ENERGY AUDIT OF MILL IN LMMM PROJECT REPORT

SUBMITTED BY

JYOTSNA.T ALIASGAR .S SRAVAN KUMAR .P

Under the esteemed guidance of

Shri K.SUDHAKAR Dy Chief Manager (EMD)
VISAKHAPATNAM STEEL PLANT

DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING GITAM VISAKHAPATNAM ANDHRA PRADESH 2009

CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that the dissertation entitled ENERGY AUDIT OF MILL IN LMMM at VISAKHAPATNAM STEEL PLANT is bonafied work submitted by SRAVAN KUMAR POTUNURU, ALIASGAR SHAHPURWALA and TAMMINA JYOTSNA in the partial fulfillment of the requirements for the attaining of Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering of GITAM, College of engineering, embodies the work done by them under my supervision.

(Shri K.SUDHAKAR) Deputy Chief Manager Energy Management Department Visakhapatnam Steel Plant

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

We owe a debt of gratitude to our Project Supervisor, Shri K.Sudhakar, Deputy Chief Manager, Energy Management Department, Visakhapatnam Steel Plant who offered us unstinted support through out this dissertation work and gave us the right direction of approach. Our special thanks to Shri P.Subba Rao, VSP for his support in providing us with relevant details of the LMMM which became useful inputs through out this dissertation. We also thank Mr.P.Venkateswar Rao, LMMM, who was very kind to us in permitting to interact with his staff in collection of data in LMMM. We also appreciate the other staff of CFOS who were extremely cooperative in providing us help during collection of the various parameters of the furnace. Lastly, we thank T.K.DEY, VSP who gave permission to work in Visakhapatnam Steel Plant.

ABSTRACT
The VISAKHAPATNAM STEEL PLANT is one of the biggest steel plants of the country and the first shore located plant in India, which today is mostly known for two things, which uniquely signify the attributes of this plant. Firstly, it is a completely integrated and self-sufficient plant. Secondly, the quality of the steel it produces, being truly world class. Visakhapatnam Steel Plant is the only shore-based Indian integrated Steel Plant, with a rated capacity of 3.4 Mt Hot Metal, 3.0 Mt Liquid Steel and 2.656 Mt Saleable Steel. Today Visakhapatnam is also known as a steel city and this fame should completely be accredited to the VSP (Visakhapatnam Steel Plant). This gigantic organization, spread in an area of 20 sq kms is completely integrated and is the first of its kind. The plant is automated to a large extent and has comparatively less work force compared to other steel plants of the country, but the quality of production and the level of productions is no where a compromise which signifies the efficiency of the work force of this plant. In the steel making process, rolling mills play a vital role in transforming the steel to finished products. Rolling mills at VSP consists of LMMM, WRM & MMSM. The blooms from SMS are charged into reheating furnaces of LMMM for heating then up to 1200 deg and subsequent rolling. Reheating furnace at LMMM of 200t/hr capacity is running with these by-product energies as fuel and yielding limited output up to 150t/hr of steel for rolling. This reduction in the furnace output was to be examined by performing Heat Balance. Also to recover the waste heat, cross flow Recuperator was installed for preheating air. Thus, the thesis aims

at enhancing the effectiveness of recuperator in order to improve the thermal efficiency of the reheating furnace of LMMM of VSP. The furnace parameters were collected for about 1 week to prepare heat balance of the furnace. Analysis revealed that there is a large gap between the designed thermal efficiency and actual value of thermal efficiency of the furnace. It is observed from the data, the majority of the heat is being carried away by the flue gases due to inefficient operation of recuperator. The effectiveness of recuperator was less and the reason might be due to fouling because of long duration of operation. The heat recovery from flue gases can be further augmented by insertion of wire mesh inside the tubes of the recuperator was proposed to enhance the convective heat transfer coefficient. The detailed calculations of the proposed technique have been worked out and are presented in the design calculations. The design calculations reveal that heat recovery is increased. This proposal to implement and energy savings will outweigh the additional expenditure to be incurred on account of insertion of mesh.

CONTENTS
Acknowledgement Abstract Contents
CHAPTER 1- Introduction and survey of literature

1.1 Overview of VSP 1.2 Energy scenario of steel sector 1.3 Relevance to the dissertation
CHAPTER 2- Area of study

2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4

Types of furnaces Walking beam furnace of LMMM Combustion characteristics Characteristics of an efficient furnace

CHAPTER3- Performance evaluation of the furnace

3.1 Different losses in a furnace 3.2 Methods for calculating efficiency

CHAPTER4- Data collection

4.1 Methodology of approach 4.2 Furnace parameters 4.3 Specific fuel consumption
CHAPTER 5- Data analysis

5.1 Heat balance 5.2 Calculations of furnace

CHAPTER 6- Conclusions

CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION AND SURVEY OF LITERATURE
1.1 Overview of VSP The Visakhapatnam steel plant (VSP), is the fifth largest integrated steel plant in India, in terms of production capacity of liquid steel generates 3.51 M tons of low, medium and high carbon steel products in the form of Billets, Bars and Wires of different sizes. The plant requires raw materials, both from import sources and from within the country. The blend coal is prepared by using both, imported and indigenous coal, to get the desired properties in the coke making process. The plant with its Russian collaboration and many modern arrangements within enjoys many special features which contribute to its more productivity and higher efficiency. This integrated steel plant consists of coke ovens, blast furnace, LD converter, rolling mills, power plant. Lime plant, oxygen plant to support the three major steel producing units, viz. light and medium merchant mil (LMMM) to produce strips/rods and wire rod mill (WRM) to produce rods and wires of different sizes. Upto 40% of waste heat recovery (WHR) is possible in a steel plant to enable generate adequate amount of energy to meet the requirements in producing the planned quantity of steel. In VSP, the major sources of WHR are from blast furnace, LD convertor, Rolling mills, Coke oven plant, Recuperators and Central Refractory Material Plant. In this process of steel making, by-product energies are generated and used in various furnace of VSP. The by-product gases are:(a) Coke oven gas: in the process of coke making, the coke oven gas is generated from oven by burning the pulverized coal in absence of air. The coke oven gas produced has a calorific value (CV) of 4400 kcal/Nm3 and is used as fuel in the various furnaces. (b) Blast furnace gas: in the process of making iron from iron ore, the blast furnace generates flue gases having a calorific value of 715 kcal/Nm3 and used as fuel. Although the CV or BF gas is

low, this gas is used as a fuel due to its availability in enormous quantity. (c) L.D.Gas: in the process of liquid steel being made at the LD convertor, the LD.gas is generated having a calorific value of 2100 kcal/Nm3 and is also used as fuel. The fuel used in the reheating furnace of the LMMM is a mixture of above three gases in the proportion of 1.1:0.89:1 as CO, BF, and LD gas respectively with a CV of 2353Kcal/Nm 3. This mixed gas has a composition as given in table below. However, it may vary from time to time usually after 7 to 10 days, depending on the generation of the by products of other plants as per the planned production.

