Energy 41 (2012) 473e482

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Energy
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Characterizing and modeling of an 88 MW grate-fired boiler burning wheat straw:

Experience and lessons
Chungen Yin a, *, Lasse Rosendahl a, Sønnik Clausen b, Søren L. Hvid c
a
Department of Energy Technology, Aalborg University, 9220 Aalborg East, Denmark
b
Risø DTU, Technical University of Denmark, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
c
DONG Energy, Kraftværksvej 53, 7000 Fredericia, Denmark

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Grate-firing is one of the main technologies currently used for biomass combustion for heat and power
Received 8 December 2011 production. However, grate-firing is yet to be further developed, towards a better technology for biomass
Received in revised form combustion, particularly towards higher efficiency, lower emissions, and better reliability and avail-
3 February 2012
ability. To better understand grate-firing of biomass and to establish a reliable but relatively simple
Accepted 23 February 2012
Available online 27 March 2012
Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) modeling methodology for industrial applications, biomass
combustion in a number of different grate boilers has been measured and modeled. As one of the case
studies, modeling effort on an 88 MW grate-fired boiler burning wheat straw is presented in this paper.
Keywords:
Biomass
Different modeling issues and their expected impacts on CFD analysis of the kind of grate boilers are
Grate-firing discussed. The modeling results are compared with in-flame measurements in the 88 MW boiler, which
CFD shows an acceptable agreement. The discrepancies are analyzed from different aspects. The lessons
Higher efficiency learned and experience gained from this and other case studies are summarized and discussed in detail,
Lower emissions which can facilitate the modeling validation effort as well as improve grate-firing technology. Some of
the addressed measures will be tested in a modern 500 kW grate boiler rig.
Ó 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction a better grate-firing technology, e.g., towards higher efficiencies,

The worldwide concern with global warming and the limited
availability of fossil fuels has spurred interest in using biomass for
energy production. To achieve the pressing near-term targets for
significant increase of the share of renewable energy sources in
energy system and reduction in CO2 emissions, co-firing biomass
with fossil fuels in existing power plants offers an attractive option.
Over the past decade, co-firing has been demonstrated in about 200
power plants worldwide, among which about 48% of the plants are
equipped with pulverized fuel boilers, 24% with bubbling fluidized
bed boilers, 19% with circulating fluidized bed boilers, and 9% with
grate-fired boilers [1]. Grate-fired systems have greater fuel flexi-
bility than pulverized fuel boilers and can be operated on 100% raw
biomass. Grate-fired boilers are not as sensitive to fuel bed
agglomeration as fluidized bed combustors. This is a great advan-
tage when applied for biomass combustion, since biomass fuels
often have low ash melting temperatures. However, grate-fired
systems are yet to be further developed in order to achieve
* Corresponding author. Tel.: þ45 30622577; fax: þ45 98151411.
E-mail address: chy@et.aau.dk (C. Yin).
lower emissions, larger-scale applications, better reliability and
availability.
A series of comprehensive studies of biomass combustion in
different full-scale grate-fired systems have been performed, in
order to better understand grate-firing of biomass and to establish
a reliable but relatively simple CFD modeling methodology for
industrial applications. The latter is a very effective tool for design
and optimization of grate-firing systems. As one of the case studies,
biomass combustion in a 108 MW grate boiler at an indirect,
parallel co-firing plant was investigated [2]. The 108 MW grate
boiler fires 100% straw and the generated steam is integrated into
the steam cycle of a 430 MWe ultra-supercritical utility boiler for
heat and power production. In such a parallel, indirect co-firing
installation, all the potential problems associated with straw
combustion are restricted to the grate boiler and have no influence
on the main utility boiler.
In this paper, another case study, the modeling and measuring of
an 88 MW grate-fired boiler burning straw at a direct co-firing
plant, is presented. From this and other case studies, the lessons
and experience that can facilitate the modeling validation effort are
discussed and some measures that may improve grate-firing
technology are also addressed.

