Oxygen carrier aided combustion (OCAC) of wood chips in a semi-commercial circulating fluidized bed boiler using manganese ore as bed material

Abstract

Oxygen Carrier Aided Combustion (OCAC) is realized by using an active oxygen-carrying bed material in fluidized bed boilers. The active material is reduced in fuel rich parts of the boiler and oxidized in air rich parts. Advantages could be achieved such as new mechanisms for oxygen transport in space and time. Here calcined manganese ore has been used as active bed material in a 12 MWth circulating fluidized bed boiler. The fuel was wood chips and the campaign lasted more than two weeks. From an operational point of view, manganese ore worked excellently. From the temperature profile of the boiler it can be concluded that fuel conversion was facilitated, especially in the dense bottom bed. The effect did not always translate to reduced emissions, which suggests that final combustion in the cyclone outlet was also influenced. Substituting 10% of the sand bed with manganese ore made it possible to reduce the air to fuel ratio without generating large amounts of CO. The use of 100% manganese ore resulted in higher emissions of CO than the sand reference, but, when combined sulphur feeding, dramatic reductions in CO emissions, up to 90% compared to sand reference, was achieved.