Emissions (Environmental Impacts)

Syed Fawad Hussain

Class No:4
 Topics and Sub Topics
Pollutants Formation & Impacts
 Introduction
 Description of most relevant
pollutants (Unburnt
Hydrocarbons UHC, Carbon
Monoxide CO, NOx, SOx,
Dioxins, Particulate Matter PM,
Dust, Soot, Ash, Alkali Metals,
Heavy Metals)
 Concepts for pollution reduction
 Summery
Combustion & Climate Change
 Introduction
 Primary Energy Production
 Combustion and Global warming by
sectors
 Mitigation of Global Warming in the
Context of Combustion
 Energy Efficiency
 Reduction of CO2 Emission
 Use of Renewable Sources
 Pollutants Formation & Impacts
1.1: Introduction
 Ideal Combustion Processes Solid Fuel = high ash content, complex to control
Fuel + Oxygen = Harmless Reaction Product Liquid & Gaseous Fuel= no ash content, easy to control
e.g. 2H2 + O2 = 2H2O
 Common Combustion Processes Ozone Layer
Acid Rains
Photochemical
Depletion Oxidant/Visibility
Carbonaceous Fuel + Oxygen = Undesired CO2 Formation
Combustion = Harmful By Products
These harmful by products are called pollutants

 Main Impacts are: Acid rains, ozone layer depletion, health impacts, global warming, smog
 Pollutants Formation & Impacts
1.2: Description of most relevant pollutants
Unburnt Hydrocarbon (UHC):
 Due to too high turbulence, too lean mixture= fuel not fully oxidized
 Can lead to smog formation, some time oxidizes to CO2, H2O, replace O2, suffocation
 UHC can be reduced efficiently by flue gas circulation, exhaust gas circulation or reburning

Carbon Monoxide (CO):

 All carbonaceous fuel produce it and is colorless, odorless, tasteless and have blue flame
 Its max allowable concentration which will not a effect person in 8 hours shift is 35 mg/m3
 Hinders oxygen flow in blood and produce carboxyhemoglobin= CO poisoning (Weakness)

NOx:
 95% NO, 5% NO2, leads to acid rain, smog formation, nitrification, eutrophication, algae
 Also contribute to global warming, in atmosphere NO oxidizes to NO2, reduced by FGR, AGR
 Can be thermal NO (from O rad), prompt NO (from CH rad) or NO from N2O and fuel.
 Pollutants Formation & Impacts
1.2: Description of most relevant pollutants
SOx:
 Produced from S containing fuels, its MAC value is 1.3 mg/m3 having pungent, irritating smell
 Can lead corrosion as SO can form SO2 and H2SO4, S containing fuels are rubber, wool etc.
 Its natural source is volcano, and H2S is also emitted during fuel production & transportation.

Dioxins:
 Heterocyclic having 6 carbon in which 2 are replaced by oxygen, very toxic as name shows.
 Formation is favored at poor burning conditions of organic matter (Municipal/Hospital)waste
 Another source of dioxins is metal smelting and refining.

Particulate Matter:
 Any pollutant consisting of solid and liquid particles suspended in atmosphere as aerosols.
 Its natural source is volcano, forest and grass land fires, dust storm and sea spray, 3 types
 Man made recourses are industrial process and transportation which is 10 % of the total mass
 1. Pollutants Formation & Impacts
1.2: Description of most relevant pollutants
Soot:
 It is solid by product, not organic carbon but black carbon, contains graphene
 Long chain HC breaks to Short chain precursor which break into aromatic particles than soot
 Overall soot formation can be reduced by oxidation, which covert it to gaseous CO2

Ash:
 Solid fuel generates ash, non aqueous residue, contain in organic material, salts, oxides.
 Has two types as fly and bottom ash, and is produced on the order of millions of tons/ year
 Can be utilized for construction materials, to gain phosphate from ash, also heavy metals

Alkali Metals:
 Alkali and alkaline earth metals emissions are mainly corrosion issue for furnaces.
 With chlorine it produce volatile salts that are low melting and block heat transfer surfaces.
 Alkali metals emissions are a topic of concern in bio mass firing.
 1. Pollutants Formation & Impacts
1.3: Concepts for pollution reduction

Several Technologies are used for pollutant reduction

Three main categories are:
 (1) Pre combustion: ( selecting S-reduced fuel) Pre-combustion processes involve removing
pollutants and CO2 in the upstream treatment of fossil fuels prior to their combustion for the
recovery of heat

 (2) During combustion: ( Mixing, Temperature profile) By reducing the flame

temperature, reducing excess air

 (3) Post combustion: (Flue gas cleaning, DE NOx by SNCR) Selective Non-Catalytic
Reduction is a post-combustion technology that is designed to control nitrogen oxides (NOx)
emissions from boilers by the injection of ammonia or urea reagents into the flue gas.
 2. Combustion & Climate Change
2.1: Introduction

What is the difference between climate and weather?

 Weather is the term we use for short-term atmospheric conditions at a particular

time and place – e.g. cold, windy and rainy in Wellington today.
 Climate is average weather for a city, country or the whole planet over years.
Climate tells you what clothes to buy but weather tells you what clothes to wear.
 Climate change happens when there are changes to average weather.

 Climate varies over years with natural cycles/events (e.g. volcanic eruptions)
 Changes over decades to thousands of years are caused by changes in
greenhouse gases in the atmosphere from both natural and human activity.
 2. Combustion & Climate Change
2.1: Introduction

Some of the evidence for Climate Change and Global

Warming
 Increasing temperatures — Global temperature averages over the last 100 years by
NASA and the Hadley Centre show the Earth has warmed by about 1°C, mostly in
the last four decades. Oceans have also warmed by absorbing over 90% of the
sun’s heat.
 Changes in rainfall — Rainfall patterns are changing across the globe with
increasing floods and droughts. There are also changes between seasons in
different regions.
 Changes in nature — Growing seasons have lengthened with spring starting earlier
and autumn/winter later. Many species are changing their behaviour and where
they live.
 Sea-level rise (SLR)— Sea-levels have risen about 17 cm (global average) since
1900 because of thermal expansion of ocean water and melting glacier ice. SLR
has increased from ~1mm/year 100 years ago to 3 mm/year today.
 Combustion & Climate Change
2.1: Introduction
 What is causing the Climate to change?
 The Earth is getting warmer because humans are adding heat-trapping gases to
the atmosphere, mainly by burning fossil fuels. These are called greenhouse
gases(GHGs).
 Which gases are greenhouse gases?
The main ones are:
Carbon dioxide: released naturally (e.g. volcanoes, decaying
plants/animals, respiration. Also from burning fossil fuels.
~76% of emissions.
Methane: released naturally by decomposition in swamps, from
ruminants, especially cows, and leakage from fossil fuel extraction.
~16% of emissions. More effective than CO2 but less abundant.
Critically, it loses its effect when it breaks down after ~10 years.
Nitrous oxide: released mainly from agricultural fertiliser.
~6% of emissions. Breaks down or absorbed after ~100 years
 Combustion & Climate Change
2.1: Introduction

How do we know that there is extra CO2 in the

atmosphere?
 The evidence for this comes from atmospheric measurements of
carbon dioxide in the northern and southern hemispheres.
How do we know that there is extra CO2 in the
atmosphere?

The evidence for this comes from atmospheric measurements of

carbon dioxide in the northern and southern hemispheres.