DRAFT SYSTEM IN THERMAL BOILERS
WHY DO WE NEED FANS
Efficient Combustion of Coal is achieved
in Boiler using air as a control media.
PF is introduced in Boiler through
Burners in which PA is a carrier.
Hot Primary air is used to dry, grind,
classify and take PF to burners.
Secondary Air used to complete
combustion as well as control Nox and
CO formation is supplied by FD fans.
WHY DO WE NEED FANS
Separate FD and PA fans enable us to
control PA to SA ratio.
Even temperature across heat transfer
area/ volume is maintained using air flow.
Reduced formation of Nox is achieved by
delaying combustion.
FD fans provide high pressure air to move
air across ducting to recover heat using
air heaters.
Coal flame jet is controlled by PA velocity at
which it is introduced through burners.
Lower Velocity could result in PF settling in
fuel pipes and reduction of mills output.
Excess air is varied using FD fans vanes
across the combustion.
Flue gas is evacuated using ID fans and a
specific mode of balanced draft/
pressurized boiler is maintained using ID
fans.
CAN WE HAVE A BOILER WITHOUT
FANS
ID fans can be replaced by a Chimney/ stack to
maintain necessary draft.
Fuel can be injected using atomizing steam if it
is oil.
Gas can be introduced through injector burners
for sucking air through air pre heaters/
regenerative air heaters for supplying air to
burners without any assistance from fans.
Invariably, Coal fired boilers use an array of fans
to get combustion, heat transfer and evacuation
going.
HIGH POWER CONSUMER
Fans are required for supplying air and
evacuating flue gas.
Auxiliary Power Consumption of fans
accounts for almost 30 to 40 % of total
power consumption of a unit.
ID fans and PA fans consume equal
amount of power, however with
introduction of FGD plants, ID fan
power consumption is on upward trend.
PRIMARY AIR FANS
PA FANS need to develop higher pressure.
PA fans could be hot/cold.
Hot PA fans draw hot air after the Air
Heater obtained using FD fans.
Individual PA fans are invariably used in
High Capacity units in the range of 500600 MW.
Single fan operation can yield 60% BMCR
loading, HOWEVER, 2 number of fans are
a must
PRIMARY AIR FANS
PA FANS are designed to deliver a
specific velocity range for the Pulverizer.
High PA flows can help improve higher
Mill outputs
Coal grinding, Mill Outlet temperature,
Classification of PF , all depend on PA
fans performance.
Many older Units, boiler output gets
restricted due to shortfall in PA capacity.
INDUCED DRAFT FANS
TWO number of Fans are considered
adequate, however as unit size grew in
India, a spare ID fan was considered must.
Three Fan layout complicates ESP
performance deliverable.
ID fans are integrated with variable
frequency drive system to save on auxiliary
power consumption.
Poor Chimney design can upset ID fans
performance.
INDUCED DRAFT FANS
Loss of ID fan capability due to
chimney performance can lead to
furnace pressurization.
High air heater leakage is another
reason for overloading of ID fans.
Many a times boiler excess air is
reduced to improve ID fan margins,
however, this only degrades boiler
performance.
FORCED DRAFT FANS
Two number of fans are provided per
unit irrespective of unit size.
Many a unit, PA fans draw their air
from discharge of FD fans.
FD fans are designed to meet excess
air requirement of Boiler. (20 TO
40%)
An appropriately designed FD fan
system would help recover 30%
waste heat back into boiler.
FORCED DRAFT FANS
In between FD fans and Regenerative
Air Heaters, SCAPH is placed to heat FD
air using steam for cold start up.
Ambient temperature is raised from 8
degree to 38 degree C.
This is generally finned heat Exchanger
which gets clogged with fly ash if ash
evacuation in ESP area is dust prone.
A clogged SCAPH can be very
detrimental to FD fans performance.
FORCED DRAFT FANS
Single Fan operation is adequate to
run unit up to 60% BMCR however, it
is generally avoided.
Secondary Air temperatures are
generally less than PA in a Tri Sector
Air Heater based boiler.
Secondary air flow measurement
need to be improved, oxygen
monitoring alone not sufficient to
monitor Secondary Air flows.
TYPE OF fANS
Draft fans are classified as either
centrifugal or axial, according to the
direction of air or gas flow through
the fans.
Centrifugal fans move air or gas
perpendicular to the impeller shaft.
Axial fans move air or gas parallel to
the impeller shaft.
Centrifugal fan blades are mounted
in an impeller (or rotor)that rotates
within a spiral housing.
Centrifugal fans can be designed
with either one inlet, called singlewidth single-inlet (SWSI) or with two
inlets, double-width double-inlet
BACKWARD Curved Blades
The performance characteristics of centrifugal
fans are highly dependent on the type of blade
used.
Basically, three types of blades are used on
centrifugal fans in power plant applications
backward curved, straight, and radial tip.
Blades. Backward curved blades are normally
the airfoil type,.
The airfoil blade is most widely used for power
plant applications and has several advantages
over other types of blades
BACKWARD Curved Blades
The rising cost of auxiliary power makes the
high efficiency of airfoil-bladed centrifugal fans
attractive for most power plant applications.
Airfoil blades are used for almost all forced
draft and induced draft centrifugal fan
applications.
The use of backward curved blades should be
avoidedon applications where significant levels
of large or adhesive particles are present.
BACKWARD Curved Blades
Highest efficiency, over 90%,
Very stable operation,
Low noise level,
Ideal capabilities for high-speed
service, and
Non overloading horsepower
characteristic.
