CorrectlyModelingandCalculatingCombustion

Efficiencies
In
FiredEquipment
DavidSchmitt,President
IncreasePerformance,Inc.
Tulsa,Oklahoma

Firedequipmentincludesfurnaces,firedheaters,firedboilers,supplementaryfiredboilers,andmanyothertypesofequipment.Butforthe
purposesofreviewinghowthecalculationsareaccomplishedandotherfactorsthatmayaffecttheresultsofthemodeling,wewilluseafired
reformerfurnaceasourexample.Allofthemethodsandissuesdiscussedhereincanbeappliedtoanyfiredequipment.
Wewillstartwiththecombustioncalculationwhichisnecessarytocalculatethepropertiesofthefluegas,ortheproductsofcombustionas
wellasheatavailablefromthecombustionprocess.Thechemicalreactionformulaforcombustioniswellknown,butvarieswiththe
compositionofthefuelbeingused,andcanbeverycomplicatedifthefuelhasmanycomponents.Asanexample,welookatasimple
combustionofmethane,CH4inOxygen,O2.

CH4 + 2O2 --- > CO2 + 2H2O

Theoxidantinmostcasesisnormallyair,butmaybeothergasessuchasGasTurbineExhaust,orotherproductsofcombustion.Ifitisair,the
wetcompositionmaybesimilartothefollowing,inmole%.

Nitrogen,N2

77.4560

Oxygen,O2

20.9108

CarbonDioxide,CO2 0.0299

Water,O2

0.3772

Argon,Ar

0.9364

Theactualcompositionoftheoxidantwillvarydependingontheelevation,humidityandtemperatureatthesiteyouaremodeling.Even
thoughSulphurDioxideandCarbonMonoxidearenotnormallyconsideredtobeinatmosphericair,yourcalculationsshouldallowforthese
sincetheequipmentmaybeusingproductsofcombustionfromanotherpieceofequipment.Dryairshouldnotbeusedincombustion
calculationsbecausethisrarelyexists.
Foracombustioncalculation,youneedtoknowthecompositionofthefuelandtheoxidant.Toperformthecombustioncalculationyoucould
useacomputersoftwareprogramsuchasWinBurn,oroneofmanycalculatorsavailableontheinternet.However,tomakecombustion
calculationsortestequipmentforpurposesofdeterminingtheefficiencyofthecombustionprocess,itisbettertosetupasimpleexcelwork
sheettoperformthecalculations.
ForLiquidFuels,theExcelsheetmaybesetup:
Fuel # 1:
Component Name
Wt%
Sulphur
0.50
Hydrogen
12.80
Carbon
86.70
Nitrogen
0.00
Oxygen
0.00
Water
0.00
Total
Lower Heating Value, Btu/lb
Fuel Specific heat, Btu/lb-F
Atomizing Medium

Fuel Oil
Fuel MW
32.0640
2.0158
12.0112
28.0160
32.0000
18.016
18,390
0.0000
MECH

Resulting Composition;
N2
O2
0.000
-0.998
0.000
-7.937
0.000
-2.664
1.000
0.000
0.000
1.000
0.000
0.000
0.0000
-3.3307

CO2
0.000
0.000
3.664
0.000
0.000
0.000
3.1768

H2O
0.000
8.937
0.000
0.000
0.000
1.000
1.1439

Ar
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.0000

MECH (Mechanical), STM (Steam), or AIR

SO2
1.998
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.0100

CO
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.0000

Air/Steam Pressure, psig

0.0000
Injection Rate,
lb/lb
0.0000
Fuel
Flow
Temperature
Heat Avail. From Fuel(Datum: 60F), Btu/hr
Air/Fuel Ratio, lb/lb @ 0 % Ex. Air
Excess Air, %
Air Flow, lbs/hr
Fluegas Flow, lbs/hr
Heat Avail. From Combustion of Fuel, Btu/hr

Fuel # 1
1,393.000
60.00
0
14.4595
0.450
20,233
21,626
25,617,270

Units
lb/hr
F

NoticethatwithLiquidFuels,theLowerHeatingValueisnormallydeterminedbylaboratorytestingandsoitneednotbecalculatedonthis
sheet,andisaninputbyuser.
ForaGasFuel,theExcelsheetmaybesetup:


IntheExceltablesabove,wehavecolumnsfortheresultingcompositionfactor.Inthesecolumns,ifthemoleculeisnotchangedbythe
reaction,thefactorissimplya1.0intheappropriatecolumn.ButfortheMethanemolecule,sincethechemicalreactionformulaindicatesit
takestwomoleculesofO2forthereaction,thenthefactoristwomoleculesofOxygen/onemoleculeofCH4or2*32/16.042anditisnegative
becauseiteliminatestheO2molecule.LikewisefactorintheCO2columnforCH4wouldbeonemoleculeofCO2/onemoleculeofCH4or
44.01/16.042.Alloftheremainingrowsandcolumnsarepopulatedinasimilarmanner.Thetablemayhaveasmanyorasfewasthe
compositionfortheparticularfuel.

