2,600

2,400
2,200 1234 5 678
o 2,000
ot
f 1
l-B60 i 13
E '|
o
o
E 1,400
o
6
(ú
1,200
Ú)
C)
1,000
f
tr

Enthalpy basis.2soC
Basis of air humidity 650/o RH at 25oC

456789
Flue gas enthalpy (1,000 Kcal/kg fuel)

Fig. 1-D¡rect fired heater thermal balance. Fig. 2-Flue gas enthalpy chart.

heck fired heater Performance

charts and tables allow 2. A decrease in the percent absolute humidity^resúlts in
an increase in the outlet flue gas temperature for fixed heat
checks on fired heater performance absorption in the heater'
Estimating thermal balance. The following information is
required:
K, Arora, KTI Ltd., New Delhi, India
> LHV of the fuel fired (refer to Table 2/Fíg' + for gaseous/
THE METHoD PRESENTED gives a quick account of tüe liquid fuels)
balance of direct fired heaters. A plant engineer or > Percent *uifuce heat loss (described later)
n engineer can simply check the performance of-any di- ) Percent excess air-which can be easily established from
ired Éeater. The opérating data required is very basic^to the known air/fuel flow rates or from the flue gas sample
a reasonably accuiate estimate of óperating heater effi- composition (measured at bridge wall) for a particular
fuel being fired.
;rThe charts presented as Figs. 2 and 3 are helpful in estab- ) Thermal"efficiency of the heater/or flue gas outlet temper-
shing the following parameters. ature.
lr Thermal balance over the heater, i.e., thermal effi- Overall thermal balance is given by (refer to Fig' 1):
flue gas outlet temperature Hp+H¿:HP+H¡+H¿+Hg
o Énthalpy oÍJl.te gases ai a fúnction of temperature at
or
t levéls of excels air, considering üe effect of air pre- Hr-HP+H7+H3
or
o Aiiabatic flame temperatures at different levels of excess 100 = (HPIHF + H¡lHp + HslHp) 100 (1)
r considering the effect of air preheating.
Thermal efficiency of the heater is the fraction of the heat
description. The charts are derived from a computer absá.bed by the p.ot.*t fluid from the. heat generated by
m called "COMBN" developed on an HP-85 system.
firogram fuel.
Flué eas enthalpies (in terms of Kcal/kg of fuel) were ob- : (H7/HF) L00
tained' for. variol s gi ou sAiqu.id fuels. at ai,{-e_r¡i1 Percent thermal efficiency
se
i*::,
conditions, percént excessáir and air preheating temper- the heat absorbed (Kcal/h) by the process fluid' fI¡
.É/¡ is
res. Based on the analysis of the results these graphs were is heat generated (Kcai/h) by the fuel.
thl
t ized resulting in the following deviations: Heat abúrbed by ihe Process fluid cante deterrnined
t25"C for flueg:as temperatures for the known.thermal from the known inlét/outlét temperatures (TtlT2) and flow
iÉffñiency of heateri and i 100oC for the adiabatic flame rates (W Kg/h) of the process ftuia lflo*ing through the
atures. heateicoil iñ a'single phise without any change in the com-
These graphs are applicable'for fuels hav-ing an average position).
:IV in the ranse of 9,000 to 12,000 Kcal/kg. Hp : W (') (Tz - T') (2)
These graphs áre based on 25"C ambient air temperature
65% lelátíve humidity. However, the following points Where, s, is the average specific heat of üe-process fluid-'
¡uld be noted when using these graphs at different ambi- Heat generated by thJfué\, Hr ,:___Vl (!Hy) where W1
: air conditions. These changes are very minor. is the fue"l burning ráte @g/h) and LHV is the lower heating
i,. An increase in the percent absolute humidity of air re-
1. value at 25"C reference temPerature.
cont¡nued
lsults in a decrease in the adiabatic flame temperature.

Hydrocarbon Piocessing, May 1985 85

 2,140 t
o 2,000 1,960 3 o
d 1,800 4 o
N
f 5 200 o
E 1,600
o
o 1,400
6
7
250
300
I6'
E I o
o 350
o
(ú
1,200 I 400 ñ
CD
Y
o
l
tr 800 -
J

600
400
Enthalpy basis 25oC
200 Bas¡s of air hum¡dity 650/o RH at 25oC
0
0 1 2 3 4. 5 6 7 I I
Flue gas enthalpy (i,000 Kcal/kg tuel)
Fig. 3-Flue gas enthalpy chart for preheated combustion a¡r. Fig. 4-Lower heating values for liquid fuels.

