OXYGEN ENHANCED COMBUSTION OF BIOMASS

摘要

The energy output of a power plant combustion chamber that combusts fuel comprising biomass as all or part of the fuel can be increased by feeding oxygen into the combustion chamber so that said fuel is in contact with gaseous oxidant whose oxygen content exceeds that of air by up to 5 vol. % above that of air.

主权项

1. A method of combustion, comprising
(A) providing apparatus that includes a combustion chamber in which fuel having a given moisture content and a given specific energy content fed into the combustion chamber at a given mass feed rate can be combusted in air to produce heat energy at a given rate, (B) feeding into said combustion chamber fuel that contains biomass and that has a specific energy content lower than said given specific energy content, so that combustion in air of said fuel fed at said given mass fed rate in said combustion chamber in air produces heat energy at a rate lower than said given rate, while feeding oxygen into said combustion chamber so that said fuel is in contact with gaseous oxidant whose oxygen content exceeds that of air by up to 5 vol. % above that of air, and (C) combusting the fuel with said gaseous oxidant in said combustion chamber.