The Babcock & Wilcox Company

Chapter 17
Fluidized-Bed Combustion

In the 1970s, fluidized-bed combustion technology

was first applied to large-scale utility boiler units to
explore new ways of burning solid fuels, especially
high-sulfur coal, in an environmentally acceptable
and efficient manner. In concept, fluidized beds burn
fuel in an air-suspended mass (or bed) of particles. By
controlling bed temperature and using reagents such
as limestone as bed material, emissions of nitrogen ox-
ides (NOx) and sulfur dioxide (SO2) can be controlled.
Additional benefits of fluidized-bed combustion in-
clude wide fuel flexibility and the ability to combust
fuels such as biomass or waste fuels, which are diffi-
cult to burn in conventional systems because of their
low heating value, low volatile matter, high moisture
content or other challenging characteristics. In coal-
fired systems, the fuel is burned in an air-suspended
bed of limestone and inert ash particles where SO2 is
absorbed by the limestone, and NOx formation is lim-
ited by lower operating temperatures and staged com-
bustion, when used. This technology is now used in a
variety of industrial and utility boiler applications.
Today, bubbling fluidized-bed (BFB) boilers, with
a bed of fluidized particles that remain in the lower
furnace, are used primarily in specialty fuel applica-
tions such as coal wastes and biomass fuels. Circulat-
ing fluidized-bed (CFB) boilers, with solids circulat-
ing through the entire furnace volume, address most
larger steam generator applications and a broader
range of fuels.

The fluidized-bed process

The fluidizing process induces an upward flow of a
gas through a stacked height of solid particles. At high
enough gas velocities, the gas/solids mass exhibits liq-
uid-like properties, thus the term fluidized bed.
The following example helps illustrate the process.
Fig. 1a shows a container with an air supply plenum
at the bottom, an air distributor that promotes even
air flow through the bed, and a chamber filled with
sand or other granular material.
If a small quantity of air flows through the air dis-
tributor into the sand, it will pass through the voids
of an immobile mass of sand. For low velocities, the
air does not exert much force on the sand particles and
they remain in place. This condition is called a fixed
bed and is shown in Fig. 1b.
Fig. 1 Typical fluidized-bed conditions.
By increasing the air flow rate/velocity, the air ex-
erts greater forces on the sand and reduces the con-
tact forces between the sand particles caused by grav-
ity. By increasing the air flow further, the drag forces
on the particles will eventually counterbalance the
gravitational forces, and the sand particles become sus-
pended in the upward stream. The point where the
bed starts to behave as a fluid is called the minimum

Steam 41 / Fluidized-Bed Combustion 17-1

 The Babcock & Wilcox Company

fluidization condition. The increase in bed volume is where

insignificant when compared with the non-fluidized
case (Fig. 1c).
As the air flow increases further, the bed becomes
less uniform, bubbles of air start to form, and the bed
becomes violent. This is called a bubbling fluidized bed
(BFB), shown in Fig. 1d. The volume occupied by the
air/solids mixture increases substantially. There is an
obvious bed level and a distinct transition between the
bed and the space above.
By increasing the air flow further, the bubbles be-
come larger and begin to coalesce, forming large voids
in the bed. The solids are present as interconnected
groups of high solids concentrations. This condition is
called a turbulent fluidized bed.
A further increase in air flow causes the particles
to blow out of the bed and the container. If the solids
are caught, separated from the air, and returned to
the bed, they will circulate around a loop, defined as
a circulating fluidized bed (Fig. 1e). Unlike the bub-
bling bed, the CFB has no distinct transition between
the dense bed in the bottom of the container and the
dilute zone above. The solids concentration gradually
decreases between these two zones.
The pressure differential between the top and the
bottom of the container changes with air flow, as
shown in Fig. 2. At low air flow, the pressure differ-
ential increases with flow through the static bed un-
til reaching the minimum fluidization velocity. At this
point, the sand is supported by the air, and the pres-
sure differential is determined only by the mass of bed
material. The pressure differential is independent of
further increases in air flow until the air velocity be-
comes high enough to convey material out of the con-
tainer. Then the pressure differential decreases as
mass is lost from the system, which is represented by
the entrained flow portion of the curve in Fig. 2.
An important parameter for evaluating hydrody-
namic and heat transfer performance of particle mix-
tures is the Sauter (also called volume-surface or har-
monic) mean diameter (SMD):
1
SMD =
X1 X X
+ 2 + + N
D1 D2 DN
X1 to XN = weight fraction of first to last size cut
D1 to DN = average diameter of first to last size cut,
microns
Of these fluidization conditions described above,
only bubbling and circulating beds are currently used
by the power industry to generate steam.
Bubbling fluidized-bed (BFB) boilers
Fig. 3 shows the main features of a bubbling fluid-
ized-bed boiler while Fig. 4 shows a typical furnace
bulk density profile curve. The sharp drop in density
indicates the top of the bed.
The bottom of the furnace in a BFB boiler consists
of a horizontal air distributor with bubble caps. This
provides the fluidizing air to the bed material in the
lower furnace. As discussed later, The Babcock & Wil-
cox Company (B&W) offers two air distributor systems
depending upon the fuel and application. The bubble
caps are closely spaced so that air flow is distributed
uniformly over the furnace plan area. The lower fur-
nace is filled with 2 ft (0.6 m) of sand or other non-
combustible material such as crushed limestone or bed
material from prior operation. Air flow is forced up-
ward through the bed of material, and the bed ex-
pands to a depth of about 3 ft (0.9 m) taking on most
of the characteristics of a fluid. The air flow through
the bed is very uniform due to a high number of air
distributors (bubble caps) and bed pressure drop. The
Secondary
Superheater
Primary Superheater
Economizer
(1) Water Cooled
Gas
Walls

Freeboard
(Area Above
Bed Surface) Gas
Flow Mechanical
Dust Collector
(Multiclone)
Top of Bed
Recycle
Furnace
Bubbling
Bed
Superheater and
Boiling Surface
(Selected Fuels)

Air

Air Distributor
(with Bubble Caps) Windbox
Fig. 2 Effect of velocity on bed pressure drop. Fig. 3 Typical bubbling fluidized-bed boiler schematic.

