What are the hazards of excessive smoke-suppressing steam in torches?
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There is steam in the unit that cannot be used for certain reasons; the amount is around 15 tons per hour. I’m considering directing this steam to the flare for venting through flue gas treatment – could this have an adverse effect on combustion? What other harms are there?
Flame-suppressing steam is one of the methods used to increase the dispersion of combustible materials and reduce incomplete combustion when black smoke is generated during torch burning. A quantity of 15t/h is certainly not sufficient; under normal circumstances, flame-suppressing steam should not be used in excess if no black smoke is emitted from the torch
It’s a shame to let it go; it would be better to find a way to recycle it. It’s quite a waste to simply discard it.
Under normal circumstances, the flare should not be operated with increased steam for smoke abatement if no black smoke is emitted; this is mainly done for energy-saving reasons. I wonder what process safety risks exist, such as the flare gas being overly diluted and failing to ignite?
It’s during maintenance; there are no other users. It can’t be processed in a short time, so it has to be released. If it cannot be released through the flare, a separate silencer must be designed for direct venting.
Steam, as a smoke-suppressing medium, must be used in appropriate amounts; too much of it will not be effective in suppressing smoke and may instead become part of the fire extinguishing system···
Thank you; I still need to design a silencer, as only a small portion of the steam can be utilized.
Steam serves four main functions in a flare: First, smoke suppression (which is well known to everyone)； Secondly, it aids combustion (torches typically use spiral-type suction nozzles that draw in the surrounding air, allowing the exhaust air to mix thoroughly with the fuel and thus enabling more complete combustion) ； Third, cooling (reducing the temperature of the torch tip to extend its lifespan) ； Fourth, fire extinguishing (generally, smoke-suppressing steam involves the use of flow restrictor plates and control valves; an excessive amount of steam can directly extinguish the flame, depending mainly on the type of nozzle used). If it is discharged directly into the flare stack, for a steam flow rate of 15 t/h, you first need to determine what the discharge capacity specified in the original flare design was Is it superimposed on the exhaust gas? It is best to provide parameters for the manufacturer to calculate.
Thank you! There is a control valve; no flow-limiting orifice plate is available. It is planned to be connected in front of the control valve, without altering the existing control logic. In that case, only a small portion of the steam can be used; there’s no other choice – safety comes first.