Alternative Fuel and Ash Characterization and Evaluation

The increasing emphasis to use alternative solid fuels in power plants and gasifiers has created a need to characterize these fuels for their compatibility with a range of applications, including coal-fired power plants, crushers, feeders, transportation systems, storage facilities, burners, boilers, gasifiers, and syngas cleanup and/or air pollution control devices. Additionally, there is an accompanying need to evaluate the potential environmental impact of these alternative fuels when used in these various applications.

Characterization

Southern Research offers the capability to perform established characterization tests, in addition to newly developed methodologies, to evaluate the compatibility of alternative fuel with existing power systems. In addition to conducting laboratory tests, we perform pilot-scale testing of fuels to observe their real-time behavior in pulverizers, burners, furnaces, gasifiers, syngas-cleanup systems, and air-pollution control devices.

As an example, Southern Research utilizes a set of test procedures to assess the compatibility of using biomass, waste, or other fuels in typical coal crushers and bowl mills. These evaluations include the following:

• Low-temperature volatility - testing to assess potential volatility during milling
• Modified Grindability - test modified from that for coal to distinguish smashing from grinding
• Ignitability - test to determine the ignition temperature of a fuel compared with coal
• Drop shatter and Tumbler Test - to evaluate the propensity of fuel to fracture and crumble
• Modified Flyash fusibility - a test and index modified to account for biomass ash constituents
• Fuel and Ash Stability - test to observe effects of weather on fuels
• Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP) - a standard test to determine the potential of a fuel to leach toxic elements and compounds
• Fuel and ash leaching - long-term observation of toxic leaching from fuel piles

Evaluation

In addition to pilot-scale milling, combustion, gasification, and emissions evaluations of fuels, Southern Research performs slagging and fouling evaluations of biomass and other alternative fuels. We have assisted commercial clients as well as the Department of Energy in determining sorbents and strategies to eliminate or mitigate the potential impact of alternative fuels on slagging and fouling in PC boilers as well as candle filter damage in gasifiers.

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