TABLE 1 emissivity wind velocity the greater the surface heat loss.
and w¡nd-Surface
.

velocity factors Smaller duty heaters have higher percent surface losses,
than medium/large duty heaters. :
Mate¡ial Factor a W¡nd condít¡ons Factor b Typically, medium dutyheaters (2 to 15 MMKcal/h) with
Copper 0.9 Very still air 2.8 radiant plus convection sections have surface losses of i.S to ,

MS 2.8 ln factory shop 3.0 3 percent of the heat release. Ffowever, the following empiri- ¡
MS aluminum cal relation2 will give a reasonable estimate of surlace Leat i
painted 1.4 ln open place .-. losses for some specific set of conditions.
ct 3.4
Hí = o (T*o - T.\ 70-8 + b (T¡a, - To¡r'zs
TABLE 2-Heating values for gaseous fuels*
Where:
Heat of
combustlon
H; : Kcal/Wm2
at 250c Tw : Wall temperature (oK)
(Kcal/kg) To : Ambient temperature (oK)
Component Formula Mol wt HHV LHV a = Surface emisivity factor (given in Táble 1
Methane CH¿ 16.04 13,256 11,946 b : Wind velocity factor (given in Table 1). )
Ethane C.Hu 30.07 12,391 11,342 Normally, wall temperature is 60 to 70oC higher than
Propane CsHt 44.09 12,026 11,072 average ambient temperature.
the
n-butane CoHro 58.1 11,829 10,925
n-pentane CsHt, 72.15 11,707 10,833 HL : (H;)A
n-hexane CoHr¿ 86.17 11,627 10,773
Ethylene C"Ho 28.05 12,014 11,264 Where ,4 is the total outer surface area of üe heater walls
Propylene CsHo 42.08 11,684 10,935 contributing to surface heat losses. Then, percent sur
Butylene C¿He 56.'l 11,574 10,824 heat loss is given by:
Benzene CeHu 78.1',! 10,096 9,692 (HL/HF) 100
Toluene GzHe 92.13 10,234 9,778
p-xylene CrHto 106.16 10,339 9,844 The following examples show the use of the method dis-
Acetylene C"Hz 26.04 11,922 11,519 cussed.
Carbon monoxide co 28.01 2,413 2,413
Hydrogen Hz 2.02 33,865 28,651 Examptes.
Ammonia NHs 17.O3 5,368 4,435 Case A-A direct fired heater (medium duty) is operat.
* Refer to Fig. 4 for LHV
of liquid fuels. ing
rng at.the_following
rouowmg parameters: .blue
-ar-rne Flüe gas t(
tempeiáture at the
stack is 450"C and the fuel is naturafgas.
We can also deduce:
Component 7o rr¡.ole
100 :
(% thermal efficiency + 7o strface heat loss CH* 96.+
+ 7o heat loss with the outgoing flue gases) CzHo 2.01
Surface heat loss from the outer walls of the heater is CsHo 0.6
partly by radiation and partlyby.o""".li.". paameters af- N2 0.99
lecting the surface losses are: Total 100
o Outer wall temperature
o Ambient air temperature Avg mol wt 16.56
Excess air 10%
o Wind velocitv
o Surface areabf walls Assuming an 4verage heat loss of 2% (on total heat fi
o Surface emissivity of walls. estimate the thermal efficiency of the heater.
.Typicat heater box r-efractory thicknesses are designed for Refer to Table 2 for LHV estimation of gaseous fuels.
wall temperatures of 60 to 70oC above the average ámbient
arr temperature.
LHV of N.G. = (11,946) (16.04) (0.964) + 11,3
(30.07) (0.0201) + 10,935 (42.
Heaters operating during the winter have relatively more (0.006)
surface heat losses than in the summer.
Wind velocity also contributes to this loss. The greater the
= 194,331.8 Kcat/Kmol
= 11,735 Kcal/kg