0360-5442/$ e see front matter Ó 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.energy.2012.02.050
474 C. Yin et al. / Energy 41 (2012) 473e482
2. The grate boiler and in-flame measuring
The grate boiler was constructed in 1997, producing max. 34 kg/
s steam of 557  C and 226 bar. The maximum heat production of the
boiler is 88 MW. The boiler is equipped with four water-cooled,
vibrating grates between the two sidewalls of the furnace. The
grates are located at the bottom of the combustion chamber, as
sketched in Fig. 1(a). The grates have two main functions: length-
wise transport of the fuel from the inlet on the front wall to the ash
discharging system on the opposite wall, and distribution of the
primary air (PA) entering from the wind-boxes beneath the grates
through small holes on the grates. A close view of the grates,
including the water tubes, small holes and the space at the joint
between neighboring grates, is given in Fig. 1(b). The profile of PA
flux lengthwise along the grate is controlled in design by adjusting
the air flow rate out of the different wind-boxes and using non-
uniform distribution of small holes on the grate. Based on the PA
flux, the grate may be divided lengthwise into four zones: pre-
grate, zone 1, zone 2, and zone 3, as indicated in Fig. 1(a). The
pre-grate zone and zone 1 are lumped together and connected to
the same windbox. Therefore, the PA flux in these two zones is
mainly controlled by the non-uniform distribution of the small
holes. By finely controlling the lengthwise PA flux, the designed fuel
conversion rates along the grate could be achieved. For example,
the majority of moisture (e.g., 85%) in the straw is expected to be
released in the pre-grate zone and the remaining is released in zone
1. The opposite is applied to volatiles, i.e., most of the volatiles (e.g.,
85%) released in zone 1 and the rest released in the pre-grate zone.
Most of the char oxidation is assumed to occur in zone 1 and zone 2
(e.g., 35% and 55% in the two zones, respectively) whilst the rest is
equally split onto the pre-grate zone and zone 3.
Fig. 1. Sketch of the water-cooled vibrating grate boiler, and close view of a straw inlet and grate (from the inside).
Since the grates are water-cooled, the PA is only confined to
combustion requirement and the boiler is flexible with the use of an
advanced secondary air (SA) system (including over-fire air, OFA).
There are five groups of SA nozzles on the front wall (i.e., “T1-T4”,
“F1-F2”, “F3-F4”, “KF”, and “OFA11-13”) and four groups of SA
nozzles on the rear wall (“B1”, “B2”, “KB”, and “OFA21-23”) in this
boiler, consisting of more than 200 individual air nozzles of
different diameters and orientations. Some of the SA nozzles are
indicated in Fig. 1(c). The staged SA jets of different momentums
and orientations play a very important role in mixing, combustion
and emissions from grate-fired boilers [3].
An 8-h measurement campaign is conducted mainly to measure
the gas temperature and composition in the flame. The boiler
operates comparatively steadily under a condition close to 100%
load during the campaign. Table 1 summarizes the operating
conditions averaged over the 8 h, which include data for fuel, air,
water and steam. Here it has to be mentioned that the PA flow rate
given in Table 1 is the corrected rate after accounting for the
leakage air, which is believed to be mainly from the grate system.
The lack of good sealing between the neighboring grates may serve
as dilatation joints and the air leaked through them may help to
control the temperatures of the local mechanical components in
the lower part of the furnace. From the flue gas flow rate, O2 at the
boiler exit, straw feeding rate and straw composition collected in
the control room, the leakage air into this grate boiler is estimated
to be about 20% of the total air supply as indicated in the control
room. In this study, the leakage air is introduced through the PA
stream. After this correction, the total PA flow rate is 12.16 kg/s and
the total SA flow rate is 16.54 kg/s. The split ratio, PA/SA, is about
42/58, which is close to 40/60 preferred and often used in modern
grate-fired boilers burning biomass. The low PA/SA ratio, compared
 C. Yin et al. / Energy 41 (2012) 473e482 475

Table 1
The operating conditions averaged over the 8-h measurement campaign.

1) Straw: Feeding rate and the composition

Feeding rate [kg/s] Moisture %wt (as received) Ash C H O N Volatiles Fixed carbon Lower heating value MJ/kg (as received)
%wt (dry)
4.499 13.4 4.5 47 5.9 41.9 0.7 79 16.5 14.9

2) Primary air (PA): the flow rate distribution along the lengthwise direction of the grate
Four lengthwise zones Pre-grate Zone 1 Zone 2 Zone 3
Length [m] 0.915 1.403 2.109 1.953
PA flow rate [kg/s] 2.143 3.287 3.493 3.235
PA temperature [K] 563

3) Secondary air (SA): Flow rate distribution through different groups of SA nozzles
Location On the front wall On the rear wall
SA Nozzle-group T1 T2 T3 T4 F1-F2 F3-F4 KF OFA1 B1 B2 KB OFA2
Number of nozzles 26 28 28 26 29 14 4 12 10 6 5 18
SA flowrate [kg/s] 1.59 1.59 1.59 1.59 1.17 1.17 0.62 2.13 1.17 1.17 0.62 2.13
SA temperature [K] 563

