Abstract:
The objective of this thesis work was to develop andtest-run a pilot-scale fluidized bed furnace with auxiliariessimilar to those used in real system. The unit was also designedto allow for possible future improvement and modification in orderto investigate into other areas of fluidized bed combustion.In this work, the FBC furnace was test-run using lignite in order tostudy the effects of air-to-fuel ratio and fluidizing velocity onthe combustion efficiency and the inbed and overbed heat transferrates. Furthermore, an existing computer software for designingFBC system were modified and tested for practical application andreliability.The developed fluidized-bed ccunbustion system consisted ofa 0.45 m x 0.45 m furnace filled with sand having an average diameterof 2.02x10-4 m, 0.30 m high and complelety insulated withrefractory wall, and other auxiliaries. The auxiliaries includedscrew-type fuel feeders, inbed and overbed water tube banks, cyclone,induced draft fans, and temperature/pressure measurement and controlsystem. From the performance test run of the unit, air-to-fuelratios Between 6:1-6.9:1 (lo-30 % excess air) was found to give theBest combustion efficiencies of 93-96 % and the furnace temperatureof 870-921 C. For a constant bed temperature run at 840210 OC,the combustion and thermal efficiencies were found to be 85-89 % and66-82 %, respectively, when the A/F ratio was varies Between7.1:1-8.6:1 equivalent to 30-56 % excess air. In Both cases,the average value of the bed-to-tube heat transfer coefficients areabout 250 W/m2 K and are quite independent of air velocity.The overbed convective heat transfer coefficients vary with respectto air velocity or A/F ratio Between 51-68 W/m2 K.The FBC design software has Been structurely modified andrewritten using Quick Basic in place of BASICA so that furthermodification can be made with ease. The new version has also Beeninput with the experimental database taken in this project and thentest run to confrim its reliability.