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Challenges of Ammonia Co-Firing in Boiler Burners

Ammonia co-firing in boiler burners involves mixing ammonia (NH₃) with fuel (such as coal, natural gas, etc.) and burning them together to reduce nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions. This technique faces several challenges in practical application, which are mainly as follows:

1. Uniform Mixing of Ammonia

Challenge: Ensuring the uniform mixing of ammonia with the fuel is crucial. Uneven mixing of ammonia can lead to incomplete combustion, ammonia slip, local overheating, or reduced combustion efficiency.

Difficulties:

• Ammonia is highly volatile and requires high temperatures to effectively participate in combustion.

• If ammonia and fuel are not thoroughly mixed within the burner, high concentrations of ammonia in certain areas can lead to ammonia slip, complicating downstream flue gas treatment.

2. NOx Formation and Control

Challenge: The goal of ammonia co-firing is to reduce NOx formation, but improper control can instead increase NOx production or ammonia slip.

Difficulties:

• Precise control of combustion temperature and oxygen concentration is needed to achieve effective NOx reduction.

• Excessively high temperatures can increase thermal NOx formation, while too low temperatures may prevent ammonia from fully decomposing and reacting.

3. Corrosiveness and Safety of Ammonia

Challenge: Ammonia is a corrosive gas with toxicity and flammability, requiring special attention during transport, storage, and usage.

Difficulties:

• Equipment materials must account for ammonia’s corrosiveness, especially in high-temperature and humid environments, which may require corrosion-resistant alloys or linings.

• High safety standards are required, as ammonia leaks could lead to safety incidents, making leak detection and emergency response plans essential during ammonia transport and combustion.

4. Burner Design and Optimization

Challenge: Existing burner designs may not be suitable for direct ammonia co-firing and may require specialized design or modification.

Difficulties:

• Burners need to be optimized to ensure ammonia can enter the combustion zone evenly and steadily.

• Combustion parameters of the burner (e.g., excess air ratio, combustion temperature, fuel injection angle) may need adjustment to accommodate ammonia co-firing.

5. Environmental and Economic Considerations

Challenge: Balancing environmental benefits with economic costs is essential.

Difficulties:

• While ammonia co-firing can reduce NOx emissions, it adds system complexity, potentially leading to higher initial investment and operational costs.

• Evaluations of ammonia sources, costs, and the effectiveness of combining ammonia co-firing with other NOx control technologies (such as Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) or Selective Non-Catalytic Reduction (SNCR)) are necessary.

In summary, the application of ammonia co-firing technology in boiler burners requires careful research and optimization in multiple areas, including fuel and ammonia mixing, combustion temperature control, equipment corrosion resistance, burner design, and overall system economics and environmental impact.