4) Water/stream flow path inside the boiler (from water in ECO3 to the main stream out of SH3)
No. Heating surfaces Temperature [ C] Pressure [bar] Mass flow [kg/s] Heat flux [MW]
Inlet Outlet Inlet Outlet
1 ECO3 (counter flow) 284.3 337.5 230 229.1 31.89 9.376
2 Furnace wall (from bottom to top) 337.5 390.4 229.1 215.5 31.89 35.94
3 Roof, horizontal pass and 2nd pass walls 390.4 420.3 215.5 214.6 31.89 6.857
Spray water 1 337.5 337.5 229.1 229.1 0.50
4 SH1 (counter flow) 415.2 454.7 213.7 212.9 32.39 6.251
Spray water 2 337.5 337.5 229.1 229.1 1.25
5 SH2 436.6 449.5 212.0 211.1 33.64 1.985
6 SH3 449.5 470.0 211.1 210.2 33.64 2.826

to 80/20 in old units, secures a near char combustion stoichiometry
condition in the fuel bed, avoids excessive NOx formation in the
primary combustion zone, and leaves much more freedom to
advanced SA supply in the freeboard.
The gas temperature and composition in the flame are measured
simultaneously with a fiber optic probe connected to a Fourier
transform infrared (FTIR) spectrometer. The experimental setup is
shown in Fig. 2, which comprises a water-cooled fibre-optic probe
connected to an FTIR spectrometer, a purge generator, a blackbody
calibration source and a computer for collecting, processing and
storing spectra. Because of the strong background thermal radia-
tion signal from the instrumentation, a two-point calibration
procedure of the FTIR spectrometer is required, which needs two
blackbody calibration sources. The fibre-optic probe was calibrated
at 375  C with a portable blackbody source (as shown in Fig. 2) and
at room temperature with a piece of cardboard. The cardboard at
room temperature emits thermal radiation (including reflected
ambient thermal radiation) like a blackbody. It is a fast and accurate
method to correct the measured FTIR emission spectra for effects
due to self-emission of parts in the FTIR spectrometer and experi-
mental setup. A close view of the probe head is also shown in Fig. 2.
The tip of the protection tube in front of the optical mount and
a beam stop defines the optical path. The beam stop, e indicated in
Fig. 2, is water-cooled in order to stabilize the temperature, and
reflections are reduced as the surface is grooved and coated with
high-emissivity paint. The gas concentrations are determined by
comparing the measured transmittance spectra with a spectro-
scopic database and validation measurements using the Hotgas
facility. The gas temperature is found from the thermal radiation at
the 2300 cm1 CO2 fundamental band. More details on the
measurement technique can be found in [4]. For the gas tempera-
ture measurement, two values are estimated from the measured
spectra, because the measuring volume is a slab of inhomogeneous
gas at highly turbulent conditions with gas mixing over 250 mm
path. One is the average temperature and the other is the highest
temperature detected over the 250 mm path, labeled “Measured T”

Fig. 2. (i) FTIR measurement probe connected to an FTIR spectrometer, with the measurement distance, L, defined; (ii) A cross-sectional view of the probe head. The arrow
illustrates the desired gas flow direction with minimum disturbance.
476 C. Yin et al. / Energy 41 (2012) 473e482

