Combustion of char-coal waste pellets for high efficiency and low NO{sub x}. Quarterly report, 1 December 1994--28 February 28, 1995

High efficiencies can be obtained from combined cycle power plants where fuel gas produced in a carbonizer is used to power the topping cycle turbines, while the residual char is burnt to raise steam for the bottoming Rankine cycle plant. Illinois coals are excellent fuels for these high efficiency power plants as the sulfur in the fuel gas is removed in the carbonization process by adding dolomite, thus producing a clean burning fuel gas. The residual char has essentially no volatiles, and is of low density. Because of these characteristics the char requires a longer residence time for efficient combustion. This research is directed towards improving the residence time of the char by pelletizing it with a waste coal, while at the same time reducing the sulfur dioxide emissions from the char combustion. During this quarter, extensive experimentation has been performed to determine the char-gob waste proportions necessary for forming pellets with desirable compression strength for feeding into the circulating fluidized bed combustor. Carbonizer char-gob coal pellets have been made with 5, 10 and 15 weight percent of cornstarch binder. Based on the test data presented, it is concluded that 10--15% weight percent of binder will be required when pelletizing char-gob coal waste mixtures containing 30-40 percent by weight of gob coal. During the next quarter, these pellets will be made in larger quantities and their combustion and emissions properties will be evaluated in a bench scale 4-inch diameter circulating fluidized bed combustor