17-2 Steam 41 / Fluidized-Bed Combustion

 The Babcock & Wilcox Company

Bubble
Cap

Air from
Duct

Fuel Feed

Bubble
Caps

Air
Duct
Fig. 4 Typical atmospheric pressure bubbling-bed furnace density
profile.
Header
typical slumped (non-fluidized) density of a sand bed
is 90 lb/ft3 (1442 kg/m3 ). The voidage or volume be-
Table
tween the particles in the fluidized bed is 65% and the
bulk density is 58 lb/ft3 (929 kg/m3 ). The gas flow rate Maintenance
Slide Gate
through the bed is defined as the superficial bed ve-
locity, which is calculated by dividing the volumetric
gas flow rate at the bed temperature by the plan area
of the bed without the solids. A typical nominal design Dome Valve
superficial velocity of 8 ft/sec (2.4 m/sec) is enough to
fluidize BFB bed material with a particle size distri- Fig. 5 Open bottom air distributor system with bubble caps.
bution between 500 and 1400 microns. The boiler
enclosure is made of water-cooled membrane panels. ing the economizer from the gas and recycles them to
B&W offers two air distributor systems for its BFB the bed. This maximizes combustion efficiency and
boilers: open bottom and flat floor systems. The open sulfur capture. Normally, the amount of solids recycled
bottom system shown in Fig. 5 is characterized by the is limited to about 25% of the combustion gas weight.
fluidizing air bubble caps and pipes mounted on For highly reactive fuels such as biomass, this recycle
widely spaced distribution ducts (see also Fig. 6) lo- system is usually omitted.
cated in the bottom of the BFB furnace. Stationary The typical operating temperature range of a bub-
bed material fills the hoppers and furnace bottom up bling bed is 1350 to 1650F (732 to 899C), depending
to the level of the bubble caps, above which the bed on the fuel moisture, ash content, and alkali content
material is fluidized by the air flow. The open spacing
is effective in removing larger rocks and debris from
the active bed area as bed material moves down
through hoppers. This design is particularly attrac-
tive in biomass and waste fuel applications, which
contain non-combustible debris. In the flat floor sys-
tem shown in Fig. 7, the floor of the furnace is formed
by horizontal water-cooled membrane panels with
bubble caps. Air passes from a windbox below the
water-cooled panel through the bubble caps to enter
and fluidize the bed material. Separate bed drains are
provided. The membrane panel floor must form an air-
tight seal with the furnace walls, must support the
weight of a slumped bed, and must resist the uplift
generated from the air pressure drop during opera-
tion. This design is attractive for firing coal where
there is much less large debris present.
Coal-fired bubbling-bed boilers normally incorpo-
rate a recycle system that separates the solids leav- Fig. 6 Air distributor ducts and bubble cap system.

Steam 41 / Fluidized-Bed Combustion 17-3

 The Babcock & Wilcox Company

tributor, fluidized bed of material, and overfire air sys-

tems are clearly identified.
Fig. 10 shows a sectional side view of a small BFB
boiler firing wood, wood waste and byproduct sludge.
This Towerpak boiler design is a version of the
Stirling power boiler (SPB, see Chapter 27) with two
drums and bottom support for ease of installation. This
unit is capable of supplying 120,000 lb/h of steam flow
(15.12 kg/s).
All fossil fuel boilers require closely coordinated con-
trol of fuel, air, water and steam parameters. Fluidized-
bed boilers require additional control. Selected key pa-
rameters for fluidized-bed boiler design include: bed tem-
perature control (fuel dependent), bed inventory control,
bed density (for heat transfer control), and emissions.
Bed temperature control and fuel feed
The most fundamental control function of a BFB
combustion process is bed (combustion) temperature
control. The control method depends upon the fuel

Steam Drum
Attemperator
Generating
Bank

Superheater

Screen

Fig. 7 Furnace distributor plate and bubble caps for a flat floor system.

in the ash. Even at these low combustion tempera-

tures, the high convective and radiative heat trans-
fer from bulk bed material to the fuel particles pro-
vides sufficient ignition energy to evaporate moisture, Economizer
heat the ash, and still combust the remaining fuel
without significantly changing the instantaneous bed
temperature. This is why the bubbling bed can burn
low-grade fuels, which burn at low combustion tem-
peratures due to their high moisture and ash contents.
Heat transfer surface may be placed within the bed
depending upon the fuel being burned. For biomass
and other low heating value fuels, no in-bed surface Ammonia/Urea
Injectors
is usually required because other methods of bed tem- (SNCR)
perature control can be used. For coal firing with its Burners
high heat content and lower relative volatility, the
heat transfer surface, in the form of a tube bundle, is Refractory
Line
placed in the bed to achieve the desired heat balance
and bed operating temperature. The bed temperature Overfire
Air
is uniform, plus or minus 25F (14C), as a result of the System
vigorous mixing of gas and solids. Startup
BFB combustion systems are attractive retrofits to Burners
older boiler designs where a change in fuels or wider Fuel
fuel flexibility is required. Fig. 8 shows a sectional side Spouts

view of a process recovery (PR) boiler that was retro- Fluidized

Bed
fitted with a B&W open bottom BFB combustion sys-
tem. The black liquor firing capacity was no longer
needed and the owner wanted a power boiler capable of Ash
firing wood waste, primary clarifier sludge, and tire- Conveyors

derived fuel. Fig. 9 shows an isometric of the BFB com- Fig. 8 B&W open bottom BFB furnace retrofit of a process recovery
bustion system in the bottom of the boiler. The air dis- boiler.