and “Measured T_max” in the results, respectively. At the reality they are expected to be better represented by parabolic
measuring port, F (as indicated in Fig. 1), oxygen concentration, profiles. In the role of a reliable CFD analysis, the correct total fluxes
which can not be measured by the FTIR, is measured by the plant of mass, momentum, elements and heat into a combustor at
using a conventional multispecies gas analyzer. different inlets largely overwhelm their detailed profiles (e.g.,
constant, linear or parabolic). This is also applicable to grate-fired
3. Mathematical modeling boilers, in which the gas leaves the fuel bed into the freeboard at
quite low velocities and then gets mixed in the freeboard with
3.1. Overall modeling methodology a large amount of high-momentum SA jets.
In this study, an empirical model is used for the in-bed straw
Numerical simulations are also done for the condition given in conversion. Based on the expected straw conversion rates as
Table 1. Modeling of straw combustion in a grate boiler involves two a function of the lengthwise position on the grate, the combustion
parts: modeling of straw conversion in the fuel bed and simulation gas released from the fuel bed into the freeboard can be calculated
of gas-phase reactions in the freeboard. The two processes are from the overall heat and mass balances of the three different
strongly coupled by the combustion gas leaving the fuel bed into streams (i.e., straw, preheated PA, and incident radiation heat flux).
the freeboard and the radiative heat flux emitted by the flame and In this model, the straw volatiles are lumped into one single
furnace walls onto the fuel bed. The coupled modeling method- “species”, CH2.306O1.031N0.02, whose enthalpy of formulation is
ology needs to iteratively switch between the in-bed fuel conver- determined from the straw analysis data to be 193,904 kJ/kmol.
sion modeling and the freeboard computational fluid dynamics Char in the fuel bed is assumed to be oxidized into CO. So, totally 5
(CFD) simulation, until there is no substantial change in either the species (i.e., H2O vapor, CH2.306O1.031N0.02, CO, O2 and N2) are
combustion gas leaving the fuel bed or the radiative heat flux considered in the gas released from the fuel bed into the freeboard.
incident onto the fuel bed. Such a method has been successfully Temperature-dependent specific heats for all the gas species and the
used in fixed bed combustion and grate-firing modeling [2,5e12]. solid phase (e.g., char) are used to correctly calculate the gas flow
velocity and temperature. The calculated lengthwise profiles at the
3.2. In-bed fuel conversion modeling fuel bed top are then used as the inlet condition for the freeboard
CFD simulation. Fig. 3 shows the profiles of gas species, velocity and
The in-bed fuel conversion modeling is to derive the profiles of temperature at the fuel bed top when the coupled simulation is
temperature, composition and velocity of the gas leaving the fuel converged. Initially, the empirical in-bed conversion model starts
bed into the freeboard, based on the feeding rate and composition with a guessed incident radiative heat flux onto the fuel bed, 4 MW,
of the straw, the flux of the preheated PA from under the grates and producing different profiles of the gas species, velocity and
the incident radiative heat flux at the top of the fuel bed. The temperature. After quite some iterative switches between the in-bed
derived profiles will be used as the grate inlet conditions for the conversion modeling and freeboard CFD simulation, the final net
freeboard CFD simulation. The in-bed fuel conversion can be radiative heat transfer incident onto the fuel bed top is converged to
modeled in different ways. For instance, a detailed in-bed conver- 1.63 MW, which is used in the calculation of the profiles in Fig. 3.
sion model, FLIC, was successfully developed and employed for Integration of the profiles along the grate length is made to assure
conversion of waste [5] and straw [7,12] in grate-fired boilers; while such profiles match correctly the desired total fluxes of mass,
empirical models for in-bed biomass conversion were also often momentum, heat and elements into the freeboard.
used in numerical studies of grate-fired boilers [2,8,13]. The effect Here discussions about the volatile gases, char oxidation and soot
of in-bed fuel conversion models was investigated in the numerical particles released from the fuel bed are given in detail. In this study,
study of a large-scale grate-fired boiler, in which the CFD results all the volatile gases released during the in-bed devolatilization
based on a detailed in-bed conversion model were compared with process are lumped into one single species, CH2.306O1.031N0.02. The
those based on an empirical model [2]. It was found that the influence of different representations of fuel volatiles in modeling of
influence of in-bed conversion models was virtually restricted to biomass combustion was investigated [14]. In one case, the straw
the vicinity of the fuel bed and the predicted flow pattern, gas volatiles were represented by a gas mixture consisting of a number
species and temperature distribution in the majority of the free- of real gas species, based on the existing knowledge on pyrolysis and
board volume did not show remarkable difference. This may be devolatilization process of straw particles. In the other case, the
understood. For instance, in most of the large-scale combustion straw volatiles were lumped into one single “artificial” gas species.
simulations in literature top-hat profiles of velocity, species and For the two different representations, the total fluxes of mass,
temperature are often used as the inlet conditions, although in different elements and heat are precisely same. When the same

0.45 1500 1.5

0.4
Species mass fraction, Y i [-]

Upward velocity, Vy [m/s]

Gas temperature, Tg [K]

0.35 1200 1.2

0.3
900 0.9
0.25
0.2
600 0.6
0.15
0.1 300 0.3
0.05
0 0 0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Distance along the grate away from the straw inlet, x [m] Distance along the grate away from the straw inlet, x [m]