86 Hydrocarbon Processing, May 19g5

 @irto the flue gas enthalpy chart (Fig. 2). Enüalpy of 1. Flue gas temperature I15 : 9,600 Kcal/kg at 70% excess
-as at 450oC and 10% excess air is 2,100 Kcal/kg. air on Fig. 2 yields an adiabatic flame temperature of
Eq. 1 percent thermal efficiency : (H7/HF) I00 1,960"c.
2. Refer to Fig. 3. Fix the ordinate at 1,960"C and move to
= 100 - (HL/HF) 100 - (H,/HF) 100
the right until line no. 6 (for 250'C) is intersected at A',
)glcentefficiency: 100
, - 2- (2,100/11,735) 100 then move up to intersect the reference line 1 at point B' .
,.:,r.
= B0% This temperature of 2,740"C is the adiabatic flame tem-
perature at preheated conditions.
l'Case B-A direct fired heater is operating at the follow-
ig.paiameters while using preheatediombustion air from a It is apparent from example C that combustion air pre-
source: heating increases the adiabatic flame temperature. A higher
temperature of preheat, coupled with a lower convection
fluid (in/out) liquid/liquid transfer rate at reduced flue gas flowrates, causes a greater
100,000 Kg/h proportion of the total heat absorption to take place in the
310/360"C radiant section.
0.59 Kcal/kg "C Air preheating may be used for any of the following rea-
liquid (10' API) sons:
361.5 Kg/h
atr 10% ) To increase heater efficiency
air temp€rature 2000c ) To improve combustion
) To control heat input to the convection section.
,,Assuming 37o stxface loss of heat fired, estimate the flue We may finally conclude as follows, based upon the charts
$as temperature at the stack. presented here:
heat absorbed : W (t) (Tz - Tt) ¡For fixed thermal efficiency of the heater, increasing the
',.?rocess
= 100,000 (0.59) (50) excess air decreases the outlet flue gas temperature.
= 2,959,000 Kcal/h ¡ For a fixed outlet flue gas temperature, increasing excess
,LIIV (from Fig. 4 for liquid fuels) :' air decreases the thermal efficiency of the heater.
9,600 Kcal/kg o For a fixed amount of excess air, increasing the effi-
! lbtal heat release = 361.5 (9,600) ciency of the heater lowers the outlet flue gas temperature.
:-:, = 3,470,400 Kcal/h ¡ For a fixed heat liberation, increasing the excess air to
the burner decreases the heat pick-up in the radiant section
Percent thermal efficiency due to a lower adiabatic flame temperature, but tends to in-
crease the heat pick-up in the convection section.
_ (2,950,000)
fio = 85% . For a fixed heat liberation, increasing combustion air
, (3,470,400) preheat lowers the equivalent amount of fuel fiied. This in
Flue gas enthalpy : (1 - 0.85 - 0.03) 9,600 turn, increases üe heater efficiency.
: : 1,152 Kcal/kg fuel Practically, these charts can be of wide use to the engi-
neers/operators in the performance evaluation of operating
:From flue gas enthalpy curve (Fig. 2) flue gas temperature heaters.
',Hs = 1,152 at l0% excess air = 240oC
:-
NOMENCLATURE
,Now, refer to Fig. 3 and fix flue gas temperature at240"C
on the ordinate and move to the right until line no. 5 (for A - Outer wall surfacé area (m2)
.200"C) is intersected at point A, then move up until refer- - Surface emissivity factor
ence line I is intersected at point B. The temperature of b - Wind velocity factor
:.390oC at point B is the flue
fas temperature at the stack. HA - Enthalpy of preheated air (Kcal/h)
, Case C-Estimate the adiabatic flame temperatures for
HF - Heat generated by fuel (Kcal/h)
the following conditions: H¡ - Heat loss from surface (Kcal/h)
HL - Surface heat flux (Kcal/h/m2)
Fuel liquid (10" API) Hp - Heat absorbed by process fluid (Kcal/h)
Excess aii t0% Hs - Enthalpy of flue gases (Kcal/h)
1. Combustion air at ambient conditions (i.e., 25"C) HHV - Higher heating value of fuel (Kcal/kg)
2. Combustion air at preheated temperature of 250oC LHV - Lower heating value of fuel (Kcal/kg)
Refer to the flue gas enthalpy curve (Fig. 2).
r - Average specific heat of process fluid (Kcal/kg/'C)
To - Ambient air temperature (oK)
The author
Tq - Outer wall temperature (oK)
Tt - Inlet piocess fluid temperature (oC)
K. Arora is a seniorp/'oiess eng¡neer with Ki-
V.
netics Technology lndia, Ltd., New Delhi, lndia.
T2 - Outlet process fluid temperature (oC)
(An affiliate of Knet¡cs Technology lnternational, W - Flow of process fluid through coils (Kg/h)
8.V., the Netherlands). He is specialized in the Wt - Flowrate of fuel (Kg/h)
design and commissioning of var¡ous types ot
direct fired heaters, including steam superheat- ACKNOWLEDGMENT
erc and refinery/petrochemical heaters. Mr. I Mr. H. M' W¿dhwani (President,
acknowledge the encouragement extended by
Arora is also ¡nvolved in the design of heat ex- M/s Kinetics dchnology Indü Limited, New Délhi) in the publication of üis article .

changers, waste'heat recovery syste/ns, car-

bon monoxide and hydrogen gas p/anfs and the development of com- LITERATURE CITED
puter software for plant design, unit operaüons and especially fired I Maxwell, Ninth Printing, D. Van Nostrand Co',
J. 8., Dan book on hydrocarboxr,
heatet optimizat¡on. Mr. Arora is presently working on an energy con- In., Princeton, NJ., 1950.

servation study of refinery lurnaces in lndia. He holds a B. Tech. in

2 "Design specificationüd operation of furnaces," (Report-RP-25), Ingenieures
Bureau 000 & A, ( the Netherlmds).
chemical engineering from the Indian lnstitute ol Technology, New De- 3 Perr¡ H., Chilton, H., Kirkparick, S. D., Chzmical Engireet\ Handbook, 5th ed.,
lh¡ (1979), is a member of AlChE, an associate member of llChE and' McGraw-Hill Book Co., New York, N.Y.
the author of several papers on heat transfer and enerry conservat¡on. 4 Hougen, Watson and Ragatz, Chemicdl hocxs Principb, (Part I),
John Wiley &
Sons, Inc.

Hydrocarbon Processing, May 1985 87