Table 1: Chemical Composition of Mixed Gas Fuel Componen CO H2 CH4 CO2 N2 O2 C2H4 t % 26.84 22.2 9.1 12.3 28.9 0.4 0.3 1.2 ENERGY SCENARIO OF STEEL SECTOR: 1.2.1 Energy Management and Conservation: Energy conservation can be defined as the reduction of energy use per unit of product changing from a scarce fuel to a more readily available fuel. Energy resources must be used efficiently so that they last longer. Energy consumption and economic growth are inter-linked. Economic growth is always indicated by the level of energy. However, unbridled and ruthless exploitation of nature for energy resources has played havoc with nature, thereby causing global imbalances in the form of ozone depletion, global warming and other debilitating effects. In addition to global imbalances, energy resources becoming scarce and oil and gas resources may last for about 50 years for global scale. This calls for all round efforts to reduce energy by optimizing energy usage in all sectors (domestic, agriculture and industry).

Through the history of the human race major advances in civilization had been accompanied by the increase conservation of energy. Energy consumption, appears to be directly related to the standard of living of the populates and the status of industrialization of the country. Those countries having abundant supply of energy available to them have realized substantially high rates of industrial growth and a corresponding increase in the GNP. In order to raise the level of standard of living of the majority of the population, the present energy conservation must be expanded to a great extent. The energy dependent countries in the world are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of the conversion, conservation, and development of new energy sources. It is the responsibilities of the scientists, power engineer and technicians to locate develop and export these new sources and should have and more knowledge of the various energy forms, sources, conversion techniques and conservation methods along with their limitations and any inherent problems. In the first half of the 20th century energy sources were exploited mainly with the consideration of economics like low cost etc. Today the technical professionals must be concerned with the three Es: Energy, Economy, and Ecology. Thus the modern professional must try to develop systems that produce large quantities of energy at sustainable low cost and with less impact on the environment. The prospect of depleting fossil fuel supplies and progressive degradation of the environment has turned world attention to various aspects. With the industrial developments, the energy consumption has been rising much more rapidly than the rate of discovering new resources. Therefore, optimum energy utilization through the use of energy conservation technologies thus becomes a compulsion for survival and to maintain quality of life. 1.2.2 Energy Conservation in Steel Plants: The steel industry occupies a pivotal place in the economic infrastructure of a country and is also major consumer of energy accounting to 15% of energy consumption in the industrial sector and about 10% of the total energy consumption in all sectors.

In an integrated steel plant, energy accounts for 40% of the total manufacturing costs. Since much cannot be done for reducing the manufacturing costs by reduction of inputs as the prices of the inputs cannot be controlled. Any saving in energy can therefore make the difference in profit and loss of a particular plant. While developing countries, who have awakened to this reality, are periodically reviewing their energy scenario by the introduction of new and efficient energy technologies and effective energy conservation measures, right from the project concept stage to the needs of a developing economic. The energy recovery from the by products if the integrated steel plants should be self sustaining and self sufficient to operate and maintain the whole plant to make it more sense and economical. These byproducts are generated in various stages like energy recovery from BF, CO, and LD Converter. Therefore it is imperative that the regenerated energy within the plants must be utilized effectively, controlled efficiently and audited regularly in order to achieve maximum efficiency and higher production rate along with productivity. VSP has got the following energy conservation facilities: Dry quenching of hot coke to recover sensible heat energy. Back pressure turbine to generate from the recovered sensible heat. Gas expansion turbine for generation of power from the potential energy of BF gas. LD Gas recovery. Reheating of combustion air and gas in recuperators of reheating furnaces in LMMM, WRM, and MMSM by waste flue gases. ECS of reheating furnaces at LMMM, MMSM and hot blast valves at BF. Reheating of combustion air in contact coolers in flux kilns at CRFP. Central supervisory control and Data Acquisition for optimum utilization. Energy Management Development (EMD) is the central agency at VSP coordinating the efforts among various

departments for energy conservation, available energies and losses minimization.

optimization

of

1.3 RELEVANCE TO THE DISSERTATION: The non-renewable natural resources are to be conserved to the best of the capacity. The existing of the conversion resources is limited. Hence it is difficult to cope with the demand as the resource deplete. It is uneconomical to produce the desired fuel for the normal usage. So it is essential to minimize the consumption and reduce the wastage to increase the life span of fossil fuel on earth. So it is necessary to give importance for the use of alternative fuel to the actual primary fuel from early stages itself. It can be seen that the requirement to reduce the energy consumption in steel plant is of paramount importance as it has a direct bearing on the cost of production. There are various methods to reduce the energy consumption in various areas. Already in this project thermal efficiency of the reheating furnace in LMMM has been focused. The technique adopted is heat balance which is a means of determining the thermal efficiency of the furnace and comparing the relative values of heat losses. Heat balance grasps the existing situation of heat loss and efficiency in heating. This analysis identifies the areas of inefficiencies (high heat consumption) and estimates the energy saving potential available in various units of the furnace. Thus, implementation of heat balance is a pre-condition of promoting energy conservation.

CHAPTER 2
AREA OF STUDY
2.1 TYPES OF FURNACES
A furnace is an equipment to melt metals for casting or heat materials for change of shape (rolling, forging etc) or change of properties (heat treatment).

2.1.1 Types and Classification of Different Furnaces:

Based on the method of generating heat, furnaces are broadly classified into two types namely combustion type (using fuels) and electric type. In case of combustion type furnace, depending upon the kind of combustion, it can be broadly classified as oil fired, coal fired or gas fired. Based on the mode of charging of material furnaces can be classified as (i) Intermittent or Batch type furnace or Periodical furnace and (ii) Continuous furnace. Based on mode of waste heat recovery as recuperative and regenerative furnaces. Another type of furnace classification is made based on mode of heat transfer, mode of charging and mode of heat recovery as shown in the Figure below.

2.1.2 Types of Continuous Reheating Furnace:

Continuous reheating furnaces are primarily categorized by the method by which stock is transported through the furnace. There are two basic methods: Stock is butted together to form a stream of material that is pushed through the furnace. Such furnaces are called pusher type furnaces. Stock is placed on a moving hearth or supporting structure which transports the steel through the furnace. Such types include walking beam , walking hearth, rotary hearth and continuous recirculation bogie furnaces. The major consideration with respect to furnace energy use is that the inlet and outlet apertures should be minimal in size and designed to avoid air infiltration.

Walking Beam Furnaces:

The walking beam furnace overcomes many of the problems of pusher furnaces and permits heating of the bottom face of the stock. This allows shorter stock heating times and furnace lengths and thus better control of heating rates, uniform stock discharge temperatures and operational flexibility. In common with top and bottom fired pusher

furnaces, however, much of the furnace is below the level of the mill; this may be a constraint in some applications. Its figure is as shown.

Walking Beam Furnace

2.2 WALKING BEAM FURNACE OF LMMM:

Walking Beam Furnace heat the steel blooms, casted in CCD, to the rolling temperature of 1200C. Two pushers push the bloom into the furnace from the bloom charging side. Blooms travel on skid pipes through heating zones and then solid hearth in soaking zones. The furnace has six zones out of which four are called heating zones and two are soaking zones. There are in total 69 burners. The combustion air is preheated to 500C in air recuperator. Flue gases are used for preheating the combustion air before being exhausted to the atmosphere through chimney. Finally, the flue gases are exhausted out through the stack. Furnace pressure in soaking zone is maintained positive. Control and measuring instruments required to control furnace pressure and temperature as well as efficient fuel utilization are provided. Evaporative Cooling System (ECS) is used for skid pipe cooling during which waste heat steam is produced.