O2 Volatiles CO H2O Tg Vy

Fig. 3. Lengthwise profiles of gas species, velocity and temperature at the fuel bed top when the coupled simulation is converged.
 C. Yin et al. / Energy 41 (2012) 473e482 477

homogenous combustion mechanism and turbulence-chemistry The maximum size of particles that can be entrained into the
interaction were used, the different representations of the straw freeboard along the grate may be estimated to be about a few
volatiles were found to make no remarkable difference in the CFD hundred microns from the force balance,
results of a 500 kW straw/coal co-firing flame, both of which showed
1 ! ! !
a good agreement with the experimental results [14]. The effect of C Ap rg j u  !
v jð u  !
v Þ ¼ mp g (2)
such an issue was also investigated in a numerical study of oxy-fuel 2 D
combustion of natural gas, in which the real natural gas consisting of ! !
8 species was used in one case and lumped into one single species in where CD, Ap, rg, u , !v , mp, and g represent the drag coefficient,
the other case. They made no difference at all in the predicted particle area normal to the drag force, gas density, gas undisturbed
combustion characteristics, as long as the same combustion mech- velocity at the point occupied by the center of mass of the particle,
anism and turbulence-chemistry were used and the lumped species particle velocity, particle mass, and gravitational acceleration.
was correctly defined in terms of mass, elements and heat [15]. Because of the low gas velocity at the top of the fuel bed, the
Consequently, one can expect in the modeling of this 88 MW grate amount and size of the particles entrained into the freeboard are
boiler the use of one single “artificial” species to represent the straw expected to be small or negligible.
volatiles will be sufficient, especially when the two-step global
mechanism combined with the finite rate/eddy-dissipation is used
3.3. CFD simulation in the freeboard
in the freeboard CFD simulation.
About the in-bed char oxidation, the primary products are CO
The CFD simulation in the freeboard is basically gas-phase
and CO2,
combustion modeling. The inlet conditions at the grate and SA inlet
CðsÞ þ aO2 ¼ 2ð1  aÞCO þ ð2a  1ÞCO2 (1) conditions at different nozzles are defined by Fig. 3 and Table 1,
respectively. The temperatures of different walls (including SH2
where the split ratio of CO/CO2 is CO/CO2 ¼ 2500 exp(6420/T) for and SH3 panels) are estimated from the water/steam cycle in each
the temperature range of 730e1170K [16], and ratios out of this section (see Table 1), and their emissivities are finely adjusted
temperature range can be calculated using one of the limiting during the simulations to assure that the heat flux in each wall
temperatures [7]. From the plot of the split ratio of CO/CO2 as reported from the gas/flame side matches with the counterpart
a function of temperature (shown in Fig. 4), one can see that CO calculated from the water/steam side. The SH1 and ECO3 are both
well dominates over CO2 in the oxidation product at high temper- modeled as porous zones with known flow resistances and heat
atures. In addition, the content of char in the straw fired in this sinks. The CFD simulation is based on the commercial code, Ansys
grate boiler, 16.5%wt, is relatively low. Therefore, it is assumed in Fluent. The standard k-ε model is used for turbulence closure.
this study that CO is the only product of the in-bed char oxidation, Discrete Ordinates model is used for radiative heat transfer, in
which is expected to have a minor effect on the freeboard CFD which the angular resolution is 2  2  8 ¼ 32 discrete directions. A
simulation. two-step global reaction with CO as the intermediate species is
In this study, that soot or fly ash particles are not included in the used for combustion of the volatiles (CH2.306O1.031N0.02), and finite
freeboard CFD simulation. From the design and operation point of rate/eddy-dissipation model is employed to account for
view, high particle concentration in freeboard will cause deposition turbulence-chemistry interaction.
on heating surfaces and also largely increase CO emissions. From
practical point of view, the ash content in the straw is very low CH2:306 O1:031 N0:02 þ 0:561O2 ¼ CO þ 1:153H2 O þ 0:01N2 (3)
(<5%wt) and only about 10e20% of the total fuel ash will be
entrained in the flue gas in such a grate boiler because of the low PA 1
flow rate and the low gas velocity at the top of the fuel bed. CO þ O2 ¼ CO2 (4)
2
Therefore, it may be acceptable to neglect soot and ash particles, at
least for mixing, combustion and emissions simulation in the
freeboard. This is partly justified by the site observations: no d½CH2:306 O1:031 N0:02 
The two kinetic reaction rates are,
obviously visible solid particles are entrained into the freeboard.   dt
210  8 d½CO
¼ 51012 $exp  CH2:306 O1:031 N0:02 0:2 ½O2 1:3 and
Ru T dt
 
12 1:7108 0:25
12
¼ 2:2410 $exp  ½CO½O2  , respectively, which is
Ru T
CO/CO2 2500 exp( 6420 / T ) similar as those used in [14]. The homogeneous combustion in the
10 freeboard is assumed to be mainly controlled by mixing. The refined
eddy dissipation model constants, A ¼ 0.6 and B ¼ 0.5 as used in [2],
8 are employed in this study to calculate the mixing rate.
For the freeboard CFD simulation, a lot of efforts were also made
CO/CO 2 [-]

