Characteristic parameters of oxygen-enhanced combustion process

The thesis is focused on the experimental investigation of the oxygen enhanced combustion technology (OEC), which uses the combustion air with higher concentration of oxygen, i.e. more than 21 %. The OEC technology is used in those industrial applications, which requires higher thermal efficiency, increased productivity, improved character of the flame, reduced equipment cost, lower volume of exhaust gases and improved product quality. Although this technology involves a number of advantages, it is appropriate to mention some of its disadvantages such as refractory damage, inconsistent heating, increased pollutant emission or flame disturbance and/or flashback. The combustion tests of OEC were carried out at the burners testing facility that enables to test many types of burners (gaseous, liquid, or combined). The two-staged low-NOx burner fired by natural gas was used during the tests. The observed parameters include the effect of oxygen concentration in the combustion air on the NOx emissions, heat flux into the wall of the combustion chamber, in-flame temperature distribution in the horizontal symmetry plane of the combustion chamber and also the shape and dimensions of the flame. The combustion tests of the air-enrichment, air-oxy/fuel and O 2 lancing OEC methods were carried out at the burner thermal input of 750 kW and air excess of 1,1 for two combustion regimes, namely one-staged and two-staged fuel supply