17-4 Steam 41 / Fluidized-Bed Combustion

 The Babcock & Wilcox Company
Fuel
Chute
Open Bottom/Bubble Cap
Air Distribution System
Fig. 9 Isometric of BFB furnace bottom.
being fired. Bed temperature is controlled to limit
emissions of NOx and SO2, and to limit bed material
agglomeration. Agglomeration is caused by sodium and
potassium combining with alumina and silica to form
low melting point eutectics that can coat the bed par-
ticles. If the alkali concentration in the coating is too
high, the coating can start to melt and cause particles
to stick together. As a result, the larger particles do not
fluidize and, if the process continues, the bed can so-
lidify and the combustion process can stop. The ag-
glomeration process is quite temperature-sensitive and
some fuels have strict requirements for the maximum
Steam 41 / Fluidized-Bed Combustion
Auxiliary
Burner
Overfire
Air
Startup
Burner
Fluidized Bed
peak bed temperatures. Also, some fuels have such
high alkali contents that the fuel can not be fired in a
fluidized bed combustion process. Such fuels are typi-
cally agro-based where the plants are fertilized or the
ground is rich in alkali. Some process waste can also
contain high alkali concentrations.
Biomass firing Biomass firing begins with an inert
bed of solid particles in the bottom of the furnace pre-
heated to 1500F (816C) using oil or gas startup burn-
ers. Air flows into this bed at 68 to 392F (20 to 200C)
and fuel at 68F (20C). The bed material must heat the
incoming air and fuel to the bed temperature and the
17-5
 The Babcock & Wilcox Company
Attemperator
Limestone, Sludge
and Wood
Superheater
Fuel Mixing
Screw
Metering
Bin
Rotary Airlocks
Overfire Air System
Burners
Fuel Spouts
Fluidized Bed
Ash
Conveyors
Fig. 10 Towerpak bottom supported BFB.
fuel must release the same amount of heat back into
the bed to maintain a constant temperature. Too much
heat release increases bed temperature, while too little
heat release reduces bed temperature. Three methods
of bed temperature control are used in biomass firing:
primary/overfire air split adjustment, flue gas recircu-
lation (FGR), and fuel feeder selection and operation.
Primary/overfire air split adjustment Biomass bubbling
beds operate substoichiometrically with less than theo-
retical combustion air. In the bed, all available oxy-
gen is completely used. Any additional oxygen would
oxidize more fuel and increase the in-bed heat release,
while lower oxygen levels would have the reverse ef-
fect. Because of this repeatable relationship, an in-
crease in air flow from the windbox through the bed
will raise bed temperature while a decrease in air flow
will lower bed temperature at steady-state conditions.
Overfire air flow increases or decreases in the oppo-
site direction to maintain constant total combustion air
flow to the boiler.
Shifting the air flow between the bed and overfire
air system shifts the combustion or heat release be-
17-6
Economizer
Generating
Bank Gas
Air
Tubular
Air Heater
Steam Coil
Air Heater
Silencer
Forced
Draft Fan
tween the two. At steady-state conditions, the flue gas
temperature above the overfire air nozzles can be var-
ied by 360F (200C) just by shifting air between the
bed and the overfire air. The bed temperature is rather
slow to respond to changes in the bed air flow. The
cycle of increasing the bed temperature 27F (15C)
above the set point and returning back to the set point
can take 20 minutes or more.
Flue gas recirculation (FGR) When changing the air
flow through the bed is not sufficient or fast enough
for acceptable bed temperature control, flue gas can
be recirculated back from the induced draft (ID) fan
outlet into the bed. This flue gas recirculation is an-
other mass flow stream entering the bed at a tempera-
ture below bed operating temperature. Energy trans-
ferred from the bed material to the incoming flue gas
to heat it to the new bed equilibrium temperature is
greater than the heat released by incremental com-
bustion from the low level of FGR oxygen. As a result,
the equilibrium bed temperature declines. The bed
temperature response rate for this control method is
much more rapid and, at steady-state conditions, FGR
Steam 41 / Fluidized-Bed Combustion
 The Babcock & Wilcox Company
can control the bed temperature to within 20F (11C)
of the set point bed temperature.
Fuel feeder selection and operation Two types of feed-
ers are commonly used for biomass fuels in BFB com-
bustion: 1) chute-type feeders that deposit fuel in small
areas of the bed, and 2) air distribution feeders that
distribute fuel over a wider area. There is a relation-
ship between in-bed heat release and distribution of
fuel over the bed plan area. This is because the high
volatile matter content and low-density char escape
from the bed before the inherent churning motion of
the bed material can distribute the fuel within the bed.
If the fuel is not distributed evenly, some air simply
passes through the bed without contributing to the in-
bed combustion process. To obtain the highest amount
of in-bed heat release, the fuel must be distributed as
widely and uniformly as possible to match the uniform
air flow. The lowest in-bed heat release results from
dumping fuel to one spot. Therefore, the fuel feeder
should be able to function as either a chute or as an
air distribution feeder. When the fuel is dry, the feeder
air flow can be reduced and the fuel falls into a small
portion of the bed. When the fuel is wet, the feeder
air flow can be increased and the fuel distributed over
the plan area. The in-bed heat release change rate
from low- to high-feeder air flows can be as much as
20% of the fuels heating value.
Coal firing Bed stoichiometry adjustment is not ef-
fective for coal-fired BFB combustor temperature con-
trol because carbon builds up in the bed when there
is less than theoretical combustion air. When the air
flow is increased for load, the bed temperature in-
creases rapidly and uncontrollably. In an extreme
case, the pressure parts could be damaged, and more
commonly, the bed could agglomerate. Therefore,
BFBs firing coal are limited to no less than stoichio-
metric conditions in the bed.
The coal can be blown into the bed from below us-
ing pressurized feed pipes, or can be fed over the bed
using common rotary flipper-type feeders. The under-
bed feed system is more expensive and the coal must
be dry and less than 0.25 in. (6.35 mm). The feed pipes
are prone to erosion and plugging, and the nozzles at
the ends of the pipes erode. The in-bed heat release is
higher and the carbon loss is lower using the under-
bed feed system, but the disadvantages typically cause
the over-bed system to be preferred.
With the overfeed system, the in-bed heat release
is 75 to 85% of the coals heating value. For the coal
falling on the bed, all of the fixed carbon and 70% of
the volatile matter combusts while in the bed. The
fines burn in suspension and reduce the overall in-
bed heat release. With this high in-bed heat release,
the adiabatic bed temperature would be significantly
higher than the desired 1500 to 1600F (815 to 871C)
range. To lower the bed temperature to the desired
range, tube bundles are submerged in the bed. This
in-bed surface can be either steam-generating surface
or superheater surface. Water circulation in the steam-
generating surface can be either natural or forced.
The fluidizing air is provided from a windbox
mounted below the bed. The windbox is typically com-
partmentalized, with individual air flow control to each
Steam 41 / Fluidized-Bed Combustion
compartment. Bed temperature varies with the firing
rate. Therefore, as the boiler load is reduced, the fir-
ing rate is reduced, and the bed temperature declines.
When the bed temperature reaches a certain mini-
mum, an outer portion of the bed is shut down by shut-
ting off the air flow and fuel flow to that portion of
the bed. The air flow and fuel flow to the remaining
active bed area is increased which raises the bed tem-
perature in the operating beds. Boiler load is increased
by re-fluidizing out-of-service (slumped) compart-
ments and firing to larger portions of the bed.
Bed inventory control
The air/flue gas pressure drop through the bed is
directly related to the bed material mass when the bed
is fluidized. Pressure drop through the bed is approxi-
mately 0.75 to 1.0 in. wg (0.19 to 0.25 kPa) per inch
(2.54 cm) of bed height. For biomass-fired systems, the
bed inventory is set to a pressure drop of 30 to 36 in.
wg (7.5 to 9 kPa). This is sufficient mass to prevent
the bed temperature from significantly changing in a
short period following a sudden large change of fuel
properties, such as moisture content. For a coal-fired
BFB, the bed height must ensure that the in-bed sur-
face is submerged. If the bed height is below the top
of the in-bed tube bundle, heat transfer decreases sig-
nificantly and bed temperature increases. Pressure
taps in the bed enclosure walls provide the measure-
ment of the bed pressure drop over a known height.
Bed inventory can change over time. The ash and
tramp material that enter with the fuel can increase
the overall inventory when these materials are too
large to be blown out of the bed. The bed material can
break down due to mechanical or thermal attrition and
leave the bed with the flue gas. Oversized particles,
such as rocks and metal, are removed by the bed drain
system and attrited material is replaced with new
(makeup) material when necessary.
Bed density and heat transfer (in-bed)
The following equations are for the bed pressure loss
and the overall in-bed heat transfer coefficient used
to size in-bed surface.
Equation 2 is used to calculate the flue gas bed pres-
sure loss across a bubbling bed.
P = (C ) (1 e ) ( s g ) ( L ) (2)
where
P = pressure loss
C = units conversion constant
e = bed void fraction
s = particle density
g = gas density at bed conditions
L = bed height
The void fraction, e, is primarily a function of par-
ticle size, particle density, bed gas velocity and gas
viscosity. Various methods are used to predict bed
voidage or void fraction, including those proposed by
Leva,1 Babu,2 and Staub and Canada.3
The equation for the overall heat transfer coefficient
for any tube bundle immersed in the bed is:
17-7
 The Babcock & Wilcox Company

