Analysis of Pulverizers

P M V Subbarao
Professor
Mechanical Engineering Department
Multi Task Machines to meet the rate of rapid coal combustion

1920 : A Need for Break Through for Thermal
Power Generation
The first limit on grate firing is that of scale.
A practical engineering limit seems to be reached when the length
and width of the grate are about 9 m with grate area 80 m
2.
At 2 MW/m
2
, the steam capacity at 85% efficiency would be 150
MW or 270 tons per hour.
In practice stokers have rarely exceeded a capacity of 135
tons/hour.
The limitation is partly grate area and partly firing density.
The limitation on firing density exist due to:
The rate of movement of the reaction plane could not match the
opposed rate of fuel flow leading to blow-off.
The experience with grate combustion led to development of
many requirements for further development.
Parameters for Combustion Requirements
Heat Release Rate
Volumetric Combustion Intensity
Area Combustion Intensity
Effective Reactor Height
Coal Firing Density
Area Firing Density
Products of combustion Velocity
Air Velocity
Combustion time
Particle Heating Rate
Heat Transfer Fluxes
Heat exchange surface area per unit cross sectional area of combustion
chamber, |
Heat Release Rate : A Capacity Limit
Most common Grate fired furnace ~ 30 MW.
Maximum obtained ~ 150 MW.
Maximum Power Generation Capacity ~ 50 MW
Future Projected Requirement ~ 3000 MW
Firing Densities Limits : An Optimal Choice
Firing densities are expressed in two ways:
A volumetric combustion intensity, I
v.
Area Firing Intensity, I
A

A volumetric combustion intensity, I
v.

High value of I
v
:
Compact furnace
Low Capital cost
Less time for combustion
Low Values of I
v

Bulky furnace
More time for combustion
Low Running Cost

Area Firing Intensity, I
A

High value of I
A

Sleek furnace
Higher combustion Temperatures
Better Ignition
Low Value of I
A
Poor Ignition
Fat furnace
Low No
x

Solid Ash

Combustion Factor Pre 1920
Status
Future Requirement
A volumetric combustion intensity, I
v
(kW/m
3
)

250 750 1500 2500
Area Combustion Intensity, I
A
(kW/m
2
)

300 1800 Up to 7500
Coal Firing Density J
f,V
( kg/m
3
.hr)

30 100 1500 3000
Area Firing Density, J
f,A
(kg/m
2
.hr) 40 250 Up to 1000
Air Velocity (m/sec) Up to 0.5 Up to 20
Exhaust Gas Velocity (m/sec) Up to 3 Up to 20
Combustion time (sec) Up to 5000 ~ 1
Particle Heating Rate (
0
C/sec) <1 10000
Heat Transfer Coefficients (W/m
2
K) ~10 50 500
Heat Fluxes to Heat exchange (kW/m
2
) ~ 10 50 500
Reasons for Fast Forward
Combustion Time
How to reduce Overall Coal Combustion time.
Combustion of solid fuel is heterogeneous reaction.
Proportional to surface area available for reaction.
Simple geometric solution.
For same mass, lower diameter particles will have more surface are
than larger particles.
Grinding the particles will enhance the area of exposure.
Pulverized Fuel Combustion
Invented in 1920.
An universal choice for power plants till 1990.
Fine particles of coal ~ 75 microns.
Surface area : 150 m
2
/kg.
Huge heat release per unit area : 2 5 MW/m
2
.

Steam generation : 2000 tons/hour.


Coal Particle Combustion During A Journey
Duties of A Furnace
Dixons Theory:
Generate an environment of excited fuel and oxygen molecules.
All the fuel molecules should be surrounded by oxygen molecules.
Facilitate frequent collisions among excited fuel molecules and excited
fuel molecules.
A successful collision can lead to combustion.
Many possible technologies are available to realize above conditions
with varying levels of success and expenditure.
These are called Three Ts and one S technologies.
The Three Ts & One S Practice
Technology Time Temperature Turbulence Size
Stoker large Medium Low Big
Pulverized Short High Medium Tiny
Cyclone Short+ V High High Medium
Fluid Bed Medium Low High Medium
Size the Coal and Add the Air !!!
The One & Only One, Which Makes it Possible?
The coal is ground and dried in gas-swept mills equipped with
aerodynamic gas-solid separators (classifiers).
The pulverized coal is pneumatically transported to burners and
injected in the form of particle-laden jets into the combustion
chamber.
Among the most challenging fluid mechanics problems are those
dealing with preparation of the coal prior to combustion.
These problems are made more serious because coal is
commonly dried and pulverized to a finely divided state in the
presence of hot air.
The coal/air mixtures used in this drying and grinding process
are well within established flammability limits, which are very
broad.
Coal pulverizers
Coal pulverizers are essentially volumetric devices .
As the density of coal is fairly constant, are rated in mass units of
tonnes/hr.
A pulverizer accepts a volume of material to be pulverized which is
dependent on the physical dimensions of the mill and the ability of
coal to pass through the coal pulverizing system.
The common measure of mass in tonnes enables matching of energy
requirements with available coal properties and mill capacity.
Increased combustible loss can occur if the furnace volume or mill
capacity is less than desirable for a particular coal.
The furnace volume and mill capacity in a specific power station may
dictate the need to purchase coals which are reactive and which can be
ground easily.
Size reduction is energy intensive and generally very inefficient with
regard to energy consumption.
In many processes the actual energy used in breakage of particles is
less than 5% of the overall energy consumption.
Mills

