Submitted for t he MASTERS OF SCIENCE Chemistry in the Department of Chemistry UNIVERSITY of the Witwatersrand December 1995

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The thermodynamic behaviours in a PFBC combustor were simulated for the ash from all of the six coals with sand and limestone as bed material. Ash components determined the ash thermodynamic behaviour at high temperature, and each component had different effects. For assessment of the potential for bed material agglomeration, the temperature at which 15% of the ash would become liquid (T15) was calculated with the coal ash, the cyclone ash and the cyclone ash mixed with varying amounts of limestone. Both the bed ash and fly ash, collected from an industrial PFBC plant, consisted of limestone/lime particles with different extent of sulphation, and coal ash particles. The calcium aluminosilicate material formed on the coal ash particles but not on the limestone particles. The aluminosilicate materials appeared to be formed from fine ash and lime particles at some local hot zones in the boiler. The melted materials may glue ash and bed material particle into large particles leading to bed agglomeration and defluidization. Four mechanisms were proposed for the formation of bed material agglomeration in PFBC, which may occur under different conditions. One mechanism explains the bed material agglomeration with the high localized high temperature zone due to the improper design or operation, while the bed agglomeration through the other three mechanisms results from the unsuitable coals burnt in the PFBC combustor. The maximum char temperature and the minimum T15 were used simultaneously to predict the tendency towards bed material agglomeration in PFBC burning different coals. Both char properties and ash properties should be considered during coal selection process for PFBC, to ameliorate the potential problem of bed agglomeration.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Energy Laboratory in association with the Sloan School of Management and the Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning,1979.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--West Virginia University, 2006. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains viii, 170 p. : ill. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 119-137).

Thesis (M.Eng.)--Memorial University of Newfoundland, 2000. / Bibliography: leaves 154-164.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 2001. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 98-109).

A large-scale pilot plant (0.43 m ID) was extensively modified and converted into an absorber/stripper system to demonstrate CO₂ capture technology using aqueous piperazine promoted potassium carbonate for coalfired power plants. Four pilot plant campaigns were completed. Three campaigns were conducted using 5 m K⁺/2.5 m PZ and 6.4 m K⁺/1.6 m PZ. Flexipac 1Y and Flexipac AQ Style 20 structured packing were used in the absorber. The stripper was tested with 14 sieve trays, IMTP #40 random packing, and Flexipac AQ Style 20 packing. Monoethanolamine (7 m) was tested in the third campaign to establish a base case. An approximate rate analysis showed that 5 m K⁺/2.5 m PZ is two times faster than 7 m MEA and three times faster than 6.4 m K⁺/1.6 m PZ. The location of the temperature bulge moves from the top of the column to bottom as the liquid to gas flow rate ratio is increased. Foaming occurred in the absorber in the first two campaigns and occurred in the stripper in the fourth campaign. Data from the pilot plant was used to develop a K⁺/PZ absorber model in Aspen Plus® RateSep[trademark]. The Hilliard (2005) Aspen Plus® VLE model and the kinetics developed by Cullinane (2005) were incorporated in the model. Data-Fit was simultaneously used to reconcile pilot plant data and perform a regression of the interfacial area and heat loss parameters for the RateSep[trademark] absorber model. The lean loading for the pilot plant data was shifted down by 10% to account for a discrepancy with the Cullinane vapor-liquid equilibrium data. The Data-Fit results showed that the average interfacial area for Flexipac 1Y was 80% of the value measure by the air-water column. The average interfacial area for Flexipac AQ Style 20 for 5 m K⁺/2.5 m PZ was 56% of the air-water measurement. The CO₂ heat of absorption may not have been adequately predicted by the RateSep[trademark] absorber model because the regressed values of heat loss were consistent with forced convection.

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