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BR-1883
Authors: K.J. McCauley D.L. Kraft M. Maryamchik D.L. Wietzke K.C. Alexander Babcock & Wilcox Power Generation Group, Inc. Barberton, Ohio, U.S.A. Presented to: Power-Gen Asia Date: October 3-5, 2012 Location: Bangkok, Thailand
Abstract
The paper provides an update on Babcock & Wilcox Power Generation Group, Inc. (B&W PGG) Internal Recirculation-Circulating Fluidized-Bed (IR-CFB) boiler operating experience, new commercial projects, and developments in large-scale supercritical boiler design and process. B&W PGG IR-CFB boilers feature a proven and unique two-stage solids separator. The primary stage is an impact solids separator located at the furnace exit which collects the bulk of the solids and returns them to the furnace. The primary separation stage is arranged as an array of watercooled, segmented, U-shaped vertical elements (U-beams). The secondary separation stage, typically a multi-cyclone dust collector (MDC), is located in a lower gas temperature region of the boiler. With three-years of successful commercial operation, the latest IR-CFB design is being expanded to higher capacity boilers of 300 MWe. Operating experience of IR-CFB boilers confirms their efficient performance and high reliability and availability. Scale-up to 300 to 600 MWe, with higher steam temperatures, increases these efficiencies and benefits. This allows for a highly competitive utility-scale power plant for central power generation using local coals. Pilot-scale operations are currently underway to finalize the design of an advanced IR-CFB that will utilize in-bed heat exchangers (IBHX). This will allow for use of a greater range of fuels at higher capacities (>300 MWe) and for supercritical once-through designs. Current results of the pilot testing and boiler designs will be discussed, along with applicability to various markets throughout Asia.
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Introduction
Over the years there has been a continuing need to provide steam and/or electric power to drive our economies, and the use of available solid fuels has always been a key motivator and enabler. From the 1800s when B&W first provided plants with grate (stoker) technology, to the 1970s with the introduction of bubbling fluid-bed (BFB) technology, and finally to the introduction of circulating fluid beds, technical advances have met the ever changing needs of industry. Modern grate (stoker) technology is used successfully today for waste-to-energy power plants, and BFB technology is used for niche applications such as high volume biomass (and in recent utility power plants for renewable energy generation). Likewise, the circulating fluid-bed (CFB) combustion process has been a market-wide success. Hundreds of CFB boilers operate today and provide high availability, low maintenance and reliable operation for both industrial and utility applications. The development of the CFB technology has evolved over the past three decades. The latest efforts are focused on developing large capacity, supercritical oncethrough CFB boilers for utility electric power generation. The drivers for these scale-up efforts include the need for higher plant efficiencies firing waste coal, low volatile anthracite coal, high moisture lignite coal, highly erosive coal and possible applications for oxy-fuel combustion. A CFB boiler circulates solid particles within the combustion process to transfer heat from the chemical process to the boiler water-cooled tube enclosure and other heating surfaces (see Figure 1). In doing so, the furnace gas tempera1
tures are lowered for the sulfation reaction of calcium oxide (principally) and to prevent agglomeration of the solids. Therefore, the primary function of the solids is to control the furnace temperature to 815 to 900C (1500 to 1650F) for the reduction of sulfur dioxide (SO2) by adding limestone to the circulating solids. The solids that exit the furnace are captured and returned to the furnace to maintain adequate solids inventory to control the gas temperature. The B&W PGG design of the furnace exit solids return system is an array of U-beams, or impact solids separators, that discharge solids directly back to the upper furnace. The majority of the solids attempting to exit the furnace are captured and returned within the furnace enclosure. There is no major external solids return system. The B&W PGG design provides recycling of a minor solids stream from a multi-cyclone dust collector (MDC) located in the convection pass; however, this solid stream is quite small compared to the solids collected by the U-beam separators. The MDC impacts the upper furnace heat transfer rate, and thus overall bed temperature, and provides improvement in carbon and lime utilizations.