Thetotalofeachcolumninthetablewouldbeequaltothesumoftheweightfractionofthecomponenttimesthefactor.Fortheheat
availablefromthecombustion,weareusingtheLHVvalues,whicharetypicalforFiredHeaterefficiencycalculations,whereforboilerstheHHV
valuesaretypicallyused.
TheAir/FuelRatio,lb/lb@0%ExcessairistheabsolutevalueoftheratiooftheO2Factor/WeightfractionofO2intheoxidant.Soifweusethe
WetAircompositionfromabove,wecancreateatablefortheoxidantorcombustionairsimilartobelow:
Combustion Air:
Component

Mole %

Wt Frac

Air MW

N2

77.7456

0.7529

28.016

O2
CO2
H2O
Ar
SO2
CO

20.9108
0.0299
0.3772
0.9364
0.0000
0.0000

0.2313
0.0005
0.0023
0.0129
0.0000
0.0000

32.000
44.010
18.016
39.950
64.060
28.010

Total

99.9999

28.928

Air Temp, F
Air Enth,
Btu/lb
Air Heat,
Btu/hr

Air Flow,
ACFM

310.380
60.698
21,283,821

119,753

Theweightfractionsmaybecalculatedbydividingtheproductofthecomponentmolestimesthemolecularweight/sumofallthemoles
multipliedbythemolecularweights.
Theexcessair%isanexpressionusedtodescribetheadditionalairabovethatisrequiredforstoichiometriccombustiononaweightbasis.
AnotherwaytodescribethisexcessairisbywetordryvolumeofO2%intheproductsofcombustion(fluegas).Mosthandheldmeasuring
devicesmeasurethedryvolume%,wheremanymounteddevicesmeasurethewetvolume%.ToseewhataresultingvalueofO2ispresentin
thefluegas,weneedtocreateanothertablesimilartobelow:
Fluegas:
Component
N2
O2
CO2
H2O
Ar

Lbs
13.7035
0.4152
2.6408
2.1619
0.2348

Wt Frac
0.7154
0.0217
0.1379
0.1129
0.0123

Mole %
71.0958
1.8858
8.7218
17.4423
0.8543

Dry O2 %

2.2842

Wet O2 %

1.8858

SO2
CO
Total
Flow, lb/hr
Temp, F
Enthalpy, Btu/lb

0.0000
0.0000
19.1562

0.0000
0.0000
1.0000

0.0000
0.0000
100.0000
369,964
1650
460.85

ForN2componentburningthegasfuelinabovetable,LbsFactor=0.0328+0.7529*16.3614*(1+10.970/100)=13.7035,andsimilarforother
components.Andthenusingthesefactors,theweightfractionandmole%canbecalculated.
Ofcourse,youcouldcalculatebasedonameasuredO2suchaswhentestingafurnace,orifyouhaveyourtablessetupasabove,simplychange
theexcessairuntiltheMeasuredO2andcalculatedO2areequal.
Ifyouhavemultiplefuels,justaddfueltablesforeachfuel;thenaddresultingcompositionfactorstogetthemixedfuelresults.
Nowthatwehavereviewedhowtodothecombustioncalculations,weknowifwegetthefuelcompositionsandthefuelflow,wecancalculate
howmuchheatisreleasedalongwiththefluegasflowandcomposition,oncewedeterminetheexcessairorOxygeninthefluegas.
Traditionally,thisisdonebytakingasampleinthefurnacestack.Whilethisindeedwillgiveyouanoverallassessmentofthefurnaceoperation,
itwillnothelpyoudetermineiftherearecombustionproblems,norwillitnecessarilytellyouwhatthecorrectefficiencyisfortheunit.
Ratherthanuseanexampleofasimplefiredheater,letstakeasourexampleareformersystemthatistypicalofmanyinthehydrogenand
ammoniaplants.Thisexamplewillhelpusseeallthepitfallsinperformingcombustionandefficiencycalculations.Aschematicofourexample
isasshownbelow.

