Advanced monitoring of industrial burners based on fluctuating flame signals

Abstract The present work explores the potential of pressure and radiation sensors for the advanced monitoring/control of industrial flames. These instruments are rugged, non-intrusive and non-expensive and might be used in routine plant operation to obtain direct information from the flame. However, further research is needed to assess the existence of relationships among their outputs and operating conditions as well as to define suitable methods for signal processing. Those aspects have been addressed by means of a thorough experimental programme in a model industrial burner. Parametric analysis of flame signals recorded for a broad range of operating conditions revealed that they varied widely with the actual combustion state. In order to perform a systematic study, different correlation techniques were tried. Multiple regression methods provided some insight into mutual influences among different variables, although only in case of linear dependences. Artificial neural networks have been used as a more versatile type of algorithms, suitable for complex functional forms between input and output variables. Remarkably good results were obtained when NO x emissions or some burner settings were estimated from selected features of the flame signals, supporting their applicability for the development of advanced diagnostic methods in combustion processes.

[1]  R. B. Price,et al.  Optical studies of the generation of noise in turbulent flames , 1969 .

[2]  Manuel V. Heitor,et al.  Temperature, Species and Heat Transfer Characteristics of A 250 MWe Utility Boiler , 1994 .

[3]  Yoshihiro Deguchi,et al.  Industrial applications of temperature and species concentration monitoring using laser diagnostics , 2002 .

[4]  E. Siggia,et al.  Turbulent premixed flames and sound generation , 1991 .

[5]  Sikke Ate Klein,et al.  On the acoustics of turbulent non-premixed flames , 2000 .

[6]  Jerry Seitzman,et al.  Optical equivalence ratio sensors for gas turbine combustors , 2005 .

[7]  Peter Glarborg,et al.  Characterization of a full-scale, single-burner pulverized coal boiler: temperatures, gas concentrations and nitrogen oxides , 1994 .

[8]  Sébastien Candel,et al.  Combustion control and sensors: a review , 2002 .

[9]  A. G. Gaydon.  The spectroscopy of flames , 1957 .

[10]  Bart Kosko,et al.  Neural networks and fuzzy systems , 1998 .

[11]  Soteris A. Kalogirou,et al.  Artificial intelligence for the modeling and control of combustion processes: a review , 2003 .

[12]  C. K. Tan,et al.  Use of artificial intelligence techniques for optimisation of co-combustion of coal with biomass , 2006 .

[13]  T. Grundy,et al.  Progress in Astronautics and Aeronautics , 2001 .

[14]  S. Candel,et al.  Combustion Dynamics and Instabilities: Elementary Coupling and Driving Mechanisms , 2003 .

[15]  M. Barrère,et al.  Comparison of combustion instabilities found in various types of combustion chambers , 1969 .

[16]  D. R. Englund,et al.  The infinite line pressure probe , 1984 .

[17]  Yong Yan,et al.  On-line fuel identification using digital signal processing and fuzzy inference techniques , 2004, IEEE Transactions on Instrumentation and Measurement.

[18]  S Rea,et al.  On-line combustion monitoring on dry low NOx industrial gas turbines , 2003 .

[19]  Timothy O'Doherty,et al.  THE EFFECT OF COMBUSTION INSTABILITY ON THE STRUCTURE OF RECIRCULATION ZONES IN CONFINED SWIRLING FLAMES , 2005 .

[20]  Manuel V. Heitor,et al.  Thermocouples and sample probes for combustion studies , 1993 .

[21]  N. Syred.  A review of oscillation mechanisms and the role of the precessing vortex core (PVC) in swirl combustion systems , 2006 .

[22]  Marcus Aldén,et al.  Combustion at the focus: laser diagnostics and control , 2005 .

[23]  M. Khesin,et al.  Demonstration tests of new burner diagnostic system on a 650 MW coal-fired utility boiler , 1997 .

[24]  M. Lighthill.  On sound generated aerodynamically II. Turbulence as a source of sound , 1954, Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series A. Mathematical and Physical Sciences.

[25]  S. Candel,et al.  Vortex-driven acoustically coupled combustion instabilities , 1987, Journal of Fluid Mechanics.

[26]  Juergen Wolfrum,et al.  SIMULTANEOUS DIODE-LASER-BASED IN SITU DETECTION OF MULTIPLE SPECIES AND TEMPERATURE IN A GAS-FIRED POWER PLANT , 2000 .

[27]  Sébastien Candel,et al.  Combustion dynamics and control: Progress and challenges , 2002 .

[28]  S. Candel,et al.  Dynamics of and noise radiated by a perturbed impinging premixed jet flame , 2002 .

[29]  Shigeki Yamaguchi,et al.  Noise Characteristics of Turbulent Diffusion Flames with Coherent Structure , 1993 .