6 to generate a fine, high-quality mesh. Mesh always plays a crucial

role in CFD simulations: it largely affects the convergence and
4 significantly influences the reliability of the results. Fig. 5 shows the
computational domain (from the top of the fuel bed to the cross-
2 section after ECO32), the overview of the final mesh for the key
furnace section (with all SA nozzles), and the local close-up of the
0
mesh. The mesh consists of 4,320,316 cells, all of which are hexa-
800 850 900 950 1000 1050 1100 1150 1200 hedrons. The quality specifications of the mesh are summarized in
Table 2. This mesh not only adequately resolves the geometric
Temperature, T [K]
details (including all the individual SA nozzles) and key flow
Fig. 4. The split ratio of CO/CO2 in the products of char oxidation, as a function of physics in the boiler but also has been proven fine enough to obtain
temperature. a grid-independent CFD solution.
478 C. Yin et al. / Energy 41 (2012) 473e482

Fig. 5. The computational domain and the overview and local close-up of the final mesh used in the simulation.

4. Results and discussion
4.1. Validation efforts of the CFD analysis
Fig. 6 shows some of the validation results, in which the CFD
results are compared against the measurements at a few repre-
sentative ports. The CFD results show an overall acceptable agree-
ment with the measurements in both the gas temperature and
main species concentration, considering uncertainties from the
boiler operation itself as well as those from the measuring and
modeling efforts.
Although the boiler operates comparatively steadily during the
8-h measurement campaign, there are still some variations in
operation from time to time because of, e.g., the intermittent grate
vibration at a certain frequency and amplitude, discontinuous
biomass feeding, very common combustion instabilities inside the
fuel bed. During the measurement campaign, the FTIR system
needs to be moved from port to port. At each measuring port, the

Table 2
Summary of the quality of the mesh.

Quality-type specification The mesh of this grate boiler: 4,320,316 cells in total; all On the quality-type specifications (by definition)
hexahedral