1 where
Uo =
1
+ Rm + Rft
hc + hr
where
Uo = overall heat transfer coefficient, Btu/h ft2 F
(W/m2 K)
h c = convection heat transfer coefficient for the
tube bank, Btu/h ft2 F (W/m2 K)
h r = radiation heat transfer coefficient for the tube
bank and walls, Btu/h ft2 F (W/m2 K)
Rm = metal wall resistance, h ft2 F/Btu (m2 K/W)
Rft = tube fluid film resistance, h ft2 F/Btu (m2 K/W)
The convection heat transfer coefficient hc is given
by Equation 4. Two equations are used to evaluate the
convective heat transfer coefficient (hst ) for an isolated
or single tube depending upon average bed particle
size. Equation 5 is a modified Vreedenberg4 form and
applies primarily to beds with particles less than an
800-micron average. Equation 6, a Glicksman-Decker5
type, applies well when the average particle size in
the bed exceeds 800 microns.
hc = ( hst ) ( FAB )
0.326
k Gd 2 BFB emissions
hst = 900 (1 e ) t s
(3) FAB = bank arrangement factor (staggered ar-
rangement only), dimensionless
Do = tube outside diameter
Sn = tube spacing normal to flow
Sp = tube spacing parallel to flow
Other variables are as defined previously. The equa-
tion for FAB is as derived by Gelperin.6
For the radiation heat transfer component, hr, the
following equation can be used:
hr = ( ) ( ) (Tb ) (Tw ) / (Tb Tw )
4 4
(8)
where
= 0.1713 10-8 Btu/h ft2 R4
= average overall emissivity, dimensionless
Tb = absolute bed gas temperature, R
Tw = absolute wall temperature, R
The average overall emissivity in bubbling beds will
be about 0.8 depending on wall emissivity and par-
ticle size. Typically, the overall heat transfer coefficient
(4) (Equation 3) for an in-bed tube bundle is between 40
and 60 Btu/h ft2 F (227 and 341 W/m2 K).
( Pr )
0.3

3 2 (5)
dt g D p s g Biomass firing can require the control of carbon
monoxide (CO), volatile organic compounds (VOCs),
for Dp < 800 microns
NOx, SO2 and hydrochloric acid (HCl). The CO and
VOCs are controlled by good fluidization, uniform fuel
k (1 e ) 3600 D p g C p V distribution and high-velocity overfire air nozzles, and
hst = C1 + (C2 ) (6) are easily controlled below 100 ppm and 10 ppm re-
Dp k
spectively at 7% O2 dry. NOx is controlled by bed tem-
for Dp > 800 microns perature control with a two-stage overfire air system
and/or a selective non-catalytic reduction (SNCR) sys-
where tem (see Chapter 34). The staged overfire air system
hst = convective heat transfer coefficient for a provides approximately 15 to 25% reduction, and the
single tube, Btu/h ft2 F SNCR system provides approximately 55 to 60% re-
e = bed voidage, dimensionless duction. SO2 and HCl are controlled by adding lime-
k = gas thermal conductivity, Btu/h ft F stone to the bed. SO2 can be reduced 80% with a sig-
d t = tube outside diameter, ft nificant Ca/S molar ratio because of the very low sul-
G = mass velocity or flux of the gas, lb/s ft2 fur content in most biomass fuels. However, the air
s = particle density, lb/ft3 flow through the bed must be high enough to com-
= gas viscosity, lb/ft s plete the sulfation process. HCl is reduced by the ex-
g = gas density, lb/ft3 cess lime leaving the bed and by using a fabric filter
Dp = average particle diameter, ft baghouse for particulate collection, providing the
g = acceleration constant, 32.2 ft/s2 proper temperature and solids/gas contact. See the CFB
Pr = Prandtl number, dimensionless emissions section for the limestone and sulfur reactions.
C1 = experimental constant, dimensionless Coal firing requires SO2 emission control. SO2 re-
C2 = experimental constant, dimensionless duction can be as high as 90% with a high-solids re-
Cp = gas specific heat, Btu/lb F cycle rate from a multi-cyclone dust collector (MDC).
V = nominal bed gas velocity, ft/s NOx is only moderately low from a coal-fired BFB boiler.
The bed and furnace temperatures are low, which
To convert the single-tube heat transfer coefficients reduces thermal NOx formation. However, air flow
to those suitable for tube banks, the following equa- through the bed is at or above theoretical combustion
tion is applied: air. Therefore, the NOx reduction possible by staging
0.25 the combustion air is not available for coal-fired BFB
D 2 Do + S p boilers. Typical NOx values are 0.4 to 0.5 lb/106 Btu (0.47
FAB = 1 o (7) to 0.59 g/Nm3 at 7% O2 dry). Additional information on

Sn Do + S p NOx control is provided in the CFB discussion.

