Control of Liquid Hydrocarbon Combustion Parameters in Burners with Superheated Steam Supply

Abstract

A numerical simulation of reacting mixture flow in a full-scale combustion chamber of a prototype burner with a fuel-sprayed jet of superheated steam and a controlled excess air ratio was performed based on a verified model. The influence of steam jets on the combustion parameters of the created prototype device was analyzed based on the results, and a comparison with data from various atmospheric burners, including evaporative and spray types, direct-flow and vortex types, and those with natural and forced (regulated) air supply, was made. Various schemes for supplying steam to burner devices were discussed. It was shown that the relative steam consumption is a parameter for controlling the emission of toxic combustion products, such as NOx and CO, for all designs. A high burner performance is achieved when superheated steam is supplied at more than 250 °C with a relative steam flow rate of >0.6. The design features of the burner systems and operational parameters that ensure high thermal and environmental efficiency when burning various types of fuel and waste are identified.

Keywords

• hydrocarbon fuel combustion
• steam injection
• evaporation burners
• spray burners
• NOx reduction