LMMM is equipped with two, top and bottom fired walking beam type reheating furnaces each having a capacity of 200T/hr. Walking Beam Furnaces will be utilized to reheat the blooms of 250mm thick x 320mm width x 5600mm long in two rows to 1200C. The stock will travel through the furnace by means of walking and stationery beams, properly lined, which will be cooled by means of an ECS producing steam. Table 2: FURNACE DIMENSIONS Centerline distance between charging and 33700mm discharging roller tables Overall width of the furnace 15600mm Inside length of the furnace(from charging 29400mm to the discharging door) Maximum effective length 27800mm Inside width(wall to wall) 14200mm Maximum effective width 13200mm Maximum effective area 350m2 Upper level of the rollers and skid tubes 5800mm Pit lower level 3200mm Top level of the stack 73000mm Bloom size 320*250mm Furnace hearth output 0.5T/m2.hr

2.2.1 ZONAL HEATING SYSTEM:

In the furnace, the temperature is maintained variable along the furnace length, so it is said to operate in zonal mode. Thermal stresses that appear in metal being heated shouldnt exceed a certain tolerable level. If the body being heated is massive thermally, sharp raise in temperature may result in excessive temperature gradient. For that reason massive metal bodies are heated slowly and gradually until the metal becomes plastic enough. This is done by properly heating the metal in various zones: PREHEATING ZONE, the cold metal is gradually heated up, HEATING ZONE, metal is heated until its surface has the specified final temperature,

 SOAKING ZONE, the temperature of the surface remains constant, but temperature is equalized across the metal. The metal is charged into a zone having the lowest temperature and when moving in the direction opposite to that of the waste gas it is gradually heated up. In the preheating zone, first in the path of the metal, the metal is gradually heated before entering a high temperature zone. The metal should be always heated from 50C to 550C in order to avoid excessive thermal stresses. The total drop of temperature of waste gases is appreciable. The high temperature zone is divided into three zones to increase the total temperature level and productivity. Here the surface of the blooms is heated quickly to the final temperature. The temperature of metal heating is usually up to 1200C. The soaking zone is the third in the path of the metal and serves to equalize the temperature over the crosssection of the metal billets. The temperature in the soaking zone is maintained at a level of 30-50C above the desired temperature of metal heating. The temperature of metal surface in that zone remains essentially unchanged and only temperature equalization over the cross-section of blooms takes place. With bottom heating metal blooms are moved on (water cooled) skid pipes laid along the surface bottom. As the cooling effective of the skid pipes is considerable, more heat must be supplied into the bottom portion of the heating zone. Skid pipes are usually provided in the preheating and heating zones. They are not used in the soaking zone, since the metal in contact with the pipes is heated poorly and dark spots are formed on the surface. To protect skid pipes from abrasion by sliding blooms, they are provided with metal rods welded at their tops. In preheating zones these are supported by longitudinal refractory brick columns. In the heating zone these are supported by transfer of water cooled pipes spaced 1meter apart.

2.2.2 HEAT GENERATION:

The existing furnace is a fuel-fired furnace in which the chemical energy of fuel is converted into heat through combustion. In the furnaces the material being processed is usually placed on the furnace hearth and occupies only a small portion of the reaction chamber volume. The main

portion of the reaction chamber is filled with flames and incandescent combustion products which transfer their heat to the material. The heating value of the fuel is determined by the kind of fuel used.

2.2.3 TYPE OF FUEL: MIXED GAS

Mixed gas is used as a fuel for heat generation in the furnace. Mixed gas is the combination of blast furnace gas, coke oven gas and LD converter gas in the ratio of 1.1:0.89:1. Calorific value of mixed gas is 2353Kcal/Nm3.

2.2.4 GAS BURNERS:

Fuel burning devices, burners convert the chemical energy of fuel into thermal energy. The main purpose of the gas burners is to provide the specified economically favorable conditions of furnace operations. To serve this purpose, a burner should ensure the following: 1. The supply and mixing of gaseous fuel and air in the required amounts. 2. Complete combustion of the fuel within the working space of the furnace. 3. The formation of a flame that can ensure the required level of heat transfer in the furnace space. There are two types of burners installed in the RHFFlame burners and Long flame burners. The Flat/Short flame burners are of Forced Air and Gas nozzle mixed type. Combustion air is supplied at high speed to an eccentrically piping resulting in a spin action. This whirling pulse, together with the special design of the tile, results into fuel developed in to a flame all around the tile and perpendicular to the axis. A turn down ratio [TDR refers to the ratio of maximum burner output to the minimum burner output. The TDR strikes the balance between the capability of the fuel burner neither to allow the lift off of the flame (due to high output) nor create back firing/ flashback (due to low output)] of 10 :1 is general maintained for these burners. In this method of roof firing almost all burners are arranged in the furnace roof. They serve to heat the internal

surface of the roof up to 1400C so as to ensure the maximum possible radiation from the roof surface on to the meat being heated. The Long Flame Burners are small in size and are used for bottom heating in the hearth of the furnace. When fired on rich gas the TDR is 8 :1. A total of 16 burners are aligned in the zone to provide a temperature up to 1200C-1250C in the hearth. The main feature of these burners is outside mixing; the gas and air are supplied via separate channels in the burners and mixed only at the burner outlet in the furnace space.

Table 3: Burners arrangement in the furnace Name of the zone Number of burners Top preheating Top heating Bottom heating Top(left) Top(right) Bottom 21(roof burners) 28(roof burners) 8(front burners) 10(roof burners) 11(roof burners) 8(front burners)

2.2.5:

ENERGY GENERATION IN REHEATING FURNACE:

There are two stages in heat transfer: 1. The heat is transferred from the heat carrier (flame) to the surface of material. This heat transfer is mainly through thermal radiation and convection. 2. Subsequently the heat transferred from the surface into the depth of the material by conduction. In the convective mode of heat transfer, heat is transferred due to the bulk movement of gas over the gas and is caused by the physical movement of molecules by virtue of density difference between them . The air requirements for combustion is met by combustion air blower which has been envisaged for

each furnace with an additional combustion air blower as stand by for both the furnaces in order to allow continuous supply. Convective heat transfer is suppressed by radiative heat transfer who takes place between the combustion products and the stock, as well as between the furnace refractory and the stock. The amount of heat reaching the stock surface from the total radiated heat transfer mainly depends on the relative geometry of the wall and the stock surfaces.

MODE OF HEAT TRANSFER IN THE FURNACE

2.2.6 DISTIRBUTION OF HEAT IN A FURNACE:

Most of the heat is released in the combustion zone at the left and travels from there to the right. The heat thus liberated should be absorbed by 1. The charge, which is most desirable. But the heat also goes elsewhere; some of it is passed into the furnace and into the hearth. 2. Another portion of the heat is lost to the surroundings by radiation and convection from the outer surface of the walls or by convection into the ground. 3. Heat also passes through cracks or other openings and furnace gasses pass out around the floor.
4. Heat radiates away from the door when opened.