There are basically four different types of pulverizing mills which are
designed to reduce coal with a top particle size of about 50 mm to the
necessary particle size range.
Ball&Tube Mill, Ball &Race Mill, Bowl Mill & Impact Mill
Each type has a different grinding mechanism and different operating
characteristics.
There are four unit operations going concurrently within the mill body,
coal drying, transport, classification and grinding.
For coal pulverizers the capacity of a mill is normally specified as tonnes
output when grinding coal with a HGI of 50, with a particle size of 70%
less than 75 micron and 1 or 2 % greater than 300 micron and with a
moisture in coal of less than 10%.
A few manufacturers specify 55 instead of 50 with respect to HGI..
This standardization enables selection of an appropriate mill for a specific
duty.
Coal Mills
Match with Burner Parameters
Primary and secondary air velocities should be decided to locate the
point of ignition from the exit plane of burner.
Low (16-20 m/s) are not suitable for high volatile coals.
Low velocities are recommended for low volatile coals.
Slagging and thermal distortion of the burners can result in variations
in velocities.
Large particles throw active combustion region into the wall region.
This increases slagging and increase in Unburned carbon losses.
For bituminous secondary:primary air velocity ratios are 1.4-1.5.
This gives sufficient reserve for load decrease without significantly
impairing the aerodynamics of P.F. Jet.
Performance of Cyclone
The balance between the centrifugal and drag forces acting on solid
particles, which controls the radial movement of in the main body of
the furnace.
Secondary air flows, boundary layer flow and turbulence levels.
Fuel size distribution.
Moisture content.
HV
Reactivity of fuel
Operating temperatures and ash composition, which govern whether
the cyclone is used in a slagging or non-slagging mode.
The formation of slag layer aids the burn-out of larger particles.
Temperatures should be controlled by controlling the excess air.

Particle size distribution
Particles less than 60 m burn before
entering the cyclone.
Particles 60 m to 100 m are likely to be
carried inside the cyclone.
The majority of the particles larger than 150
m will be flung to the wall and will start to
burn there.

Satisfy Furnace Limits
The lower limit of the furnace volume is dominated by the
space required for burning the fuel completely, or
to an extent less than the allowable unburned fuel loss.
To complete the fuel combustion within the furnace space,
the fuel injected into the furnace has to reside there for a
time longer than critical time t
*
r
.
The fuel residence time can also be estimated by the
residence time of the combustion gas produced in the
furnace
An average residence time t
r
can be proposed.


Satisfy Combustion Limits
Fuel combustion time is mainly dominated by the
combustion reaction velocity and the rate at which oxygen
is supplied into the reaction zone.
The combustion reaction velocity depends on chemical
characteristics of the fuel.
Main technical factors that affect the combustion time are:
Combustion characteristics of the fuel.
Mixing characteristics.
Fluid flow characteristics of the furnace.
The combustion velocity of an oil fuel droplet is generally
less than 0.1 msec.
In the case of coal combustion time is much longer.
Combustion Limits on Furnace Design
The lower limit of the furnace volume is
dominated by the space required for burning the fuel completely, or
to an extent less than the allowable unburned fuel loss.
To complete the fuel combustion within the furnace space, the fuel
injected into the furnace has to reside there for a certain time longer
than some critical time t
*
r
.
The fuel residence time can be estimated by the residence time of the
combustion gas produced in the furnace.
An average residence time t
r
can be proposed.
e unit volum per generation heat of rate Allowable Max. furnace the of Volume
furnace the entering energy Fuel

=
r
t
v
c
r
Vq
LHV m
t >
gas. of density
generated gas of mass
= V
v
g
g
c
r
q
m
LHV m
t
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>

v
c
g
g
r
q
m
m
LHV
t
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>

v
g
r
q
F
A
LHV
t
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+
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1 c

Fuel combustion time is mainly dominated by the combustion reaction

velocity and the rate at which oxygen is supplied into the reaction
zone.
The combustion reaction velocity depends on chemical characteristics
of the fuel.
Main technical factors that affect the combustion time are:
Combustion characteristics of the fuel.
Mixing characteristics.
Fluid flow characteristics of the furnace.
The combustion time of an oil fuel droplet is generally less than 0.1
msec.
In the case of coal combustion time is much longer.

Typical Flame Speed of PC.
30%VM & 5 % Ash
30%VM & 15 % Ash
20%VM & 5 % Ash
30%VM & 30 % Ash
30%VM & 40 % Ash
15%VM & 5 % Ash
F
l
a
m
e

s
p
e
e
d

m
/
s

A/F ratio
Typical Layout of Pulverizer Circuit