the fluid cycles among liquid, two-phase and vapor states. A closed condensing cycle provides enhanced efficiency, as it also allows for close control of water chemistry required for high pressure, high temperature cycles, and favors a minimum of makeup water. An additional improvement is the use of regenerative feedwater heating, which uses extraction steam from various stages in the turbine to heat the feedwater as it is pumped from the condenser to the economizer. Cycle thermodynamic efficiency is improved by increasing the temperature of the heat source for a constant heat sink temperature. This temperature can be increased when the feedwater pressure is increased because the boiler inlet pressure sets the saturation temperature in the Rankine cycle (see Figure 2). If the pressure is increased above the critical point of 220 bar (3200 psi), the addition of heat no longer results in a typical boiling process in which there is defined interface between the steam and water. Rather, the fluid can be treated as a single phase. This is referred to as a supercritical steam cycle, originally referred to as the Benson Super Pressure Plant when first proposed in the 1920s. The first commercial unit featuring a supercritical cycle and two stages of reheat was placed in service in 1957 using B&W technology. In general, with equivalent plant parameters (fuel type, heat sink temperature, etc.) the supercritical steam cycle generates about 4% more net power than the subcritical pressure regenerative Rankine steam cycle. These factors, along with component design limitations, must be considered in a cycle analysis where the objective is to optimize the thermodynamic efficiency within the physical and economic constraints of the equipment. In addition, there are constraints imposed by the economics of fuel selection and the environmental impacts of fuel combustion that impact the design of the boiler/turbine regenerative system.
At this same time the CFB combustion process was being developed which addressed these deficiencies. The coal feed was simply fed into the lower furnace bed using a chute, and the higher fluidizing velocities typical of the CFB process effectively mixed the coal, bed material and air. There were no in-bed tube bundles to erode. The CFB process carried the solids to the vertical furnace enclosure walls to transfer the heat. High solids circulation rates allow uniform furnace temperature. Without in-bed tube bundles, supports, and their inherent maintenance, were not required.
IR-CFB technology
B&W PGG IR-CFB boilers feature a two-stage solids separator. The primary separation stage is an impact solids separator located at the furnace exit collecting the bulk of the solids (95 to 97%) that are then returned to the furnace by gravity. The primary separator is arranged as an array of U-shaped vertical elements (U-beams). The secondary separation stage, typically an MDC, is located in the lower gas temperature region of the boiler convection pass, i.e., 250 to 510C (480 to 950F). The U-beam separator design has evolved through several generations (see Figure 4), starting with 11 rows installed externally to the furnace with solids recycle through nonmechanical, controllable L-valves, to the current design featuring a total of 4 rows, two of which are located in the furnace. While each U-beam in earlier designs was made as a single piece supported from the top, the current design includes segments, each being supported independently from a water-cooled tube (see Figure 5).
learned from coal-fired applications, improvements provide smaller capacity BFB boilers capable of using a wide range of biomass fuels, and many BFB industrial projects have been successful for many years. The BFB process was introduced to the electric power industry in the 1970s. The work during the first ten years was limited to studies and pilot-scale testing. Between the late 1970s and mid 1980s, two demonstration facilities were built, and three commercial installations were built. All three commercial projects were successful and met the owners needs. However, there were three significant lessons with the utility size application of the BFB combustion process: 1. The coal distribution was difficult for large or multiple beds. The coal was injected into the bottom of the bed with under-bed pneumatic systems. These systems plugged and eroded and the availability of the system was limited. 2. The beds had in-bed surface to control the bed temperature. The surface was generating surface that utilized forced or pumped circulation and final superheater surface. These tube bundle surfaces eroded over time due to the erosive impact of the bed material. Tube sections had to be replaced in 5 to 10 years of operation. 3. The tube bundles required support. The tube supports were uncooled and typically operated at 850C (1560F). The first supports required constant maintenance which affected availability. Later, the tube supports were increased in mass and mechanically tied together (no welds), which proved to be more successful, but quite expensive.
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During the same period, the design of the MDC separator has been modified for improved efficiency, reliability and maintainability. The MDC solids recycle system has evolved from dense-phase pneumatic transport to gravity conveying. Operating experience of IR-CFB boilers has clearly confirmed their efficient performance and high reliability and availability.
for B&W PGG CFB boilers is not limited by the rate of temperature rise of the refractory; instead it is limited by adding heat to the pressure parts, like all other non-fluid-bed boiler technologies.
