Wood as fuel and combustion

technology

Petteri Ojarinta
North Karelia University of Applied Sciences
Northern Wood Heat – E-learning course
Why to use wood fuels?

Renewable energy source, grows with the help of

solar energy
When tree decomposes it releases as much carbon
dioxide (CO2) as when it is burned
That is why wood is CO2-neutral fuel
Wood fuels come from neighbouring areas
Independence from import fuels
Long distance trasportation distances are relatively
short
Wood as a fuel

A lot of volatile compounds ( 80 – 85 %)

long flames
Average heat value 19 MJ/kg 5,3 kWh/kg

Many forms of wood fuels: traditional

firewood, wood chips, pellett, saw dust, bark
etc.
Wood as fuel

Source: VTT
Moisture contents and heat values of different
wood fuels
Moisture Effective heat value kWh/kg (MWh/t)
in usage moisture

Wood pellet 8-10% 4,67

Plywood chips 5-15% 4,44 – 5,00
Tradional firewood 20-25% 3,72 – 4,02
Bark (birch) 45-55% 2,22 – 3,06
Chips from delimbed trees 40-55% 1,94 – 3,06
Chips from whole trees 45-55% 1,94 – 2,78
Forest residue chips 50-60% 1,67 – 2,50
Bark (spruce) 50-65% 1,38 – 2,50
Saw dust 45-60% 0,60 – 2,77

Source: Vapo & VTT

The effect of moisture to heat value

Moisture decreases the net heating value

The moisture content of felled tree is approximately 50% (from
total weight)
1 kg H2O to vapour –> needs energy 2,5 MJ/kg (0,8 kWh/kg)
An example:
2 kg wood chips, moisture content 50% = 1 kg totally dry wood
+ 1 kg water
net heating value (19 – 2,5) MJ 16,5 MJ
8,25 MJ/kg fuel
Moisture content has a significant effect to energy content of the
fuel (charts 1 & 2)
Small size burners and moisture content

In practice heating capacity of small boilers

decreases faster than charts tell
Boiler tests in Finland are usually done with the
chips which moisture content is approximately 30%
Increase of moisture content decreases the
efficiency of energy production and increases flue
gas amounts (incomplete burning)
When fuel is dryer boiler stays cleaner and need of
maintenance gets lower usage time gets longer
Small size boilers and moisture content of tree

Source:VTT
Example from a small size boiler

It is possible to calculate the energy content from one loose-m3

when using the boiler similar than previous picture:

a) Moisture content of chips 50 %, heating value 800 kWh/loose-

m3, boiler efficiency: 62 %
b) Moisture content of chips 30 %, heating value 890 kWh/loose-
m3, boiler efficiency: 78 %

a) Eheat = 0,62 x 800 kWh 500 kWh

b) Eheat = 0,78 x 890 kWh 700 kWh

When using dryer chips it is posible to get 40 % more energy!

How to get chips dryer?

Traditional drying
In a pile as a whole wood or chips
Piles are covered or uncovered
Artificial drying (usually blower to circulate air)
Cold air dryer
Warm air dryer
Solar energy
Water energy from boiler
Flue gas energy
Cold air dryer
Solar energy dryer
Flue gas dryer
Boiler water dryer
Common things about artificial chip drying

Air flow should be content and there should be

always backpressure in the dryer when air is blowed
through the chip layer
Air flow in cold air dryer should be 400 – 500
m3/h/loose-m3 chips
Thickness of chip layer in the dryer 0,8 – 1,5 m
The share of air holes from the floor area should be
at least 5 – 10 %
Very important is also that air flow is big enough to
remove moisture from the dryer (otherwise moisture
condensate to walls)
Calculation about the drying time

Drying time could be calculated as follows:

- 80 loose-m3 chips; moisture content: 50 %; deliver density 350 kg/loose-m3
- wanted moisture content: 20 %; amount of vapourized water: 130 kg/loose-m3
- air: density = 1,2 kg/m3; temperature = 20 °C; relative moisture = 60 %;
1 kg of air binds appr. 2,0 g water (2,40 g/m3 = 0,0024 kg/m3)
- blower: 5,5 kW; 400 m3/hair /loose-m3 chips
- drying efficiency: 90 %

Drying time:

Electricity consumption = 825 kWh (10,3 kWh/loose-m3)

Conclusions about artificial drying

The drying of wood chips could be reasonable if

The amount of chips is limited
There are problems with the usage of boiler when
using moist chips
Dryer building already exists (smaller investment
costs)
Phases of burning

1. Moisture evaporation
Starts in tempature of 100 – 105 °C
Process needs energy for heating

Source: Alakangas, Use of fireplaces 1992

Phases of burning

2. Pyrolyse
Evaporation on burnable gasses starts in
temperature of 105 °C
Process needs energy for heating

Source: Alakangas, Use of fireplaces 1992

Phases of burning

3. Ignition
When tempature reaches 225 C happens the
ignition of flammable gasses which start to burn
independently
Process needs primary and secundary air

Source: Alakangas, Use of fireplaces 1992

Phases of burning

4. Burning of gasses
With the help of secondary air the flammable
gasses from tree are burning with a visible flame
Process needs primary air and a lot of
secundary air
Process produces heat

Source: Alakangas, Use of fireplaces 1992

Phases of burning

Burning of charcoal
Charcoal produces 25 – 40% of the energy
storaged to furnace
Process needs primary air and a very little
amount of secondary air
Process produces heat

Source: Alakangas, Use of fireplaces 1992

Phases of burning
Burning technologies in small scale
combustion

In Finland there is two different main

tecnologies in small heat plants or central
heating of single houses:

Stoker combustion (<1 MW)