17-8 Steam 41 / Fluidized-Bed Combustion

 The Babcock & Wilcox Company

Circulating fluidized-bed (CFB) boilers

Fig. 11 shows the main features of a circulating flu-
idized-bed boiler and Fig. 12 shows the furnace den-
sity profile. 50 to 70% percent of the total combustion
air enters the furnace through the windbox and air
distributor with the balance of the combustion air in-
jected through overfire air (OFA) ports. A typical flue
gas superficial velocity at full load, thereby convert-
ing the process to a circulating bed above the OFA
ports, is 16 to 17 ft/s (4.9 to 5.2 m/s). While single
particles reaching the furnace exit could be up to 2000
microns in size, typical average particle size (SMD) is
100 to 200 microns in the upper furnace and 300 to
400 microns in the dense bed.

Fig. 12 Typical atmospheric pressure circulating-bed furnace

density profile.
Gas
The upward flow of solids decreases with increased
furnace height as heavier particles recirculate back
down the furnace, resulting in declining local density
with increasing furnace height. In the B&W internal
Water- recirculation (IR-CFB) design, U-beam collectors (see
Cooled
Walls Fig. 13) located in the top of the furnace enclosure
collect most (up to 97%) of the solids that remain in
the flue gas and return them to the furnace (recircu-
lation) while passing the flue gas to the convection
U-Beams pass heat transfer surfaces. Most of the remaining
solids entrained in the flue gas are then collected in
In-Furnace U-Beams multi-cyclone dust collectors (MDC) located in the
backpass, providing up to 99.7% overall particle re-
cycle to the furnace. The furnace enclosure is water-
cooled membrane panels.
Unlike coal-fired BFB boilers, the dense bed does
not contain any in-bed tube bundle heating surface.
Furnace
The furnace enclosure and in-furnace heating sur-
faces (water-cooled panels or water/steam wing walls)
provide the required heat removal surface. This is pos-
sible because of the large quantity of solids that are
recycled internally within the furnace. Because the
mass flow rate of recycled solids is many times the mass
Overfire Air
Supply Ducts flow rate of the incoming fuel, limestone, air and result-
ant combustion gas, the bed solids temperature remains
relatively uniform throughout the furnace height.
Also, the heat transferred to the furnace walls is ad-
Gas and equate to provide the heat absorption required to
Solids
Flow
maintain the target bed temperature of 1500 to 1600F
(816 to 871C).
B&W IR-CFB boilers use a single chute-type feeder
installed above the air distributor. The upward action of
the bed inventory and the intense mixing of the incom-
ing fuel, with the large mass of active inventory, ad-
equately distributes the fuel as compared to the BFB.
The B&W coal-fired CFB uses the flat floor air dis-
tributor system shown in Fig. 7, with the horizontal
Air Distribution Grid Primary Air water-cooled membrane panel floor and bubble caps
Fig. 11 Typical circulating-bed boiler schematic. discussed previously. Separate bed drains are provided.

Steam 41 / Fluidized-Bed Combustion 17-9

 The Babcock & Wilcox Company

tenance. This construction is possible due to the U-beam

Gas
Gas
Plus
Solids Flow
Flow
Gas
Flow
U-Beams
In-Furnace
U-Beams
Furnace
Fig. 13 CFB primary particle collection system.
Key operating requirements for a CFB are control-
ling furnace temperature and maintaining the verti-
cal temperature distribution within a relatively nar-
row temperature window for SO2 absorption (a tem-
perature-dependent process). To accomplish this, the
solids inventory is distributed throughout the furnace
with a large amount of solids recirculation. A major
portion of the heat transfer in a CFB is controlled by
the solids inventory in the furnace. Therefore, by
changing furnace inventory, the heat transfer from
the gas and solids to the furnace walls can be varied
and the furnace temperature can be controlled.
Fig. 14 shows the side view of a B&W 150 MW IR-
CFB utility unit designed to burn bituminous coal, pro-
viding main and reheat steam to the turbine island. The
particle collectors integrated into the boiler enclosure.
Fuel and sorbent are fed to the bed through the
lower furnace walls. Ash and spent sorbent are re-
moved through drain pipes in the floor or lower walls.
Solids collected by the U-beams are returned directly
to the furnace and solids collected in the multi-cyclones
are returned to the lower furnace through the rear wall.
Primary air enters the furnace through the air distribu-
tor and secondary air is injected above the air distributor.
The lower furnace above the air distributor is cov-
ered by a thin layer of highly conductive refractory
held to the water wall tubes by pin studs. Refractory
in the lower furnace protects the tubes from corrosion
and erosion. The remaining portion of the furnace
enclosure consists of bare tubes.
Selected key issues for CFB design include: furnace
temperature and heat transfer control, solids separa-
tion, solids inventory control, and emissions.
Furnace temperature and heat transfer control
A CFB furnace contains a substantial solids inven-
tory that is distributed over the entire furnace volume.
Fig. 15 shows the solids flow streams. Although the
solids concentration or solids bulk density in the up-
per portion of the furnace is much less than that in
the furnace bottom, the solids still represent a signifi-
cant mass fraction of the gas/solids mixture at any
given furnace location. For example, in a pulverized-
coal (PC) furnace, the combustion gas carries a por-
tion of the fuel ash as it flows through. In general,
this PC fuel ash represents less than 10 lb (4.54 kg)
of solids per 1000 lb (454 kg) of gas. Also, the PC heat
transfer from the gas to the furnace enclosure walls
is predominately by radiation. In a CFB furnace, the
amount of solids in the gas leaving the furnace may
Steam Drum In-Furnace U-Beams Secondary
U-Beams Superheater
Cold
Downcomer Reheat
Internal
Hot
Reheat
Evaporative
Circuit
Feedwater
Superheater
to Drum
(Wingwalls) Multi-Cyclone
Fuel Bunker
Dust
Collector
Economizer
Ash
Recycle
System
Air
Gravimetric
Heater
Feeder
Fuel
Chute

