios and fuel feed.