5. A major quantity of heat goes out of the furnace chamber with the hot flue gases, as potential as well as sensible heat due to incomplete combustion.

The furnaces are equipped with air recuperators for preheating the air required for combustion. Products of combustion from the furnaces during their passage through under ground flue will pass through recuperates leading to a chimney.

2.3 COMBUSTION CHARACTERISTICS: 2.3.1 COMBUSTION THEORY:

Combustion is a process of interaction between fuel and oxygen accompanied by liberation of heat and sometimes emissions of light. In the overwhelming majority of cases, the oxidizer is atmospheric oxygen. Any combustion implies oxygen and fuel brought in contact so that the combustion takes place in two stages Mixing of both these constituents, and Evolution of heat from the combustion reaction.

2.3.2 GASEOUS FUELS:

In general fuels such as gas, oil, coal are used in industries. Steel plants use secondary fuels such as Coke Oven gas, LD Gas, and BF Gas in a particular proportion so that the following advantages are derived:a) The gas as a fuel can be produced at one point, say coke oven plants or BF and easily distributed to utility points through pipelines. b) Remote and instant control of combustion is possible from mixing stations. c) Smoke and disposal difficulty are eliminated thus is the hygiene is also maintained. d) Low grade slid fuels can be successfully used by gasification in steel production which otherwise need superior quality fuels. e) Complete combustion without pollution is possible due to uniform mixing of air and gaseous fuel. f) The use of gaseous fuel as by products proves economical and is an important ingredient in energy conservations is steel plants.

In case of VSP, the BF, Coke Oven and LD Converter liberate huge amount of flue gases used for all types of furnaces in the plant. The correct proportion is mixed in the gas mixing station based on the production rate of these gases and the CV of the mixed gas desired. Normally, the proportion is 1.1:0.89:1 as CO, BF and the LD gas respectively which gives a CV of 2353Kcal/hr.

2.3.3 COMBUSTION PROCESS:

Heterogeneous combustion and Homogeneous combustion are the two types of combustion distinguished. The Heterogeneous combustion involves Heat and Mass transfer between bodies in different states of aggregation, for instance, combustion between a natural gas and a solid fuel. In Homogeneous combustion the process of Heat and Mass transfer occurs between bodies in the same state of aggregation, for instance, where mixed gas and air are used as combustion inputs. The degree of mixing of fuel gas and air is controlled by burner design. In the present case the burners are both short flame and long flame. The requirements for combustion are fuel oxygen and the three Ts namely time for combustion, temperature of ignition, and turbulence for fuel air mixture.

2.3.4 REQUIREMENT OF THEORITICAL AIR AND EXCESS FOR COMBUSTION:

For the combustion the common oxidizer is air. Air is roughly a mixture of 21% oxygen and 79% nitrogen on volume basis. That means one k mole of oxygen is accompanied by 3.76k mole of nitrogen. The minimum amount of air required for the complete combustion of a fuel is called the theoretical air or stoichiometric air. But in practice it is difficult to achieve complete combustion with theoretical quantity of air and therefore fuels are supplied with excess air to burn it completely. Hence the air supplied in excess of the air requirement is called the excess air and is expressed as a percentage of theoretical air. EXCESS AIR = (Actual Air- Theoretical Air)/Theoretical Air*100

2.3.5 LOSSES DUE TO EXCESS AIR:

A combustion process with high excess air increases the amount of fuel gas going the stack. When we reduce this excess air, we reduce the volume of flue gas and the hot gases spend more time in contact with the heat transfer surfaces. This reduces the exit flue gas temperature. If we supply too little air, combustion is incomplete and results in the formation of carbon monoxide which can be visible by smoke and particle emission. Supply of too much air results in higher stack losses and other problems such as high due point temperature depending on the fuel being used. The aim to supply just enough air to burn all the fuel and then maintain this high combustion efficiency by controlling the air/fuel ratio.

2.3.6 TEMPERATURE:
1. IGNITION TEMPERATURE: Before the fuel can burn in the presence of sufficient air, the temperature of air/fuel mixture must be high enough to start the combustion. This is called the ignition temperature. 2. FLAME TEMPERATURE: This is the highest temperature produced in combustion. Flame temperatures of most fuels are in the range of 1850-2100C. 3. THEORETICAL FLAME TEMPERATURE: It is the temperature attained by the product of combustion gas when it is burnt with theoretical quantity of air and no heat loss of air is allowed to the surrounding. The actual flame temperature is however less due to the fact that fuels are burnt with excess air and heat is lost to the surroundings. The flame temperature of fuel depends upon: Calorific value of the gas. Volume and specific heat of total gaseous products. Losses by radiation. Latent heat in steam in the combustion products. Endothermic dissociation of gaseous molecules (mainly CO 2 and H2O in the combustion products).

2.3.7 BEST PRACTICES IN FUEL CONSERVATION:

1. Complete combustion with minimum excess air: To achieve complete combustion of fuel with minimum excess air a number of factors such as proper selection and maintenance of control, excess air monitoring, air infiltration pressure of combustion air are to be considered. The magnitude of stack losses with different quantities of excess air in case of furnace is to be taken into account. Besides abnormal increase in stack losses with the increase in excess air, the ingress of too much excess air lowers the flame temperature and consequently reduces furnace temperature and the heating rate. If too little excess air were used combustion would be incomplete and chimney gases would carry away unused fuel potential in the form of unburnt combustible gases such as CO, H2 and unburnt hydrocarbons which should have been usually burnt in the combustion chamber.. 2. Proper heat distribution: Ideally, a furnace should be designed so that in a given time, as much material as possible, is heated to uniform temperature with minimum fuel firing rate. To achieve these following points should be considered: The flame shouldnt touch the stock and should propagate clear of any solid subject. Any obstruction what so ever, de-atomizes the fuel particles thus affecting combustion and creating black smoke. If the flame touches the stock the scale losses increases manifold. The flame from various burners should also stay clear of each other. If the flames intersect, inefficient combustion would occur. This can be controlled by staggering the burners of the opposite walls. The flame has a tendency to travel freely in the combustion space just above the material. Every precaution should be taken to ensure that the flame never hits the roof. The larger burner produces long flame which may be difficult to contain within the furnace walls. More burners of less capacity give better distribution of heat in the furnace and also reduce scale losses while increasing furnace life.