unit contains full-height, water-cooled panels and Refractory

Line
Flue
Gas
steam-cooled wing walls in the upper furnace. Boiler Fluid Bed
design is based on a completely water-cooled setting. Cooler
This feature provides a gas-tight enclosure suitable for
Secondary Primary Air Duct to Steam Coil
operating with a positive pressure in the furnace. The Air Duct Air Duct Fluid Bed Cooler Air Heater
B&W IR-CFB has no high-temperature refractory-lined Fig. 14 150 MW utility reheat internal recirculation circulating
flues, and thus has reduced furnace refractory main- fluidized-bed (IR-CFB) boiler.

17-10 Steam 41 / Fluidized-Bed Combustion

 The Babcock & Wilcox Company

exceed 5000 lb (2268 kg) of solids per 1000 lb (454 kg) 60

(340.7)
of gas. As a result, the heat transfer to the walls of a 170
Micron
circulating bed includes significantly higher solids/gas
convection and less solids/gas radiation. 50
Furnace temperature is primarily controlled by fur- (283.9)

Overall Heat Transfer Coefficient, Btu/h ft2 F (W/m2 C)

250
nace heat transfer to the pressure parts. Most of the Micron
furnace heat absorption is accomplished by the sur- 40
face located in the zone above the overfire air level. (227.1)
The main factor controlling furnace heat transfer rate
is local solids bulk density; the greater the bulk den- 30
sity, the higher the heat transfer rate (see Fig. 16) and (170.4)
the lower the furnace exit gas temperature. Most of
the solids leaving the furnace are captured by the U-
20
beams and returned to the upper portion of the fur- (113.6)
nace by gravity. 1562F (850C) 32.8 ft/s (10 m/s)
1562F (850C) 40.34 ft/s (12.3 m/s)
A secondary solids collection device, or multi-cy- 1562F (850C) 56.42 ft/s (17.2 m/s)
clone, is located downstream in the convection pass. 10
(56.8)
The solids from the multi-cyclone hoppers are returned
to the furnace, and this recycle stream controls the
solids bulk density in the upper furnace. As more 0
multi-cyclone solids are returned to the furnace, the 0 1
(16)
2
(32)
3
(48.1)
4
(64.1)
5
(80.1)
6
(96.1)
upper furnace bulk density increases and the furnace Bulk Density,lb/ft3 (kg/m3)
exit gas temperature is reduced. At steady-state boiler Fig. 16 Heat transfer coefficient versus density in a circulating
operation, a balance is maintained between the sol- fluidized bed for 170 and 250 micron mean diameter sand.
ids flow to the multi-cyclone hoppers and the solids

U-Beams flow to the furnace, with any excess solids purged to

(Primary Particle Collector) the plant ash disposal system.
The solids recycle flow to the furnace can be lim-
ited by not having enough solids caught by the multi-
cyclone. If, after reaching the maximum recycle rate,
the upper furnace temperature is still high, increas-
ing the primary air flow entrains more solids from the
lower bed to the upper furnace. This increases the
upper furnace bulk density and heat transfer rate.
Changes in bed air flow can have an additional im-
pact on the temperature in the lower furnace, which
is fuel dependent. For some fuels, the increase in bed
Solids
to air flow causes an increase in the lower furnace tem-
MDC perature due to higher local fuel burnout. For others,
the diluting effect of greater bed air flow prevails,
U-Beam
causing the local temperature to decline.
Recycle
Solids separation
Bed
Solids
A unique feature of B&Ws CFB boiler design is the
two-stage solids separation system shown in Fig. 15.
Solids to The primary solids separator is an array of U-shaped
ESP or
Baghouse beams (U-beams) located in the high temperature re-
Multi-Cyclone gion at the furnace exit, with the secondary stage lo-
Dust Collector
Sorbent (MDC) cated downstream of the convection surfaces in a low
(Secondary
Particle
gas temperature region, which varies from 400 to 900F
Fuel
Collector) (204C to 482C) depending upon unit design. As the
MDC gas flow passes the U-beams, the momentum of the
Purge
particles causes a large fraction to be collected within
the U-beam channel while the gas and remaining fine
particulate fraction flows around the beams. As shown
MDC
Recycle in Fig 13, the first two rows of U-beams are installed
in the furnace (in-furnace) and the collected material
is returned directly to the furnace, falling down along
the rear wall. The second group of two to four U-beam
rows after the furnace exit plane (external U-beams)
Bed Drain Air collects additional material that falls down and also
Fig. 15 CFB boiler solid material flows. returns to the furnace.

