Co-firing high sulfur coal with refuse derived fuels. Technical report {number_sign}4

In order to study combustion performance under conditions similar to that in the AFBC system, the authors conducted a series of experiments at a heating rate of 100 C/min using the TGA/FTIR/MS system. Results indicate that more hydrocarbons are evolved at the faster heating rate, owing to incomplete combustion of the fuel. Chlorinated organic compounds can be formed at high heating rates. Certain oxidation products such as organic acids and alcohols are obtained at the slow heating rate. To simulate the conditions used in the atmospheric fluidized bed combustor (AFBC) at Western Kentucky University, studies were also conducted using a quartz tube in a tube furnace. The temperature conditions were kept identical to those of the combustor. The products evolved from the combustion of coal, PVC, and mixtures of the two were trapped in suitable solvents at different temperatures, and analyzed using the Shimadzu GC/MS system. The detection limits and the GC/MS analytical parameters were also established. The experiments were conducted keeping in mind the broader perspective; that of studying conditions conducive to the formation of chlorinated organic compounds from the combustion of coal/MSW blends. 32 figs., 16 tabs