 It should be seen that flame should be so long that it enters the chimney and comes out at the top or through doors. This occurs when excessive fuel is fired normally to increase the production rate. Such an operational practice in the real sense helps marginally. It id also desirable to provide the combustion volume adequate to the heat release rate. 3. Operating at the desired temperature: For any given heating industrial furnace, there is an optimum temperature for operation of the furnace. Operating at too high will not only mean unnecessary waste of fuel in terms of heat, but will also cause overheating of the stock, its spoilage or excessive oxidation and decarburization as well as over-stressing the refractories. The furnaces are often run without any temperature controls, often with on-off control, which is extremely harmful to the optimum performance of the furnace. In the off condition, only the atomizing air enters the furnace bringing down its temperature rapidly so that when the fuel firing process is recommended, the amount of fuel supplied to the furnace to bring up the temperature, is much more than that would be necessary had the furnace been operated on a proportional control. 4. Reducing losses from the furnace openings: In fuel fired furnaces, substantial heat losses occur through furnace openings. For every large opening, heat loss due to opening may be calculated by computing black body radiation at furnace temperature. All unnecessary openings of the furnace should be sealed and the flame be contained within the furnace. 5. Minimizing wall losses: The appropriate choice of refractory and insulation materials achieves fairly high fuel savings in industrial furnaces. The use of insulating refractories of appropriate quality and thickness can cut down heat storage capacity of walls and time required to bring the

furnace to operating temperature will be less. There are in general three types of insulating bricks: Product made from diatomaceous earth. Products derived from vermiculite. Refractory (fireclay or silica) based products known as insulating

refractories and are used as inner lining in the furnace. There are two methods of insulation normally used for high temperature furnaces. When the furnace is operating continuously under severe condition of atmosphere or high temperature, a lagging of diatomaceous insulation is placed behind a dense refractory base. In other insulation where cleaner conditions or a lower temperature prevail, particularly in short cycle intermittent furnace and kilns, the insulating material can itself form the refractory lining with no back up refractory bricks. Materials of the latter type are highly porous refractory and have fair strength and spalling resistances, and can in general be used up to a temperature as high as 1800C.

6. Roof lining: Most of the radiation and conduction heat loss is from the furnace roof in comparison with other sides. As the roof lining is hanged to the furnace roof it is necessarily light weight. So it is essential to change the extended roof lining with the light weight heavy resistance refractory bricks. Effective roof lining will decrease the radiation losses. 7. Increasing hearth volume: By removal of scale in the furnace, it will tend to increase the hearth volume. Then the increased hearth volume will provide sufficient heat transfer area. Increased hearth volume facilitates in more heat absorbing capacity and thereby helps in faster heating. 8. Constant charging and discharging:

Constant charging and discharging of the billets into the furnace will increase the furnace efficiency. Increased charging and discharging leads to improvement in production rate. If the discharging is in faster rate (if more blooms are discharged than rated capacity) fuel consumption will be more which leads to more flue gas generation. Also the metal will be in soaking zone for a shorter period and the core may not attain the required temperature. If the discharging is slow, the blooms will be in soaking zone for longer time. This leads to energy loss. Constant charging and discharging maintain the uniform fuel consumption which helps in reducing the specific heat consumption. 9. Skid insulation: Insulating material plays the main role in protecting the skids from high temperature. The material used for skid insulation is 60% Al2O3 castable. Proper insulation will transfer the excess heat to the internally circulating water. If the skid insulation is weak the heat loss from the furnace will be high. Cooling water consumption will become high, resulting in higher steam generation because of improper insulation. By replacing the existing insulation material with the appropriate insulation material will decrease the cooling water consumption and increase the furnace temperature. Effective insulation will increase the life of the skids and minimize minor repairs. Stated lighting up and shutdown procedures are to be followed in maintaining the insulation life. 10. Control of furnace draught: Controlling furnace pressure is one of the important aspects of energy conservation in a furnace. It pays to maintain a slight excess pressure inside the furnace to avoid air infiltration. Large furnaces, especially those with stack draft, are equipped with pressure sensing devices which adjust damper or the flow of protective gas into the furnace. If the pressure of the gases in the heating chamber of a furnace is below atmospheric, air infiltration occurs through the cracks and

openings there by affecting air fuel ratio control. Neglecting furnace pressure problems of cold metal and non-uniform metal temperature could affect rolling and result in increased energy consumption. If the inside pressure is above that of the outside air, the hot gases would be forced out of the furnace through these openings and if it is too high, it tends to penetrate into refractories and over heat the furnace causing damage. Hence it is desirable to operate furnace with slight positive pressure in the heating chamber (i.e., furnace pressure slightly higher than the atmospheric) in order to improve heat transfer and obtain temperature uniformity. Pressure from top to bottom of the heating chamber is not uniform due to stack effect of the hot gases. Hence control is aimed at maintaining desired pressure at hearth level. Reducing atmospheres (excess of fuel) form less scale than that which is formed by oxidizing atmospheres. It has been observed that minimum consumption of fuel occurs at considerably higher furnace pressure, than that required to keep zero level at the hearth. The phenomenon is due to air exfiltration. Exfiltration is serious than infiltration. Some of the associated problems with exfiltration are: Leaping out of flames. Overheating of the furnace refractories leading to reduced brick life. Increased need for furnace maintenance. Burning out of ducts and equipment attached to the furnace.

11. Furnace loading: One of the most vital factors affecting efficiency is the furnace loading. There is a particular loading at which the furnace will operate at maximum thermal efficiency. If the furnace is under-loaded, a smaller fraction of the available heat in the working chamber will be taken up by the load and therefore the efficiency will be low. The optimum loading is generally obtained by trail, noting the weight of the material put in at each charge, the time it takes to reach

the given temperature and the amount of fuel used. Care should be taken to load a furnace at the rate associated with optimum efficiency. Stock should not be placed in the following positions: In the direct path of the burners or where impingement flame is likely to occur. In an area which is likely to cause a blockage or restriction of the flue system of the furnace. Close to any door openings where old spots are likely to develop. When the material attains these properties they should be removed from the furnace to avoid damage and fuel wastage. Frequently breakdown in the production machines make the furnace idle for lengthy periods thus causing extra expenditure of fuel. Economy could be achieved by collecting an adequate sequence of charges, operating the furnace continuously at the most economical loading and then shutting down entirely for a given period if sufficient work is not available. When shut down all resources of air leakage should be eliminated. 12. Minimizing delays: It is very essential to minimize the delay hours to reduce the specific energy consumption. Delays are of many types in which mainly charging delay, furnace delay, rolling delay and discharging delay are regularly monitored in order to reduce the gas consumption.

2.4 CHARACTERISTICS OF AN EFFICIENT FURNACE:

Furnace should be designed so that in a given time, as much of material as possible can be heated to a uniform temperature as possible with the least possible fuel and labour. To achieve this end, the following parameters can be considered: Determination of the quantity of heat to be imparted to the material or charge. Liberation of sufficient heat within the furnace to heat the stock and overcome all heat losses.

 Transfer of available part of that heat from the furnace gases to the surface of the heating stock. Equalization of the temperature within the stock. Reduction of heat losses from the furnace to the minimum possible extent

CHAPTER 3
PERFORMANCE EVALUATION OF THE FURNACE
Thermal efficiency of process heating equipment, such as furnaces, ovens, heaters, and kilns is the ratio of heat delivered to a material and heat supplied to the heating equipment. The purpose of a heating process is to introduce a certain amount of thermal energy into a product, raising it to a certain temperature to prepare it for additional processing or change its properties. To carry this out, the product is heated in a furnace. This results in energy losses in different areas and forms as shown in sankey diagram figure. For most heating equipment, a large amount of the heat supplied is wasted in the form of exhaust gases. These furnace losses include: Heat storage in the furnace structure. Losses from the furnace outside walls or structure. Heat transported out of the furnace by the load conveyors, fixtures, trays, etc. Radiation losses from openings, hot exposed parts, etc.