Straight Blades
Straight blades, sometimes called radial blades, have
limited applications for use in power plants, but they offer
several operating advantages:
Good abrasion resistance;
Simplified maintenance, particularly blade replacement;
and
Wide range of capacities.
The disadvantage of straight blades is the relatively low
operating efficiency and an overloading horsepower
characteristic.
The power requirements at maximum flow conditions are
significantly higher than power requests during operation
at the point of highest efficiency.
Radial Tip Blades
Radial tip blades are normally used for
moderately erosive gas applications. Radial tip
blades have several advantageous operating
characteristics:
Non overloading horsepower,
High capacity for size,
Excellent abrasion resistance,
Very stable operation, and
Essentially self cleaning capabilities.
The disadvantage of using radial tip blades is that
efficiency is not as high as that of backward
curved blades.
Axial Fans
Single-stage (one rotor and one set of blades)
axial fans are typically used in forced draft
service on a balanced draft steam generator.
When axial fans are designed for induced
draft service, the higher pressure
requirements normally dictate the use of a
two-stage fan.
Typical two-stage axial fans are driven by
single speed or two-speed motors.
The flow and pressure output is controlled by
adjusting the pitch of the fan blades. These
are called variable pitch blades.
AXIAL FANS
Axial fans can maintain higher efficiencies at various
steam generator loads than can constant-speed
centrifugal fans controlled with inlet dampers or vanes.
As fuel costs continue to rise, the higher capital cost of
axial fans over centrifugal fans frequently can be offset
by operating cost savings over the life of the plant.
However, a detailed evaluation is required to show
what type of fan and drive system should be used in a
given situation.
Either a mechanical or a hydraulic mechanism is used
to adjust blade pitch while the fan operates at the
design speed.
Mechanical pitch change mechanisms, however, are
usually insufficient to properly control fans of the size
required for power plant applications.
SYSTEM RESISTANCE
When a gas is forced through a duct
system, a loss in pressure occurs. This loss
in pressure is called system resistance.
System resistance is composed of two
components: friction
losses and dynamic losses.
Friction losses occur at the walls of the
duct system and can be quantified by the
following relationship
(friction)
= frictional pressure loss, lb/ft2;
/ = a dimensionless friction factor that is a
function of relative
roughness and Reynolds number;
p = gas density, lb/ft3;
V = gas velocity, ft/s;
L = duct length, ft;
D = duct diameter, ft;
Dynamic Losses
Dynamic losses occur at changes of direction in gas flow
and at sudden duct enlargements and contractions.
Dynamic losses can also be called velocity pressure losses.
Provided that the gas flow is in the turbulent range, as is
the case for nearly all combustion air and flue gas handling
systems and equipment, dynamic losses can be quantified
where
AP = pressure loss, lb/ft2;
p = gas density, lb/ft3;
v = gas velocity, ft/s;
gc = unitary constant, 32.2lbm ft;
system constant based on the geometry of the duct system
most accurately determined by actual testing.
FAN SELECTIONS
Power plant applications that require
the largest fans for a steam
generator fall into four categories:
forced draft (FD),
primary air (PA),
induced draft (ID),
and gas recirculation.
FORCED DRAFT FANS
FD fans supply combustion air to the steam generator.
The fans must have a pressure capability high enough
to overcome the total resistance of inlet silencers, air
preheat coils,air ducts, air heaters, wind boxes, burner
registers.
and any other resistance between the air intake of the
fan and the furnace.
The FD fans must supply the total stoichiometric
Combustion air less credit for air supplied by the
primary air fans, plus the excess air needed for proper
burning of the design fuel.
In addition, FD fans supply air to make up for air
heater leakage and for some sealing air require
PRIMARY AIR FANS
PA fans normally handle relatively low flows and very high pressure
differentials.
This usually requires centrifugal fans of large diameter and
relatively narrow width impellers operating at high speeds,
sometimes as high as 1,800 rpm.
PA fans are generally driven by single-speed or two-speed motors.
There are basically three types of primary air (PA) fans:
hot PA fans,
cold PA fans,
and exhauster PA fans.
Hot and cold PA fans that use centrifugal fans usually have airfoil
blades. In situations where fly ash or coal dust enters the PA fan
with the combustion air, radial tip blades are preferred because of
their improved abrasion resistance.
Exhauster PA fans are normally constructed with straight radial
blades.
INDUCED DRAFT FANS
ID fans exhaust combustion products from the steam
generator.
ID fans control furnace pressure, that is normally set
at -0.5 in. of water relative to atmosphere. The
condition is known as balanced draft operation.
The ID fans must be designed with sufficient pressure
capability to overcome the total resistance of the
convection passes of the steam generator, gas ducts,
air heater, fabric filter or precipitator, wet or dry
scrubber, stack, and any other resistance between
the furnace and the stack outlet.
The ID fans must handle all of the flue gas from the
furnace plus any infiltration caused by the negative
pressure
INDUCED DRAFT FANS
ID fans are normally downstream of particulate removal
Equipment and are in a moderate to low erosion
potential service.
In most instances, an airfoil centrifugal fan is specified.
The airfoil design can develop efficiencies of more than
90% and have capacities greater than 1.5 million actual
cubic feet per minute (acfm).
The shape of the airfoil blade minimizes turbulence and
noise. The blades and center plate may be fitted with
wear pads and replaceable nose sections to simplify
replacement.
Structural strength, particularly important in fans of
larger sizes, is excellent with this design.
Variable-pitch axial flow fans with steel blades are
sometimes specified