Steam 41 / Fluidized-Bed Combustion 17-11

 The Babcock & Wilcox Company
The range of overall IR-CFB solids collection effi-
ciency by particle size is shown in Fig. 17. The U-beams
and MDC effectively collect and recycle all particles
greater than 80 microns. The overall efficiency of the in-
furnace and external U-beams is 97% or greater.
The fine particles fraction that passes the U-beams
is collected in the secondary stage of solids separation,
the mechanical dust collection multi-cyclones. These
collect 90 to 95% of the remaining particles, for an
overall collection efficiency of up to 99.7%.
Solids inventory control
The measure of furnace solids inventory is by air/
flue gas pressure loss. The total furnace pressure loss
or solids inventory is important. The typical overall
furnace pressure loss is 42 in. wg (10.5 kPa). The up-
per furnace (above the air ports) pressure loss should
be at least 17 in. wg (4.2 kPa), which results in ad-
equate inventory in the upper furnace to maintain a
constant furnace temperature profile.
Flue gas pressure loss in a CFB furnace conforms
to the basic equation:
P = (C ) ( b ) ( L ) (9)
where
P = pressure loss
C = units conversion constant
b = average bulk density in the furnace segment
associated with L
L = height of the furnace segment of interest
To use Equation 9, a density profile as shown in Fig.
12 is developed. This curve is a function of many vari-
ables and has been derived from empirical data. The
important variables are:
Dp = average particle size above the dense bed
zone
DDB = average particle size in the dense bed zone
V = nominal gas velocity
T = nominal furnace temperature
WS = external solids flux, lb/h ft2 (kg/s m2)
s = particle density
= particle shape factor
De = furnace equivalent diameter
For a fluidized bed to operate properly, there must
be a continuous and sufficient supply of particles of
the proper size distribution. If the particles are too
coarse, the lower furnace bed will be too deep and
defluidize, or slump. If the particles are too fine, they
will blow out of the furnace making it impossible to
maintain an adequate overall solids inventory. There
is a range of bed particle size distribution that is
needed to maintain a stable fluidized-bed process in the
lower furnace and an adequate inventory in the up-
per furnace to control the furnace exit gas temperature.
The supply and retention of these particles must be
controlled to provide the required inventory.
The solids inventory is maintained by adding
makeup material, typically limestone or sand of the
proper size distribution or bed material that had pre-
viously been drained and saved. When firing coal,
17-12
limestone will normally be used for both the inven-
tory control or makeup material. However, there
needs to be enough sulfur to continuously generate
material that will stay in the system. Calcium oxide is
quite soft and does not hold up well in the fluidized
bed environment. Once sulfated, the calcium sulfate
is hard enough to maintain a solids inventory.
The amount of makeup material needed depends
on whether, or to what degree, the fuel ash is contrib-
uting to the inventory and how well the inventory ma-
terial maintains its integrity. For example, coal may
contain very fine ash as well as large diameter par-
ticles or small rocks. A portion of the larger particles
will remain in the lower portion of the furnace and
provide stable fluidization in the dense bed portion.
The small particles can be so small that the U-beams
and multi-cyclone dust collector do not capture and
return them back to the process. The intermediate size
particles blow out of the dense bed, are large enough
to be captured by the U-beams or dust collector, and
return to the furnace for solids inventory. If the coal
ash and reacted limestone particles continuously pro-
vide the proper amount of large and intermediate size
particles, purchased makeup material for inventory
control will not be required.
CFB emissions
Sulfur dioxide emissions control When sulfur-bear-
ing fuels burn, most of the sulfur is oxidized to SO2.
Limestone can be added as a sorbent for sulfur cap-
ture. When limestone is added to the bed, it under-
goes a transformation called calcination and then re-
acts with the SO2 in the flue gas to form calcium sul-
100
90
80
Efficiency, %
70
60
50
40
0 20 40 60 80 100
Particle Size, Micron
Fig. 17 Overall grade efficiency range of B&W IR-CFB solids
collection system.
Steam 41 / Fluidized-Bed Combustion
 The Babcock & Wilcox Company
fate (CaSO4) through sulfation. The calcining reac-
tion is endothermic and is described by:
CaCO3 ( s ) + 766 Btu/lb ( of CaCO3 )
(10)
CaO(s) + CO2 (g )
Once formed, solid CaO (lime) reacts with gaseous SO2
and oxygen exothermically to form CaSO4 according
to the following reaction:
SO2 ( g ) + 1
2 O2 ( g ) + CaO ( s )
(11)
CaSO4 ( s ) + 6733 Btu/lb ( of S )
SO2 reductions of 90 to 95% are typically achieved
in a circulating bed with calcium to sulfur (Ca/S) mole
ratios of 1:1.8 to 1:2.5, depending on the sulfur con-
tent of the fuel and the reactivity of the limestone. The
lower the sulfur concentration in the fuel, the greater
the calcium-to-sulfur mole ratio must be for a given
removal in the furnace. Systems external to the CFB
process can be applied to further enhance SO2 capture
and limestone utilization.
Certain temperature limitations affect the sulfur
capture process. If the furnace temperature is below
1470F (799C), calcination of CaCO3 is not complete and
results in less CaO yield from a given amount of lime-
stone, thereby increasing limestone consumption. If
the furnace temperature is above 1650F (899C),
CaSO4 dissociates to CaO and SO2 which again reduces
sulfur capture efficiency. Therefore, it is important to
maintain the furnace within a certain temperature
window to reach minimum limestone consumption and
not exceed a specified level of SO2 emissions. This is a
primary reason the IR-CFB combustion process controls
furnace temperature over the entire furnace height.
Limestone properties such as reactivity, attrition,
and size distribution have a major effect on limestone
consumption. These parameters are carefully consid-
ered when providing recommendations for limestone
selection and preparation. The IR-CFB process also
allows for post-furnace SO2 capture through various
flyash recirculation schemes.
Nitrogen oxides emissions control The nitrogen ox-
ides present in the flue gas come from two sources: the
oxidation of nitrogen compounds in the fuel (fuel NOx)
and the reaction between nitrogen and oxygen in the
combustion air (thermal NOx). See Chapter 34. By
maintaining the furnace temperature below 1650F
(899C), thermal NOx formation is low in CFB boilers.
Fuel NOx can be reduced through combustion con-
trols. The following operating parameters have a sig-
nificant effect on emissions:
1. lowering primary air,
2. lowering overall excess air, and
3. minimizing limestone input or Ca/S molar ratio.
When burning fuels containing nitrogen, volatile
nitrogen is released in a very unstable monatomic
state. The monatomic nitrogen atom will either com-
bine with another nitrogen atom to form N2, or will
react with oxygen to form NOx. Part of the NOx can
be reduced back to N2 when NOx is in the presence of
Steam 41 / Fluidized-Bed Combustion
char and/or CO in a reducing atmosphere. Reducing
the primary air to substoichiometric conditions in-
creases the concentration of carbon and CO in the
lower furnace and limits the availability of oxygen in
the presence of monatomic nitrogen. This effect is more
pronounced for high-volatile fuels.
Limestone is a catalyst for the nitrogen and oxygen
reaction, which increases the fuel NOx emissions. Con-
trolling to a low Ca/S ratio minimizes this reaction.
Higher overall excess air means higher oxygen con-
centration in furnace gases and increased NOx emis-
sions. Limiting the overall excess air below 3% O2
minimizes NOx formation while providing low carbon
loss due to high solids recycle to the furnace.
The combination of low temperatures and staged com-
bustion allows fluidized-bed boilers to operate with low
NOx emissions. Typical uncontrolled values are within
0.1 to 0.15 lb/106 Btu (126 to 188 mg/Nm3 at 6% O2 dry)
for coal-fired CFB boilers. Further NOx can be controlled
to lower values through the use of a selective noncatalytic
reduction (SNCR) system consisting of ammonia injec-
tion near the U-beam elevation (see Chapter 34).
Carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons When design-
ing a boiler, it is necessary to maximize combustion
efficiency by minimizing unburned carbon and the
quantity of CO and hydrocarbons in the flue gas. This
is accomplished by choosing the proper number of fuel
feed points, by proper design of the overfire air sys-
tem, and by providing sufficient furnace residence
time for combustion. Typical flue gas concentrations
are less than 0.15 lb/106 Btu (188 mg/Nm3) for CO and
0.005 lb/106 Btu (6.3 mg/ Nm3) for hydrocarbons, both
at 6% O2 dry, in a CFB boiler burning coal.
Pressurized fluidized-bed combustion
(PFBC)
BFB and CFB boilers discussed above operate effec-
tively at atmospheric pressure and are generally referred
to as atmospheric fluidized-bed combustors (AFBC).
Pressurized fluidized-bed combustors (PFBC) are an
outgrowth of this technology. The underlying concept is
to create a combined cycle plant where a coal-fired sys-
tem with a steam turbine is combined with a gas tur-
bine to increase overall cycle efficiency. A simplified sche-
matic and process explanation is shown in Fig. 18. In its
simplest form, a compressor pressurizes the combustion
air to 12 to 20 atmospheres (174 to 232 psi or 1.2 to 2.0
MPa). This air is then fed to a pressure vessel that fully
encloses a fluidized-bed combustor where coal is burned
in a bed of limestone (removing the SO2) to produce steam
plus a pressurized gas stream. The steam is used in a
conventional steam turbine cycle to generate part of the
electric power, and the pressurized gas is cleaned suf-
ficiently of particulate and other key contaminants
and used in a gas turbine to generate the balance of
the electric power and compressed air for the combus-
tion process.
Three basic cycle configurations have been pro-
posed: 1) turbocharged cycle, 2) combined cycle, and
3) advanced combined cycle. The major differences
involve how the gas from the pressurized fluidized-
bed combustor is treated prior to use in the gas tur-
17-13
 The Babcock & Wilcox Company