 Heat carried by the cold air infiltration into the furnace Heat carried by the excess air used in the burners. 3.1 DIFFERENT LOSSES IN A FURNACE: 3.1.1 Stored Heat Loss: First, the metal structure and insulation of the furnace must be heated so their interior surfaces are about the same temperature as the product they contain. This stored heat is held in the structure until the furnace shuts down, then it leaks out into the surrounding area. The more frequently the furnace is cycled from cold to hot and back to cold again, the more frequently this stored heat must be replaced. Fuel is consumed with no useful output.

Heat losses in industrial heating furnaces 3.1.2 Wall losses:

Additional heat losses take place while the furnace is in production. Wall or transmission losses are caused by the conduction of heat through the walls, roof, and floor of the heating device, as shown in Figure. Once that heat reaches the outer skin of the furnace and radiates to the surrounding area or is carried away by air currents, it must be replaced by an equal amount taken from the combustion gases. This process continues as long as the furnace is at an elevated temperature.

Figure: Wall loss

3.1.3 Material handling losses: Many furnaces use equipment to convey the work into and out of the heating chamber, and this can also lead to heat losses. Conveyor belts or product hangers that enter the heating chamber cold and leave it at higher temperatures drain energy from the combustion gases. In car bottom furnaces, the hot car structure gives off heat to the room each time it rolls

out of the furnace to load or remove work. This lost energy must be replaced when the car is returned to the furnace. 3.1.4 Cooling media losses: Water or air cooling protects rolls, bearings, and doors in hot furnace environments, but at the cost of lost energy. These components and their cooling media (water, air, etc.) become the conduit for additional heat losses from the furnace. Maintaining an adequate flow of cooling media is essential, but it might be possible to insulate the furnace and load from some of these losses. 3.1.5 Radiation (opening) losses: Furnaces and ovens operating at temperatures above 540C might have significant radiation losses, as shown in Figure. Hot surfaces radiate energy to nearby colder surfaces, and the rate of heat transfer increases with the fourth power of the surface's absolute temperature. Anywhere or anytime there is an opening in the furnace enclosure, heat is lost by radiation, often at a rapid rate.

Figure: Radiation loss 3.1.6 Waste-gas losses:

Waste-gas loss, also known as flue gas or stack loss, is made up of the heat that cannot be removed from the combustion gases inside the furnace. The reason is heat flows from the higher temperature source to the lower temperature heat receiver. 3.1.7 Air infiltration: Excess air does not necessarily enter the furnace as part of the combustion air supply. It can also infiltrate from the surrounding room if there is a negative pressure in the furnace. Because of the draft effect of hot furnace stacks, negative pressures are fairly common, and cold air slips past leaky door seals, cracks and other openings in the furnace. Figure illustrates air infiltration from outside the furnace. Every time the door is opened, considerable amount of heat is lost.

Figure: Air infiltration Economy in fuel can be achieved if the total heat that can be passed on to the stock is as large as possible. 3.2 METHODS FOR CALCULATING EFFICIENCY: 3.2.1 Direct method: The efficiency of furnace can be judged by measuring the amount of fuel needed per unit weight of material. Thermal efficiency = Heat in the stock/heat in fuel consumed for heating the stock. The quantity of heat to be imparted (Q) to the stock can be found from,

Q = m x Cp (t1 t2) Where, Q = Quantity of heat of stock in Kcal, m = Weight of the stock in kg, Cp = Mean specific heat of stock in Kcal/kgC, t1 = Final temperature of stock desired, C, t2 = Initial temperature of the stock before it enters the furnace, C. 3.2.2 Indirect Method: Similar to the method of evaluating boiler efficiency by indirect method, furnace efficiency can also be calculated by indirect methods. Furnace efficiency is calculated after subtracting sensible heat loss in flue gas, loss due to moisture in flue gas, heat loss due to openings in furnace, heat loss through furnace skin and other unaccounted losses. In order to find out furnace efficiency using indirect method, various parameters that are required are hourly furnace oil consumption, material output, excess air quantity, temperature of flue gas, temperature of furnace at various zones, skin temperature and hot combustion air temperature. Instruments like infrared thermometer, fuel efficiency monitor, surface thermocouple and other measuring devices are required to measure the above parameters.

CHAPTER 4
DATA COLLECTION
4.1 METHODOLOGY OF APPROACH: The system boundary for the purpose of carrying out the Heat Balance of the Walking Beam Furnace was first defined. The furnace and air recupretor were considered as different boundary systems. Next, based on each boundary system defined, the input and output were considered. This project mainly concentrates on the furnace efficiency and hence the input and output were calculated for this system of furnaces. After calculating a Heat Balance Sheet was also prepared. The various components in the heat balance of the Walking Beam Furnace are: Input: 1. Heat given by the mixed gas. 2. Heat added by the preheated air. Output: 1. Heat required for heating the material. 2. Heat lost to flue gases.

E.C.S losses. Heat lost through cooling water. Heat lost through linings (conduction). Heat lost through door openings. Unaccounted losses. Once the heat balance sheet was prepared, it was revealed that the maximum heat loss was through flue gases and cooling water. This was causing flue gas passage to restrict the flow and hence limit the load of the furnace. Analysis was then carried out to know the percentage of the heat recovery in the air recuperator and it was observed that the heat gained by air recuperator was reduced compared to the design value. In order to increase the temperature of the preheated combustion air, augmentation technique (insertion of mesh) inside the tubes of the recuperator was suggested to enhance the inside heat transfer coefficient. The dissertation work also includes relationship of various parameters of furnace and with the rates.

3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

4.2 Furnace parameters: The basic parameters of the Furnace1 and Furnace2 were taken during the period of 4th February 2008 to 9th February 2008 from the control room of the furnace. The instantaneous readings of the parameter were taken and the arithmetic average of the parameters was made and is shown in table below. 4.3 Specific Fuel consumption: The specific heat consumption (SHC) is the amount of fuel consumed per unit ton of steel. The relationship is obtained by plotting a graph from Latent Heat of billets with respect to rolling rate. The curves are plotted between production rate and heat consumption for Furnace 1 and Furnace 2. the plotted curves are as shown in graphs 1 &2. It can be seen from the curves that as the rolling rate increases, the heat consumption per ton of steel drops. The rolling rate as recorded up to 180T/hr shows the corresponding value of heat consumption to about 395Mcal/ton. However,

the optimum capacity of the furnace is 200T/hr and the heat consumption by the above pattern shown further goes down. However, by Regression Analysis, it was established that SHC of about 370Mcal/ton was achieved at 200T/hr load of furnace. This limitation of the output of the furnace was therefore further analyzed and the measures to improve the performance of the furnace were recommended. SHC= (gas consumption x CV of gas)/ (No. of blooms x 3.9) Another graph was plotted between gas consumption and production rate. This indicates the optimum level of the gas to be supplied for the stock in Gcal/ton. This graph is plotted for both the furnaces and is shown in graphs 3&4. The graph shows a minimum of 25 Gcal/ton is the gas requirement per ton of stock in the furnace to achieve the desired temperature before leaving the furnace. Gas consumption = gas supplied x CV of gas.

