Discussion on burner installation

Depending on the type and function of the industrial furnace, as well as the requirements regarding heat transfer, different types of burners such as top-fired, side-fired, and bottom-fired burners are used. For example, conversion furnaces generally use top-fired burners, industrial boilers typically use side-fired burners, while natural gas heating furnaces usually employ bottom-fired burners. Since different burners require varying combustion speeds, gas pressures, and air coefficients, these need to be determined based on the process parameters of each type of furnace.

There is no superiority or inferiority; it’s just that different furnace types require different burner configurations.

Combustion can be divided into premixed power combustion and diffusion combustion; the type of burner to be used and its installation method depend on the requirements of the heating furnace.

For installations with the flame facing upward, the disadvantage is that a low-temperature zone forms in a certain area in the middle and lower part of the flame, resulting in an uneven temperature distribution throughout the furnace. Sometimes auxiliary burners are required to eliminate this low-temperature zone. Such as the LUMMUS pyrolyzer in Maoming. For horizontal installation, a bowl-shaped flame is typically produced; the burners on the side walls of the pyrolyzer are arranged downward. In this case, the temperature distribution throughout the furnace is very uniform. This is the case with Mitsubishi’s inverted trapezoidal furnace (used at Jinshan No. 1 Ethylene Plant and Jihua Plant No. 104). Simple reply.

Agree with the second floor.:victory:

What’s suitable is good; there is no such thing as good or bad

The installation of burners is primarily determined by the type of furnace to be used, whereas the choice of furnace type depends on the process, application, and industry in question.

I am quite familiar with several of the plants you mentioned. For example, the No. 1 ethylene cracker in Maoming uses full bottom combustion, which leads to overheating in the convection zone as well as an unreasonable temperature field distribution. Cooling can only be achieved by introducing more air. In my opinion, this type of cracker has inherent defects; bottom + side combustion would provide easier control. For horizontally installed burners, what you’re referring to is called a flameless burner. Its advantage is a uniform temperature field distribution, but the load is low and the range of the temperature zone is limited; it is suitable for small heating furnaces or for use in combination with bottom burners. Regarding the small ethylene plants in Shanghai and the ethylene plant at Jihua No. 104 Factory that you mentioned, our company is preparing to modify such burners; we will sign the contract tomorrow, starting with those in Shanghai first. The choice of burner depends on the specific type of furnace, and it needs to be designed accordingly based on the distribution of the temperature field.

In my opinion, there is basically no difference in terms of advantages and disadvantages among these 3 installation methods. The installation method is determined by the overall system process. If we must use the installation method to determine superiority or inferiority, fuel nozzles generally do not tend to clog when installed downward. With low-pressure gaseous fuel and liquid present, coking is less likely to occur when installed vertically.

I’d like to ask the neighbor above me: on which devices are the fuel nozzles installed downward? I think fuel burners generally have a high thermal load, which means the furnaces are also larger. The use of fuel has a significant impact on the distribution of temperature, pressure, and velocity inside the furnace. Generally, conversion furnaces use top-fired burners with gas as fuel; I haven’t seen any burners that use oil for combustion.