India. Twenty of these units are in commercial operation, while the rest are in various stages of design, fabrication, construction and commissioning.
Low maintenance
A distinct feature of B&W PGG IR-CFB boilers is low maintenance. Among the factors contributing to this feature are: low overall amount of refractory, lower furnace refractory interface Reduced Diameter Zone (RDZ) design (see Figure 6), low furnace exit velocity, and an absence of hot expansion joints.
Operating experience
B&W PGG has a long history of boiler reliability in the U.S. and worldwide. The long-term availability of CFB units supplied by B&W PGG's licensee in India, Thermax Limited, is shown in Table 1 (Maryamchik 2005). Thermax Limited has been very active in the CFB market and has successfully sold over 50 CFBs in India and 4 CFBs outside
Fig. 6 Reduced Diameter Zone (RDZ) design for erosion protection at the upper refractory edge.
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Plant Availability (all data in % of total time available) Kanoria 1 (commissioned in 1996)
Years reported Plant availability 1997-2011 90.9
Table 1
membrane walls. It contains full height water-cooled panels, or division walls (about 1/3 the depth of the furnace), and steam-cooled wing walls. All other design features are the same as the lower capacity B&W PGG IR-CFB boilers.
by the additional heat exchanger surface in the external heat exchanger. One design integrated the external heat exchanger into the lower furnace. The total amount of solids captured by the hot cyclone still flows into the integrated heat exchanger. The integrated heat exchanger shares a wall between the CFB lower furnace and the heat exchanger. There are openings in this shared wall that allow translation of solids between the furnace to the integrated heat exchanger. At full load, the majority of the solids through the heat exchanger come from the hot cyclone return solids. Essentially, the heat exchanger functions as an external heat exchanger since the solids and heat to the heat exchanger come from the external hot cyclone. At lower loads, the cyclone solids are significantly lower and the furnace solids flow into the heat exchanger to supplement the heat requirements. In this mode the heat exchanger essentially functions as an internal heat exchanger. B&W PGG designed an In-Bed Heat Exchanger (IBHX) that is totally internal to the furnace (see Figure 9). The heat exchanger utilizes only solids from the lower furnace because there is no major solids stream from an external source. This makes the heat exchanger a 100% internal heat exchanger over the entire load range of the CFB. Since B&W PGGs IBHX is totally reliant on solids internal to the furnace, the location of the heat exchanger is not dependent on alignment with furnace exterior walls and the outlet of a hot cyclone.
Meenakshi CFB Performance Characteristics per Project Specification Main steam flow @ MCR, klb/hr (t/hr) Reheat steam flow @ MCR, klb/hr (t/hr) Main steam pressure, psig (barg) Reheat steam pressure, psig (barg) Main steam temperature, F (C) Reheat steam temperature, F (C)
6
1091 (495) 886 (402) 2020 (139) 378 (26) 1004 (540) 1004 (540) Fig. 7 General arrangement of 150 MW Meenakshi Power CFB boiler.
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that utilizes a two-stage solids separation system (U-beams and MDC). The supercritical once-through full load steam conditions are 597C/594C/310 bar (1106F/1101F/4500 psi) and the capacity is 400 MWe net. There are two areas of significant differences between the two designs: the furnace height and the overall cost of the solids collection system. The furnace height from the bubble caps to the roof for the hot cyclone design is significantly greater than the height of the B&W PGG design (up to fifty feet). The furnace height for the hot cyclone design is typically set to obtain 2600 kJ/ kg (1100 Btu/lb) enthalpy leaving the furnace circuit, which is a standard criterion for once-through technology. The absorption in both furnaces must, by definition, be identical to obtain the same steam dry-out condition required of once-through technology. The difference in height is explained by how the hot cyclone furnace is surfaced as compared to the B&W PGG furnace surfacing. With B&W PGGs U-beam design, the flue gas flows through the same open plan area through the
Fig. 8 General arrangement of 300 MW IR-CFB boiler.