Performance parameters of Furnace

Units 11-02-09 AM Nm3 /hr 28800 68860.5 60391.3 2446 445.5 481.5 2394 2382 477 25367 28400 22600 27000 Nm3 /hr 58118.75 57672.7 5 Kcal/Nm3 2385 471 486.5 2376 C 27300 PM AM PM AM PM AM 27900 12-02-09 12-02-09 13-02-09 PM 26890 AM 27800 14-02-09 PM 26800 58128.7 2336 482 2424 468.5 2345 481.5 2355 478 2410 469

Sl No.

Parameters

1.

Total gas flow

2.

Total air flow

56715 57626.5 64494.5 59682.3 57490.75

3.

Mixed gas CV

4. Air temperature

Hot combustion

5.

Temperature

Flue gas inlet

828.5

823.5

791

830.5

814.5

807

825

821.5

805.5

829.4

6.

Temperature

Flue gas outlet

495

498

475

492

494.0

498

492

492

495

4940

7. Nm3 /hr 9.1

No. of blooms

--------

35

27 8.9

39 8.8

39 8.7

42 8.8

35 8.3

37 8.5

30 8.4

31 8.9

34 8.9

8.

Consumption

DM water

9.

Supplied

Cooling water

Nm3 /hr

59

61

62

61

62

62

61

62

61

60

`10.

Steam generated

TPH

14.4

14.9

14.2

13.6

13.4

13.4

14

14.2

14.4

14.5

Performance parameters of Furnace

Units 16-02-09 AM Nm3 /hr 14000 64239 2385 377.5 371 348.5 333 328 2376 2446 2394 2383 64780 79506 69138 72428 58644 2336 370 21900 28500 26800 26900 28300 Nm3 /hr Kcal/Nm3 C PM AM PM AM PM AM 24200 17-02-09 19-02-09 20-02-09 PM 26750 63164.6 61470.2 2424 378.5 2345 451.5 AM 24810 59509 2355 445 21-02-09 PM 25700 62520 2410 390

No.

Parameters

1.

Total gas flow

2.

Total air flow

3.

Mixed gas CV

4. Air temperature

Hot combustion

5.

Temperature

Flue gas inlet

769.5

794

801.5

815

809.5

817

770

785

756

789

6.

Temperature

Flue gas outlet

494

507.5

506.5

487

485.5

501.5

518.5

498

499

498

7. Nm3 /hr 11.3 11.7

No. of blooms

--------

18

30

47 11.1

40 10.8

33 10.7

32 11.3

23 10.5

29 10.5

30 11.2

32 10.8

8.

Consumption

DM water

9.

Supplied

Cooling water

Nm3 /hr

61

61

61

60

61

61

61

61

61

60

10.

Steam generated

TPH

14.4

15.0

14.2

13.4

13.5

13.7

12.5

12

14.0

13.5

Average of performance parameters of furnace

Sl no.Parameters
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. Total gas flow Total air flow Mixed gas CV Hot combustion Air temperature Flue gas inlet Temperature Flue gas outlet Temperature No. of blooms DM water Consumption Cooling water Supplied Steam generated Cooling water inlet Temperature Cooling eater outlet Temperature Charging side Temperature Discharging side Temperature Mill Side Wall Temperature SMS Side Wall Temperature Roof temperature Hearth temperature

Units

Furnace (AM)

Furnace (PM)
24786 65539.88 2385.4 379.3 790.65 499.55 32 10.99 60.8 13.6 45.6 52.6 373.9 344.5 89.4 98 206.7 111.7

Nm3 /hr 26885.7 Nm3 /hr 59918.11 Kcal/Nm 2385.4 C 474 C C 817.64 492.5

-------35 Nm3 /hr 8.73 Nm3 /hr 61.1 THP C C C C C C C C 14.1 44.4 52.2 355.5 374.6 94.17 91.9 215.25 109.3

CHAPTER 5
DATA ANALYSIS

5.1 HEAT BALANCE

In any furnace, major expenditure is incurred in heating a product to reach the required temperature either for forging or rolling. In view of high energy consumption for heating products from ambient to rolling temperature, cost minimization will come only by conservation of fuels. About 85% of variable cost in reheating of blooms is accounted by fuel alone. In this context energy utilization is possible only when the factors affecting it are known. The Heat Balance, which accounts all the items for the input and output of the process and balancing them, can judge the assessment of fuel economy or efficiency. It is a means of determining the thermal efficiency of the process and comparing the relative values of heat losses. By comparison with a known identical process, areas of inefficiencies can be identified where a change in operational control of equipment could result in improvement of efficiency. Thermal efficiency of a furnace is the ratio of quantity of heat utilized to the quantity of heat supplied. For a heat balance the input and output items are taken as given below. Heat balance in a reheating furnace: The various components of a reheating furnace are: INPUT: 1. Heat given by the fuel gas = vol.of mixed gas x calorific value = mf x cv 2. Heat added by the preheated air = vol. of combustion air x sp.heat of air x temperature of preheated air = ma x cpa x Ta OUTPUT: 1. Heat required to the heat the metal = total tonnage rolled x mean sp.heat of the metal x temperature heated = mm x cop x Tm 2. Heat lost through waste gas = vol. of waste gas formed x sp.heat of flue gas x temperature of flue gas

= mfg x cpfg x Tfg 3. Heat lost through cooling water = vol. of cooling water supplied x sp.heat of water x temperature difference = mcw x cpcw x Tcw 4. Heat lost through linings (conduction losses) = area of the surface x effective resistance x temperature difference = A x (t/k) x Tc 5. Heat lost through skin (radiation and convection losses) = a(T1- T2)1.25 + 4.88 ((t1+273)4 (T2+273)4)/1004 Where, a = factor in the required direction of surface of natural convection T1 = temperature of the furnace T2 = ambient temperature

= emmisivity of the surface

6. Unaccounted losses.

5.2 CALCULATIONS OF FURNACE FLUE GAS ANALYSIS:

A) MIXED GAS COMPOSITION: (CO gas: BF gas: LD gas:: 1.1:0.89:1) CO2 O2 CO N2 CH4 CnHm = 11.84% = 0.07% = 26.84% = 27.4% = 9.4% = 0.8%

B) COMBUSTION REACTIONS: These are the combustion reactions that take place in the furnace producing what are called Flue Gases. H2 + O2 = H2O

CO + O2 = CO2 CH4 + 2O2 = 2H2O C2H4 + 3O2 = 2CO2 + 2H2O C) CO2 BALANCE: Volume of CO2 = 11.84 During combustion: The volume of the CO2 formed is determined by the above given equations. For example, one mole of CO is burnt to give one mole of CO 2. Hence the amount of CO2 formed is equal to the volume of CO 2 in mixed gas consumption. CO to CO2 = 26.84 CH4 to CO2 C2H4 to CO2 Total CO2 Volume of O2 = 9.4 = 1.6 = 49.68 = 0.07

D) O2 BALANCE: During combustion: The same as cited for CO2 applies for O2 also. O2 required for combustion of CO = 12.42 O2 required for combustion of H2 O2 required for combustion of CH4 O2 required for combustion of C2H4 = 11.825 = 18.8 = 2.4

O2 required for complete combustion = 46.445 Therefore, air required 100Nm3 of mixed gas = 46.445*100/21 = 221.167Nm3 of air E) H2O BALANCE: During combustion: H2 to H2O CH4 to H2O Total H2O = 23.65 = 18.8 = 44.05