Grate combustion (<5 MW)
Stoker combustion

In stoker burner fuel is fed by auger to iron burning

head
Small fan blows air over and under the fuel to
provide large flame
Flame passes through the flame
Transfers the heat to boiler water
Stoker combustion demands good quality chips
Moisture content under 30%
Consistent particle size
Changes in fuel feed affects dramatically
Stoker combustion
Stoker combustion

Source: Biomass handbook 2002

Grate combustion

Has been and is the most common burning

technology with solid fuels in small heat
plants or residential houses
One-family house boilers 15 -40 kW
Real estate boilers 40 – 400 kW
Area and district heating boilers 400 kW – 20 MW
Industrial boilers 1 MW – 80 MW
Biomass condensing power plants 30 MW – 70
MW
Grate combustion

Traditional burning technology

The structure of fixed bed is depended of used fuel and size of
boiler
Different kind of fixed beds:
Solid flat grate
Solid diagonal grate
Mechanical diagonal grate
Mechanical roundable diagonal grate
Chain grate

Combinations of different grate types are typical

Small grates are air cooled, bigger water cooled

Source: Motiva Ltd

Grate combustion

Source: Biomass handbook

Grate combustion

Picture:VTT
Grate combustion

The size of grate and furnace is depended on

the moisture of the fuel
The most of the grate and furnace area has to
reserve for vapourizing the moisture
To rapid the moisture vapourizing it is possible to
reduce the particle size of chips and pre-heat the
primary heat
Grate combustion

Requirements for fuel supply in grate

combustion
Fuel should be branch out to the whole grate
surface
Primary air should not ”escape” without control
The flow of secondary air from feeding system
should be prevented
The risk of back fire should be prevented
Grate combustion

Air delivery
Usually air is delivered in two phases (sometimes
in three phases)
Primary air under the grate
With secondary (and tertiary) air are burned flammable
gasses
Grate combustion

Furnace
Furnaces with countercurrent principle are
suitable for moist fuels
Hot flue gasses are leaded to the first parts of
grate to accelerate drying and ignition
Furnaces with forward current principle are
suitable for fuels which are easy to ignite
Vapourized flue gasses are leaded through the
flame zone to boost the burning out
Grate combustion

Ash removal
Most of the ash removes through the grate to the
ash box
Ash which is falled through the grate contains
relatively high amounts of burnable compounds
(loss by combustion)
Flue dust is collected with cyclone to the ash box
Grate combustion

Grate boilers in small houses

Typically solid flat grates
Fuel manually feeded by hands
Main classification
Top fire boilers
Bottom fire boilers
Grate combustion

Top fire boilers

Fuel batch is feeded as a one piece to furnace
Conditions in furnace changes according the
burning phase
In ignition phase burning is incomplete
In pyrolyse phase a lot of flue gasses
Usually there is no power adjustment system in boilers
needs energy accumulator
Because of the former reasons the emission are relatively
high when compared to other boiler types
Grate combustion

Top fire boiler

Source: Finbio
Grate combustion

Bottom fire boilers

Burning process more continuing than in top fire boilers
Apply of fuel is easier without affecting to burning
processes
Primary air delivers through fuel layer and the share of it is
smaller than in top fire boilers
Essential is the cood mixture of secundary air
Mechanical air delivery or flue gas blower
Power adjustment is possible by decreasing the air flow
Affect negatively to emissions
Is possible to use even without energy accumulator
Grate combustion

Bottom fire boiler

Source: Finbio
Grate combustion

Emissions of grate combustion

Carbon monoxide (CO)
Hydrocarbons (CxHy)
Sulphur dioxide (SO2)
Nitrogen oxides (NOx and N2O)
Grate combustion

Carbon monoxide ja hydrocarbon emissions are due

to uncomplete combustion
Affecting factors temperature, mixture of gasses and dwell
time
Sulphur dioxide emissions are not significant when
using wood
Nitrogen dioxide emissions are due to nitrogen
content of fuel and too high temperature of
combustion
Wide research about the emission from grate combustion
are not available yet
Grate combustion

Features of solid flat grate:

+ Cheap
+ Simple construction
- Poor fuel sloughing
- Scorification
- No automatization possibilities

Technology fits mainly for single houses

Grate combustion

Features of mechanical grate compared to

solid grate:
+ Mixture of fuel is effective
+ Combustion is more effective
+ Makes it possible to use less good quality
fuel
Grate combustion

Mechanical diagonal grate

Source: TP-stokeri Oy
Grate combustion

As a fairly new technology roundable

diagonal grate
+ Has proven good solution when moisture
content of fuel is high and particle size is
not homogenous
Grate combustion

Wärtsilä
BioGrate: 2-17 MW
-Makes it possible to use chips
with 60% moisture

Source: Wärtsilä Biopower Ltd

Other combustion techniques
Gasification boiler

Very good combustion results on different solid fuels

possible
Operation principle: power adjusted by controlling
the gasification of the fuel already present in the
boiler (compare: grate boiler output controlled by the
momentary fuel feed and combustion air)
Power range 5% 100 %, but no sudden load
changes
Gasification boiler

Picture: LAKA Ltd

Primary combustion chamber + fire tube
boiler
The gas produced in the primary chamber is
burned in a separate boiler
Typical for fuels with high moisture content
Power range 20 100%
Primary combustion chamber + fire tube
boiler

Picture: Wärtsilä Ltd

Fluidized bed combustion

Hot sand and fuel fluidized

together in the combustion
chamber
very good combustion result
with wet fuels of varying
quality
Typical at modern power
plants
Not very adjustable
Small-scale solutions in the
future?

Picture: Foster Wheeler Ltd

Turbulated combustion

Lengthened
combustion time
very complete
result of burning