Fig. 18 Simplified combined cycle PFBC diagram and process overview.

bine. In the turbocharged cycle, the gas is cooled to technology is provided in the 40th edition of this text.7
between 800 and 1000F (427 and 538C) so that cur- B&W designed, fabricated and installed a 70 MW
rent state-of-the-art hot gas cleanup technology can PFBC system as a demonstration to repower one unit
be used to remove the particulate and other contami- at the American Electric Power, Ohio Power Company
nants. This increases the steam production capacity Tidd plant near Brilliant, Ohio, in the United States
but reduces the power from the gas turbine. This cycle (Fig. 19). The design was based on the combined cycle
incorporates more conventional technology at the ex- configuration utilizing the bubbling fluidized-bed com-
pense of cycle efficiency. In the full combined cycle bustion process. This PFBC combined cycle system
system, advanced hot gas cleanup technology is used consisted of a gas turbine, boiler, and associated sys-
to clean the gas from the fluidized bed at approxi- tems including hot-gas cleaning, load control, fuel
mately 1580F (860C) so that hotter and higher pres-
sure gas can be sent to the gas turbine. In this case,
80% of the power is produced in the steam turbine and
the balance is produced in the gas turbine. Finally, in
the advanced combined cycle, a partial coal gasifica-
tion process is added. The char from gasification is
burned in the fluidized-bed combustor. The clean gas
leaving the PFBC boiler, which still contains oxygen,
can be mixed with the fuel gas (from the partial gas-
ifier) and then burned in a gas turbine combustor at
temperatures of 1800 to 2500F (982 to 1371C) for even
higher efficiencies.
The bubbling fluidized bed operating inside the
pressure vessel behaves basically the same as the at-
mospheric fluidized bed although the higher pressure
(and higher gas density) combustion affects three key
areas: fluidization, heat transfer, and combustion. The
overall effect is to provide a very compact and cleaner
combustion system. A more complete summary of this Fig. 19 Pressure vessel arrival at Tidd site.

17-14 Steam 41 / Fluidized-Bed Combustion

 The Babcock & Wilcox Company
preparation and feeding, sorbent preparation and
feeding, and ash removal. Many of these systems were
either partially or totally contained in the pressure
vessel. This system operated on an experimental ba-
sis in the 1990s to demonstrate the feasibility of the
process and to define and overcome the challenges in
a new first-of-a-kind engineered power system.
References
1. Leva, M., Canadian Journal of Chemical Engineering,
Vol. 35, pp. 71-76, August, 1957.
2. Babu, S.P., Shah, B., and Talwalkar, A., Fluidization
Engineering, Second Ed., AIChE Symposium Series No.
176, Vol. 74, pp. 176-186, American Institute of Chemical
Engineers, and Kunii, D., Levenspiel, O., Butterworth-
Heinemann Series in Chemical Engineering, 1991.
3. Staub, F.W., and Canada, G.S., Fluidization, Cam-
bridge University Press, London, United Kingdom, pp.
339-344, 1978.
Steam 41 / Fluidized-Bed Combustion
PFBC technology offers the prospect of improving
cycle efficiency and reducing emissions while reduc-
ing power plant size and initial plant cost. In concept,
PFBC boiler modules could be barge-shipped to sites
effectively ready for installation or in a few large
pieces to minimize erection expense. This technology
awaits further development and evaluation.
4. Vreedenberg, H.A., Chemical Engineering Science, Vol.
9, pp. 52-60, 1958.
5. Glicksman, L.R., and Decker, N.A., Proceedings of the
Sixth International Fluidized-Bed Combustion Confer-
ence, Atlanta, Georgia, pp. 1152-1158, 1980.
6. Gelperin, N.I., Ainshtein, V.G., and Korotyanskaya,
L.A., International Chemical Engineering, Vol. 9, No. 1,
pp. 137-142, January, 1969.
7. Stultz, S.C., and Kitto, J.B., Eds., Steam/its genera-
tion and use, 40th Ed., The Babcock & Wilcox Company,
Barberton, Ohio, 1992.
17-15
 The Babcock & Wilcox Company

Circulating fluidized-bed power plant by B&W.

17-16 Steam 41 / Fluidized-Bed Combustion