The IBHX is used to provide the final superheat and reheat steam temperatures. The BFB style provides the greatest temperature differential between the solids and tube metal temperature for optimal heat transfer. Because 100% of the solids enter the IBHX from the furnace inventory, the availability of solids is greater than required for the final superheat and reheat absorption duties throughout a wide load range. Therefore, these steam temperatures can be maintained to boiler loads as low as 30%. In addition to compensating for the surface-to-volume ratio issues for larger furnaces, the IBHX allows for the optimization of the final superheat and reheat surface. If the final superheat and reheat steam temperatures were achieved in a combination of upper furnace and convection pass surfaces, the overall heat transfer coefficient would range narrowly from the upper furnace to the convection pass values. The heat transfer coefficient in the BFB is multiple times higher, which reduces the amount of surface directly by the increase in the coefficient. Therefore, the amount of the highest alloy material is significantly reduced by the ratio of the overall heat transfer coefficient. As the steam conditions advance to higher temperatures, the cost saving for this higher coefficient becomes more significant and becomes a major cost driver for the implementation of a heat exchanger. To summarize, the IBHX compensates for the lower surface-to-volume ratio of larger furnaces, the steam temperature control turndown capabilities of the IBHX with 100% internal solids is not affected by the diminishing solids availability from the hot cyclone, and the amount of the most expensive metallurgy is significantly reduced by the high heat transfer coefficient in the BFB.
U-beams as through the upper furnace. That is, there is no acceleration of the flue gas/solids mixture. With the hot cyclone design, the flue gas and solids accelerate from the large furnace plan area to the much smaller entrance area of the cyclone acceleration flue to the cyclone. Due to this acceleration of the flue gas/solids, pendent surface must not be near the cyclone entrances to prevent erosion. The internal vertical surface, division walls and platens can only be installed in the center of the furnace and away from the cyclone entrance walls, which constrains the design. For the U-beam technology, these surfaces can be installed directly in front of the furnace exit without a concern for erosion because the flue gas/solids are not accelerated when entering the U-beams. Therefore, the B&W PGG design permits installation of the required surface to obtain the required enthalpy in a shorter furnace height by concentrating the wing walls in front of the U-beams. The only way the hot cyclone design can install enough surface to satisfy the enthalpy requirement is to the increase the furnace height. Another issue related to the taller furnace height is predicting performance accurately. Predicting the furnace absorption for a once-through design is critical. Over absorption means higher tube temperatures in the furnace outlet circuits. Under absorption means the outlet enthalpy would be lower than design dry-out conditions for the primary superheater. B&W PGG uses the MDC ash recycle to trim the furnace overall temperature and wall absorption. Varying the MDC recycle within the capability of the recycle equipment can vary the furnace temperature by +/- 50C (+/- 120F) and consequently vary the wall absorption. This, coupled with the supercritical once-through furnace height being maintained at normal height, demonstrates not only the uniqueness of the B&W PGG design, but the lower risk of furnace absorption changes because the solids density is not as expected at the taller furnace heights. The second area of significant difference is the cost of the hot solids collection systems. The hot cyclone construction is membraned superheater surface and the total area of the cyclone enclosure and flue is more than the enclosure surface area of the furnace. These cyclones are large and after applying pin studs and thin refractory, the total cost can be four to five times higher than the U-beams, MDC and MDC recycle system.
Water/steam circuitry
The water/steam flow path begins when the feedwater enters through the economizer followed by the IBHX enclosure and furnace enclosure. The flow continues upward through the furnace division walls, furnace wing walls, separator and into the convection pass enclosure and U-beam cooled supports. The steam path then continues through the convection pass superheater, several passes for attemperation, and the furnace wing walls and finally the IBHX final superheat. The reheat path follows to the convection pass reheat and IBHX final reheat.