Itisimportantthatallburnersbeonduringafieldtestforcombustionandefficiency.Ifburnersareturnedoff,theyshouldberepairedas
necessaryandrelitpriortotesting.
Inthisexample,wehaveareformerfiredwith
twofuels,andpreheatedairinthearch
burners.
Thetunnelburnersarefiredwithonefueland
ambientair.Thesuperheaterburnersare
firedwithonefuelbutwithpreheatedair,and
theauxiliaryboilerisalsofiredwithonefuel
andpreheatedair.
Onthedayofourtest,theambient
temperaturewas60Fwitharelative
humidityof40%andtheplantisata1200foot
elevation.Usingthisdatawithstandardair,
wecalculatethewetaircompositiontobeas
follows.
Air:
Component
N2
O2
CO2
H2O
Ar
SO2
CO
Total

Mole %
77.4714
20.8371
0.0298
0.7286
0.9331
0.0000
0.0000
100.0000

Wt Frac
0.7512921
0.2308068
0.000454
0.0045437
0.0129035
0
0

Air MW
28.016
32.000
44.010
18.016
39.950
64.060
28.010
28.889

Ourphysicalexaminationandwalkthroughoftheunit,revealedthattheunithas260tubes,andthetubesealsatthearchconsistofaplate
withahole1/8largerthanthetubeOD,sowemusttakeintoaccountthepossibleleakageairinthisarea.InaplantsuchasthistheFDfan

operationwouldnormallybecontrolledbasedontheO2readingatPoint1,atthetunnelexits.However,itisclearfromexaminationofthis
design,thatthearchburnerscouldbeshortonair,yetthetunnelexitO2readingmayindicateasufficientexcessairbecauseiftherearetwo
independentsetsofburners,thesamplepointmustbemadeatalocationbetweenthem.Soeventhoughthecontrolroomindicationwasthat
thereformerwasoperatingwitha2.1%O2atexittemperatureof1900,samplingatPoint1inthewalloftheradiantsection,theresultswere
zero%oxygenandcombustibleswerepresent.TheIDfanisbeingoperatedtomaintaina0.2W.C.atthereformerarch.
Thisreformerhastwofuels,naturalgaspluspurgeoroffgas.Andtheairispreheatedto532F.ThereforewesetourExcelworksheetupwitha
tablefortwofuelsandtheresultingcombustioncalculationwouldbesimilartobelow.

Itisimportanttonotethattheactualexcessairwouldbenegative,sincethesamplingresultindicatednoO2present,anditcannotmakea
determinationonhowmuchadditionalO2isrequired.Thesecondthingtonoteisthatthecalculatedsealleakageair,whereitmaybepresent
intheradiantsection,itisnotenteringthefirezonefromthecorrectlocation,i.e.,throughtheburnertile,soitdoesnotpromotegood

combustion.Eventhoughourcalculatorwillhandleanegativeexcessair,orincompletecombustion,wesettheExcessAirtozeroforthearch
burners.
WiththefuelflowreadingtothetunnelburnersknownandtheO2readingattheexit,wecannowperformthetunnelburnercombustion
calculationwiththefollowingresult.ButsinceweknowthattheArchBurnersareoperatingwithnoexcessair,whichisnotthesameasthe
TunnelBurners,wehavetointroduceanoverallheat&massbalancesheettodeterminetheexcessairintheTunnelBurners.Thisnewsheet
mightlooklikethefollowing:

SonowwecanadjusttheexcessairintheTunnelBurnersuntilthetotalleavingthetunnelsisequaltothemeasuredO2.


Iftheonlydatalookedatwasthereformeroutlet,Point2,DryVolumeO2of2.1%,thentheconclusionwouldbeEverythingisfine,butwe
nowknowthatthecompletecombustionisnotoccurringinthedesignedflamezonefortheArchBurners,aswellasallthecombustionairisnot
enteringattheflamezoneasitshould.Thispoorcombustionwillresultinpoorradiantfluxdistributionandmayshortenthelifeoftubesand
catalyst.Also,operatingtheTunnelBurnerswith186.2%ExcessAircausestheseburnerstobeoperatingveryinefficiently.

OurnextsamplepointisjustdownstreamoftheSuperheaterBurners,wherewehaveanO2readingof2.25%andatemperatureof1390F.
Onceagain,wecannotdirectlydeterminethistemperatureortheexcessairinthecombustionwithoutaddingtoourheat&massbalance
sheet.WeadjustthefiringconditionsontheSuperheaterBurnersuntilwemeetourtargetsontheHeatbalanceSheet.

