Navigating the Challenges in Combustion Processes
In combustion, hydrocarbons react with oxygen to produce carbon dioxide and water. Despite ample oxygen, small amounts of carbon monoxide (CO) are still formed, an environmental pollutant regulated by the Federal Immission Control Act. Although having excess oxygen helps reduce CO, it doesn’t necessarily enhance efficiency. Heating unnecessary air is inefficient, and since oxygen and nitrogen have lower emissivity than combustion products, efficiency is further decreased.
Incomplete combustion can lead to coking or damage from CO afterburning in heat exchangers. Additionally, unburnt gas from non-igniting nozzles poses significant safety risks.
Optimal Strategies for Safe Combustion Control
To effectively manage combustion processes, it is crucial to:
- Minimize CO production by ensuring adequate oxygen presence.
- Limit oxygen use as much as possible while maintaining safety parameters.
- Use measurement technology to monitor combustion gases like methane.
This is where TDLS (Tunable Diode Laser Spectroscopy) becomes essential.
The Best Approach
Cross-stack laser in the combustion proces
Utilizing the TDLS8200 cross-stack laser offers numerous advantages:
- Measures three key parameters: O2, CO, and CH4.
- Provides an integrated measurement across the combustion chamber, not just a point measurement.
- Conducts measurements right over the flames, minimizing external influences.
- Offers selective measurements without interference from CO or water.
- Includes a reference gas cell for accurate CO and O2 detection at low concentrations.
- Operates in-situ without contact, eliminating the need for sample preparation.
- Delivers fast readings every twelve seconds with TruePeak evaluation to avoid background gas interference.
- AutoGain ensures reliable measurements even with low transmission due to dust and soot.
- Requires no calibration, allowing for inline validation checks.
- Safe for use in ATEX Zones with optical measurement.
- SIL2 and SIL3 certified for redundancy and designed for tough environments.
- Easy to operate with no calibration or maintenance needs.
A Cost-Effective Solution
Lance laser in the combustion process
For smaller and stable furnaces, the TDLS8200 probe-type laser offers:
- All the benefits of TDLS technology with a process temperature up to 600°C.
- Integrated measurement through the probe’s optical path length.
- Compatibility with existing device flanges or sampling probes for cost-effectiveness.
Note: This is an updated version of an older article