Range Average
Equi-angle skew, QEAS [0, 0.69] among which 90.23% in [0, 0.25], 0.150 0  QEAS  1: 0 for equilateral element; 1 for
9.42% in [0.25, 0.5] and 0.35% in [0.5, 0.69] a completely degenerate element. 0.4 (average) for high-quality 3D mesh.
Aspect ratio, QAR [1, 7.02] 1.624 QAR  1: 1 for equilateral elements
Diagonal ratio, QDR [1, 3.5] 1.257 QDR  1: 1 for cubic hexahedrons
Edge ratio, QER [1, 6.8] 1.637 QER  1. The higher the value, the less regularly shaped the element.
Stretch, QS [0, 0.82] 0.251 0  QS  1: 0 for equilateral elements; 1 for a completely
degenerate elements
 C. Yin et al. / Energy 41 (2012) 473e482
Fig. 6. CFD results vs. FTIR measurements at the measuring ports, E, F, G and H.
FTIR probe is inserted to different depths in the furnace to measure
the local gas species and temperature. At each depth, the FTIR
measurement lasts for about 20 min, and the results averaged over
the period are indicated in Fig. 6. So what the FTIR system measures
represent “instantaneous” results during the 8-h measurement
campaign. Different “instantaneous” CFD simulations could be
defined correspondingly, which may be better used to validate the
measurements. For instance, at 1.85 m into the furnace at port F, the
FTIR measurement is done for about 20 min. The operational
conditions during the 20 min can be obtained and averaged as the
input conditions for a CFD simulation. The converged CFD solutions
can be used to compare with this FTIR measurement. In the similar
way, a different CFD needs to be defined, when the FTIR probe is
inserted to a different depth at a different port. Such a strategy is
feasible, but may not be realistic in practice especially when the
FTIR measurements are made at quite some locations. Moreover,
there exists a certain lag in the combustion characteristics (e.g.,
temperature and emissions) in relation to the operational condi-
tions. In this study, the operational conditions are averaged over the
entire 8 h (as listed in Table 1) and used as the inputs of the CFD
simulation.
Other uncertainties with the operational conditions include the
SA flow distribution through individual air nozzles, the leakage air
flow rate and the way to account for the leakage air. For instance,
there are five groups of SA nozzles on the front wall in this boiler.
The group “T1-T4” includes 4 sub-groups, T1, T2, T3 and T4, each of
which consists of 20e30 individual air nozzles, as shown in
Fig. 1(c). In the plant, only the total air flow to the entire group “T1-
T4” is measured and controlled; while the air flow to each of the
four sub-groups is unknown, not to mention the flowrate in each
479
individual nozzle. In this study, it is assumed the total flowrate is
uniformly distributed through the different sub-groups and indi-
vidual nozzles. In addition, there is a significant amount of leakage
air into the boiler, estimated up to about 20% of the total flowrate
indicated in the control room. In this study, the leakage air is
introduced through the PA stream. Considering most of the leakage
air may be from the very narrow spaces between the neighboring
grates (rather than from the beneath the grates) and the draught
effect generated by the leakage air stream inside the combustion
chamber, it could be more reasonable to define the spaces between
the grates as leakage air flow inlets.
From the freeboard CFD simulation side, the uncertainties may
have been minimized through the efforts on high-quality, grid-
independent mesh, judicious consideration and selection of
models, and perfect overall calibration results (e.g., overall heat,
mass and species balance, and good agreement between the CFD-
predicted heat flux at each wall section and the counterpart
calculated from water/steam side).
The uncertainties from the measuring technique itself may also
play a minor role. The only uncertainty with the FTIR system is that
the use of the HITEMP database might lead to a systematic too high
H2O and CO2 estimate. The accuracy of the measured H2O
concentration may be improved by replacing the HITEMP database
with the measured spectra from hot gas cells. H2O reference spectra
of better quality will also lead to more accurate CO2 and CO
measurements because of the overlapping H2O lines.
As a conclusion from the CFD calibration results and experi-
mental validation, the CFD analysis reliably reproduces the key
mixing and combustion characteristics in the grate boiler under the
operational condition summarized in Table 1.
480
4.2. The CFD-predicted flow and combustion characteristics in the
boiler
Fig. 7 shows some more results from the CFD analysis in detail.
On the vertical mid-plane between the two sidewalls, two rela-
tively large recirculation zones can be identified, which makes an
overall “S”-shaped flow pattern in the radiation pass, as shown in
Fig. 7(a). From such a flow pattern, one may conclude that the
entire furnace volume is reasonably utilized and the mixing in the
freeboard is acceptably good. Fig. 7(b) shows that the contour of O2
concentration on the same mid-plane, which indicates an unnec-
essarily high O2 level in the corner bounded by the grate-end and
the rear wall. It implies that the lengthwise PA distribution (espe-
cially close to the end of the grate) and the SA on the lower part of
the rear wall could be improved based on the residency time of the
fuel on the grate and the fuel reactivity. Fig. 7(c) and (d) shows the
Fig. 7. (a) Velocity vector colored by gas temperature and (b) O2 mass fraction at the vertical mid-plane; and (c) gas temperature, and (d) mass fraction of O2 at the horizontal cross-
section where the measuring ports, E and F, are located.
C. Yin et al. / Energy 41 (2012) 473e482
gas temperature and O2 fraction on the horizontal cross-section
where the measuring ports (E and F) are located. Large variations
in the temperature and species can be observed. The results on the
horizontal cross-section also indicate that the staggered SA jets on
this section may be further improved in terms of jet momentum in
order to increase the jet penetration and enhance the mixing.
4.3. Experience and lessons
Besides the characterizing and modeling of this 88 MW grate-
fired boiler in a direct co-firing plant, quite some efforts have
been made on other grate-fired boilers, e.g., the 108 MW grate
boiler in an indirect, parallel co-firing plant [2]. Here the experience
gained and lessons learned are briefly summarized, which could
help to improve the modeling or even improve grate-firing tech-
nology for biomass combustion.
 C. Yin et al. / Energy 41 (2012) 473e482