AndtheresultingcombustioncalculationfortheSuperheaterBurnersisasfollows:


Efficientoperationoftheseburnerswouldbewith10%excessair,buttheyareoperatingwith18.2%excessair.
Point10ofourfieldmeasurementsisthefluegasreturningfromtheAuxiliaryboiler,whichhasaDryVolume%O2of3.5andatemperatureof
676.7F.
Thisisastraightforwardcombustioncalculationasshownbelow.


TheefficiencyoftheAuxiliaryBoileris128284536/154481064*100=83.0%andcouldbeimprovedbyadjustingburnerstoalowerexcessair.
Nowweaddtoourheatandmassbalancetodeterminethefluegasafterthemixture.

OurnextsamplepointisPoint4enteringtheAirPreheater,whichhasanO2readingof2.8%andatemperatureof643F.Examinationofour
heatandmassbalanceindicatesthatthisO2readingshouldhavebeen2.540%,whichtellsusthattherehasbeeningressoftrampairbetween
Point3andPoint4.Physicalexaminationoftheunitrevealsthattherearenoportsealsontheinterconnectingpipes,andatissuetestshows
thatairisenteringtheconvectionattheselocations.Wecanexpandourheatandmassbalancetodeterminetheamountoftheairleakage.

Thisisnotagreatamountofleakage,butdoeshaveanassociatedcostinlossofenergy,andtherepairwillhavearelativelyshortpayout.
TheAirPreheateronthissampleanalysisisaregenerative,rotarytype,whichwheninnewconditionwithnewsealshasaninherentairbypass
(leakage)fromthehighpressure,ForcedDraft(FD),sidetothelowpressure,InducedDraft(ID),side,thereforeweexpecttoseealeakage
bypassofover10%byvolume.Theactualbypassleakageiseasytocalculateusingourheatandmassbalancesheet,withtheO2readingknown
tobe2.8%attheinletand5.76%atoutlet.Wealsomeasureafluegasexitstacktemperatureof252F.


Wecanseefromtheheatandmassbalancethatthebypassairleakageis19.92%,ortwicewhatitshouldbe.Wecanalsoseethatourair
preheaterbalanceisalittleoff,by2.31%whichisnotunusualsinceheatlosstotheatmospherehasnotbeentakenintoaccount.
Torecapthefindingsfromthissamplefurnacetesttodemonstratecombustion,efficiencycalculations,andheatandmassbalancetechniques,
thefollowingisabrieflistofproblemsuncovered:
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)

Thelackofreformertubesealsisallowingtrampairtoenterradiantsection
Theprimaryarchburnersarenotreceivingsufficientairforcompletecombustion
Thetunnelburnersarebeingoperatedwithexcessiveexcessair
Thesuperheaterburnersarebeingoperatedwithexcessiveexcessair
Theauxiliaryboilerburnersarebeingoperatedwithexcessiveexcessair
Thesecondconvectionsectionhasnoportsealsandthisallowsingressoftrampair
Thereisexcessiveairbypassintheairpreheater
TheIDfanisbeingoverloadedduetoexcessiveexcessairintheTunnel,SH,andAux.Boiler,trampairingress,andairbypassin
airpreheater
9) TheFDfanisbeingoverloadedduetoexcessivebypassairintheairpreheater

Withallthecombustionandmassandheatbalancecalculationscomplete,wecannowlookatourresults.Wecanusethemethodsdescribed
inAPI560tocalculatetheefficiencies.

FuelEfficiency=HeatAbsorbed/TotalHeatFromFuel*100

NetThermalEfficiency=((HeatFromFuel+AirHeat+FuelHeat)(Set.Loss+StackLoss))/(HeatFromFuel+AirHeat+FuelHeat)


Weshouldnoteherethattheseefficiencycalculationsdonottakeutilitiesorfanpowerintoaccount.Theamountofenergyusedtodrivethe
fansisestimatedroughlyabove.
Thisoverallefficiencydoesnttellusaboutthepoorcombustionintheprimaryreformeranddoesntaccountforthelossoftubeorcatalystlife.
Theenthalpycalculationsusedhereinarebasedonourinternalcalculators,butifyoudonthaveanyoftheequations,youcanusecurvefitsof
thecurvesinAPI560,FigureG6andG7,reproducedbelow.

Ifpossible,itisalsodesirabletocalculatetheheatabsorbedinthefiredequipmenttocompareagainstthecombustioncalculationstoassurean
accurateheatbalancehasbeenachieved.