glassglobal Consulting /

Reduce energy consumption and minimize emissions

References

Feasibility of reducing NOx-emissions of an end-port furnace by flameless combustion

Customer

confidential

Purpose

This study was intended to analyse the feasibility if flameless burners could be used to reduce the NOx emissions of an regenerative end-port furnace.

Description

First the current furnace was defined by measuring temperatures, flue gas composition. The data collection was achieved by installing a furnace analysing system (ggFAS), which analysed the furnace energy and mass balances in this case every 30s. Based on the data the base case simulation was performed and defined as basis for all variations.

Several position of the flameless burners were simulated, all locations were chosen that the burner are not overheating refractory surfaces or that they are not disturbing the original flame shape.

Special attention was paid to the simulation of both the combustion, batch and the glassmelt to analyse effects on emissions, glass quality and maximum pull.

Results

The study showed that significant reductions were possible, but are sufficient to reach the limits of 500 mg NOx /Nm³, dry, related to 8% Oxygen. Other technologies like ggENOx are more efficient reducing the NOx emission at lower investment and operating costs. But nevertheless a combination of flameless combustion with f.e. ggENOx will be able to undergo the limit of 500 mg /Nm³.