cold model has been built and performance characterized. A 2.5 MWt hot pilot facility has been designed (see Figure 10), and the construction, commissioning and testing will be completed in 2012. Results of the cold model have been successful. Some of the features that have been confirmed by the cold model are: 1. The patent-pending control of solids flow method (under-flow conduit) through the heat exchanger confirmed the solids flow is variable and controllable. 2. The solids entering through the top of the IBHX are finer than the primary zone solids, which increases the heat transfer and lowers the required fluidization velocity. 3. The amount of solids entering the IBHX is greater than required for the desired absorptions. 4. The solids overflow nozzles are adequate to remove the excess solids from the top of the bed. 5. Fluidization of the bed can be varied from minimum fluidization to bubbling fluidization regimes while flowing solids through the under-flow conduits. The 2.5 MWt pilot plant will confirm the hot performance including the heat transfer coefficient, solids flow, and overall heat absorption duty.
bed to drain excess solids. The remainder of the solids flow down through the in-bed tube bundle, transferring heat to the steam and exiting through the underflow conduits to the lower CFB furnace. The bed fluidization in the IBHX is capable of the range from minimum-to-bubbling fluidization regimes. The size distribution of the solids in the IBHX is quite fine as compared to the CFB primary zone, so the bubbling-bed velocities are significantly lower than the bed velocities associated with the first BFBs. The three major issues associated with previous utilityscale experiences with BFBs were solved in the IBHX BFB design. 1. The fluidizing velocities are low so the erosion potential is low. 2. There are no uncooled major supports requiring maintenance. 3. There is no direct firing of coal in the BFB, so distribution of coal is not an issue.
IBHX design
The IBHXs are located on the lower furnace front and rear walls. They are not full width, but are segmented to allow room for coal feed chutes and startup burners. There are four heat exchangers on two opposing sides. The heat exchangers on one side are final superheat and the heat exchangers on the other side are final reheat. The width of the tube sections is set by the maximum length of the tubes to be end-supported only; that is, no middle supports and the issues associated with uncooled supports are eliminated. The tubes forming the wall between the CFB furnace and the IBHX form overfire air nozzles at the top of the IBHX. This leaves the top opening fully open for solids to enter the IBHX. These nozzles also allow placement of the secondary air penetration at its proper location for mixing at the top of the primary zone. There are overflow nozzles above the
Conclusion
The use of a supercritical once-through design for advanced CFBs for electric power generation is a natural evolution of a proven product to meet the ever-changing worldwide energy needs. The supercritical once-through design uses technology that has been proven since the 1950s, including supercritical Rankine water/steam cycles, BFB technology and CFB technology. Development of these into a unique product provides for sustainable use of natural resources, a lower carbon impact for electric power generation, and an environmentally conscious application.
References
M. Maryamchik and D.L. Wietzke, Proceedings of 18th International Conference on Fluidized Bed Combustion, ASME, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, May 22-25, 2005, FBC 2005-78004. M. Maryamchik, Proceedings of the 9th International Conference on Circulating Fluidized Beds, Hamburg, Germany, May 13-16, 2008. S.P. Ganehsan, M. Maryamchik and D.L. Wietzke, Proceedings of the 2010 PowerGen India Conference, New Delhi, India, April 21-23, 2010. M. Maryamchik and D.L. Wietzke, Proceedings of the 2010 Coal-Gen Conference, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, August 10-12, 2010.
Copyright 2012 by Babcock & Wilcox Power Generation Group, Inc. a Babcock & Wilcox company All rights reserved. No part of this work may be published, translated or reproduced in any form or by any means, or incorporated into any information retrieval system, without the written permission of the copyright holder. Permission requests should be addressed to: Marketing Communications, Babcock & Wilcox Power Generation Group, Inc., P.O. Box 351, Barberton, Ohio, U.S.A. 44203-0351. Or, contact us from our website at www.babcock.com.
Disclaimer
Although the information presented in this work is believed to be reliable, this work is published with the understanding that Babcock & Wilcox Power Generation Group, Inc. (B&W PGG) and the authors are supplying general information and are not attempting to render or provide engineering or professional services. Neither B&W PGG nor any of its employees make any warranty, guarantee, or representation, whether expressed or implied, with respect to the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of any information, product, process or apparatus discussed in this work; and neither B&W PGG nor any of its employees shall be liable for any losses or damages with respect to or resulting from the use of, or the inability to use, any information, product, process or apparatus discussed in this work. 10 Babcock & Wilcox Power Generation Group