An improved fabric seal of the grate system is needed for
a better grate-firing technology. Take this relatively new and
modern 88 MW grate-fired boiler as an example, the leakage air,
most of which is believed from the grate system, is estimated to be
about 20%wt of the total air supply as indicated in the plant control
room. Although the lack of good sealing between the neighboring
grates can somehow serve as dilatation joints and the leakage air
may also help to control the temperatures of the local mechanical
components, an improved fabric seal of the grate system is still
needed, which can not only result in a low excess air ratio but also
contribute to a better control of the combustion process.
A better control of different sections of the grate and gas-fuel
mixing in the fuel bed on the grate will increase the char burnout
and further improve the fuel flexibility. Generally speaking, the
mixing inside the fuel bed in a grate boiler is very poor, which is
partly responsible for relatively low efficiency and high emissions
from grate-firing systems. Take bubbling fluidized bed combustors
as an example, the superficial gas velocity in the fuel bed is typically
about 2e3 m/s, which is sufficiently high to maintain the bed in
fluidization state (with a high degree of mixing) but low enough to
assure that little solid particles are entrained into the freeboard and
exit the boiler as fly ash. Comparatively, the gas velocity in the fuel
bed in grate boilers is much lower. For instance, the superficial gas
velocity averaged over the grate in this 88 MW grate boiler is less
than 1 m/s (as shown in Fig. 3). To enhance mixing in the fuel bed
on the grate whilst still keep the PA/SA ratio at about 40/60, part of
the flue gas may be recycled to the first and second sections of the
grate, where the main fuel conversion processes are evaporation
and devolatilization. The grate can also be divided into a few
sections lengthwise, each of which can be independently controlled
in terms of moving style (e.g., vibration frequency and amplitude).
In this way, the lengthwise in-bed fuel conversion rates as expected
in design can be better secured, or can be better adjusted in case of
need. Both the enhanced in-bed mixing and well-controlled
lengthwise fuel conversion favor a greater fuel flexibility.
An improved on-line fuel and air monitoring system is required,
based on which closed loop controls can be more effectively used to
adjust the boiler operation to different levels of load, moisture, fuel
quality and so on for an optimum performance. Take this 88 MW
grate boiler as an example, the actual air flowrate through indi-
vidual SA nozzles or even a group of SA nozzles is not known, which
not only gives uncertainties to the modeling but also imposes
difficulties onto the control of the combustion process. In addition,
biomass fuels often have inconsistent quality, especially the large
variations in moisture content, which needs an effective on-line
fuel quality monitoring system in order to make appropriate
adjustments in the operation conditions to achieve a good perfor-
mance. In this 88 MW grate boiler, the operators grab at a fixed
frequency some samples from the straw bales before they are
transported to the straw rake, and then take the samples to lab for
analysis. Such an offline, discontinuous analysis may not be enough
for prompt combustion control and optimization. For instance, on-
line monitoring of fuel moisture content by measuring the relative
humidity of the flue gas in biomass-fired plants is recently dis-
cussed [17].
Further development of advanced staging secondary air system
is required to lower CO emissions. Although the integration of
advanced secondary air supply systems in grate-firing boilers
represents one of the real breakthroughs in this technology in the
past years, further development of secondary air systems is still
needed to reduce CO emissions from grate boilers to the similar
levels as pulverized fuel boilers or fluidized bed combustors. In
addition, maintaining a certain fuel bed thickness and minimizing
the entrainment of fine fuel particles into the freeboard can also
contribute to the reduction of CO emissions from grate boilers.
481
Some of the above measures will be tested in a modern 500 kW
grate-fired boiler rig, originally located in Aalborg University and
currently moved to Babcock & Wilcox Vølund in Esbjerg. The
planned tests are mainly for innovating in the grate system and
improving the air supply, with the aim to fire more different
biomass feedstocks (i.e., greater fuel flexibility), lower CO emissions
and increase the boiler efficiency.
5. Conclusions
Efforts on characterizing and modeling of an 88 MW grate-fired
boiler burning wheat straw are reported. The CFD results show an
acceptable agreement with the experimental characterization.
Some modeling issues, for instance, in-bed fuel conversion, repre-
sentation of volatile gases, char oxidation, soot or fine particle
entrainment, and mesh, and their expected impacts on the CFD
analysis of grate-fired systems are discussed. The flow and
combustion characteristics in the boiler are also discussed on the
basis of the CFD results. The overall mixing in the boiler is
acceptable. However, the air supply, e.g., the lengthwise distribu-
tion of the primary air and the penetration or momentum of some
secondary air jets, can be further improved and optimized. Lessons
from characterizing and modeling of this 88 MW grate boiler as
well as similar efforts on other full-scale boilers are summarized.
Among others, improving fabric seal of the grate system, enhancing
gas-fuel mixing inside the fuel bed whilst maintaining a certain fuel
bed thickness, better controlling different sections of the grate
lengthwise, improving on-line fuel and air characterization, and
further development of advanced secondary air system are high-
lighted, in order to facilitate modeling validation effort as well as to
improve grate-firing technology.
Acknowledgments
The research was financially supported by Grant PSO 4792,
‘‘Grate firing of biomass e Measurements, validation and demon-
stration’’. The first author would also like to thank Jørgen Hansen
and Lars Busch from Babcox & Wilcox Vølund and Matthias Mandø,
Jens Bo Holm-Nielsen from Aalborg University for their valuable
discussions on grate-firing technology, particularly the discussions
over new test plans on the 500 kW grate boiler rig which is targeted
to make a breakthrough in this technology.
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