Abstract

Eighteen elements, including: carbon, oxygen, sodium, magnesium, aluminum, silicon, phosphorus, sulfur, chlorine, potassium, calcium, titanium, chromium, manganese, iron, nickel, strontium, and barium were measured using a scanning electron microscope with energy dispersive spectroscopy from deposits. The deposits were collected by burning eight different coals in a 160 kWth, staged, down-fired, swirl-stabilized combustor. Both up-stream and down-stream deposits from an oxidizing region (equivalence ratio 0.86) and reducing region (equivalence ratio 1.15) were collected. Within the deposits, the particle size and morphology were studied. The average particle cross-sectional area from the up-stream deposits ranged from 10 - 75 µm2 and had a standard deviation of 36 - 340 µm2. These up-stream particles were of various shapes: spherical, previously molten particles; irregular particle that had not melted, hollowed spherical shells; and layered or strands of particles. These particles were a mixture of burned and unburned coal being deposited at various stages of burnout and having completed some burnout after deposition. The average particle cross-sectional area from the down-stream deposits ranged 0.9 - 7 µm2 and the standard deviation range of 2.6 - 30 µm2. The shape of the particles on the bottom sleeves are typically spherical indicating melting prior to deposition. Particles contained a distribution of elemental compositions that were not tightly grouped on ternary phase diagrams. This indicated that particles were not single compounds or phases but each particle contained a mixture of multiple compounds. Coals' deposit sulfur was strongly correlated with the calcium and iron content of the ASTM ash analysis. The low rank sub-bituminous and lignite coals that had high calcium content produced high sulfur deposits, particularly in the oxidizing region, down-stream deposits. The high iron bituminous coals, also produced high sulfur deposits, but more so in the reducing region, up-stream deposits. The low calcium and low iron coals produced low sulfur deposits. Mahoning was an exception being high in iron content but remaining low in sulfur content in the deposit. Gatling coal showed numerous deposit particles that contained only iron and sulfur consistent with the high pyrite content of Gatling coal. The average concentration of chlorine was insignificant in all of the deposits with the concentration being less than 100 ppm. Individual particles containing chlorine were found and were associated with potassium, sodium, and iron.

Degree

MS

College and Department

Ira A. Fulton College of Engineering and Technology; Mechanical Engineering

Rights

http://lib.byu.edu/about/copyright/

Date Submitted

2011-04-09

Document Type

Thesis

Handle

http://hdl.lib.byu.edu/1877/etd4369

Keywords

David R. Brunner, Todd Reeder, Dale Tree, Advanced Combustion Engineering Research Center, coal, deposits, deposition, ash, ultra-supercritical steam, boiler, combustion, scanning electron microscope, energy dispersive spectroscopy, Illinois #6: Galatia, Powder River Basin: Black Thunder, Beulah Zap, Gatling, Mahoning: Kensington, Pittsburgh #8, Kentucky #11: Warrior, Indiana #6: Gibson, carbon, oxygen, sodium, magnesium, aluminum, silicon, phosphorus, sulfur, chlorine, potassium, calcium, titanium, chromium, manganese, iron, nickel, strontium, barium

Language

English

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