C2H4 to H2O = 1.6

Actual air supplied

= 59918.11 Nm3 /Hr

Actual mixed gas supplied = 26985.7 Nm3 /Hr 1 Nm3 mixed gas requires 2.21167 Nm3 of O2 Theoretical air required = fuel flow rate x theoretical air required for 100 Nm3 /Hr fuel = 26985.7*2.21167 = 59682.57 Nm3 /Hr Percentage of excess air 100 = (59918.11- 59682.57)/59682.57*100 = 0.3946% Air supplied for 100 Nm3 of fuel = actual air supplied/mixed gas supplied x 100 = 59918.11/26985.7*100 = 222.036 Nm3 /Hr Excess air supplied = 222.037-221.167 = 0.869 Nm3 /Hr O2 in excess air N2 in excess air = 0.21*0.869 = 0.1826 Nm3 /Hr = 222.036*0.79 = 175.409 Nm3 /Hr Total N2 in flue gas for 100 Nm3 of fuel = 175.409+27.4 = 202.809 Nm3 /Hr Total flue gas in 100 Nm3 of fuel = 0.1826 + 202.809 + 44.05 + 49.68 = 296.721 Nm3 /Hr Total volume flow rate of flue gas = 296.721*26985.7/100 = 80072.361 Nm3 /Hr 5.2.2 FURNACE CALCULATIONS: = (actual air-theoretical air)/theoretical air x

Furnace calculations were performed using the collected furnace parameters (given in Table No. 6). Rest of the calculations was tabulated as shown in the table. A) INPUT: 1. Chemical heat of fuel combustion: Mixed gas volume = 27983 Nm3 /Hr

Calorific value of the mixed gas = 2317.57 Kcal/Nm3 Heat given by the mixed gas 2. Physical heat of preheated air: Temperature of the preheated air = 444.98 C Mean specific heat of air Total air flow Heat given by preheated air = 0.32 Kcal/kgC = 65006 Nm3 /Hr = 65006*0.32*444.98 = 9.256Gcal/Hr Total heat input = 74.108Gcal/Hr B) OUTPUT: 1. Useful heat required for heating the material: Number of blooms rolled Weight of each bloom Total tonnage rolled = 36 = 3.79ton = 36*3.79 = 136.44 T/Hr = 27983*2317.57 = 64.852Gcal/Hr

Mean specific heat of the material = 0.165 Kcal/kgC Temperature of the metal heated = 1232 C

Heat utilized in heating the metal = 136.44*0.165*1232.6 = 27.74Gcal/Hr C) LOSSES IN FURNACE: 1. Flue gas losses:

 Total volume of flue gas formed Total specific heat of the flue gas

= 85904.99 Nm3 /Hr = 0.317 Kcal/kgC

Temperature of flue gas = 820.3C Heat lost to flue gas 2. E.C.S Losses: Steam generated = 16 ton/Hr = 85904.99*0.317*820.3 = 21.845Gcal/Hr

Enthalpy of steam at 15 bar and 200 C = 2798.65KJ/Kg Enthalpy of water at 80 C Net enthalpy difference Heat required to generate steam 3. Indirect cooling water loss: Volume of flow rate of indirect cooling water = 65 Nm3 /Hr Temperature difference of cooling water Specific heat of water Heat lost through cooling water 4. Radiation and convection losses: THROUGH CONVECTION Factor regarding direction of Surface of Natural Convection, a: For ceiling For walls For Hearth Area of Suspended Roof: Area of Hearth = 2.8 = 2.2 =1.5 =444.82m2 = 444.82m2 = 9.3 C = 1 Kcal/kgC = 65*9.3*1 = 0.6045Gcal/Hr = 334.1 KJ/Kg = 2463.74 KJ/Kg =16*1000*2463.74 =9.066Gcal/hr

Area of Mill Side Wall, SMS Side Wall = 155.11m 2 Ambient Temperature T1 = 300K

Temperature of air around the furnace T2:

 Mill Side Wall SMS Side Wall Roof Temperature Hearth

= 367.17K = 364.1K = 488.25K = 381.3K

Heat Flux Due To Convection = a*(T1-T2)1.25 Mill Side Wall SMS Side Wall Roof Temperature Hearth THROUGH RADIATION Emissivity of the surface Heat Flux Due To Radiation +273)4)/1004 Mill Side Wall SMS Side Wall Roof Temperature Hearth Heat Loss In surface Mill Side Wall SMS Side Wall Roof Temperature Hearth =126626.98Kcal/ Hr =119264.79Kcal/ Hr =1714696.95Kcal/ Hr =349727.55Kcal/ Hr = 393.32Kcal/m2. Hr =369.88Kcal/m2 Hr =1902.37Kcal/m2. Hr = 420.2Kcal/m2. Hr = heat flux x area of the =0.8 =4.88* *(( T1 +273)4-(T2 =423.05Kcal/m2.Hr =399.02Kcal/m2. Hr =1952.44Kcal/m2. Hr =366.18Kcal/m2. Hr

Total Heat Loss Due To Convection and Radiation =2.310Gcal/ Hr 5. Heat loss through conduction: Area of suspended roof Area of hearth Area of Mill Side Wall, SMS Side Wall = 444.82 m2 =444.82 m2 =155.11 m2

 Area of Charging and Discharging Door Effective Resistance: Suspended Roof Hearth Mill Side Wall, SMS Side Wall: Charging Door Discharging Door Furnace Temperature Surface Temperature: Suspended Roof: Hearth Mill Side Wall SMS Side Wall Charging Side Discharging Side Heat Lost Through Conduction difference/eff resistance

=79.83m2

=0.75 =1.636 =1.713 =1.125 =2.305 =1232C

=216.5C =110.2C =94.5C =92.1C =490C =820C =area*temperature

=1.181Gcal/hr 6. Losses due to radiation through doors:

Sl No.Description 1. Emissivity of the 2. 3. 4. 5. black body Temperature of Units Discharging side Charging side 0.8 0.8 1250 6.5 35 24 1150 6.5 35 24

the furnace Area of opening m2 No. of blooms rolledNo. Door opening time Min for an hour

6.

Heat loss through The doors

Gcal/hr

0.546

0.416

 Total heat loss through radiation = 0.962 Gcal/hr 7. Unaccounted losses: These are those losses in the system whose cause is not known exactly. Hence it is taken as the difference between the input and the output and all types of losses summed up together. Unaccounted losses = input (output + losses) = 10.30 Gcal/hr D) EFFICIENECY OF THE FURNACE: Thermal efficiency of the furnace is the ratio of output by input multiplied by 100. Thermal efficiency = Heat in steal x 100 / total heat input = (27.44/74.108) *100 = 37.02% Thus, the efficiency of the Walking Beam Furnace 1 is 37.02%.

HEAT BALANCE SHEET OF FURNACE

INPUT, Gcal/Hr Description 64.852 9.256 E.C.S losses Indirect cooling water losses Radiation and convection losses Loss due to conduction Loss due to radiation through doors Unaccounted losses 12.48 Flue gas losses 87.50 Heat required to heat the metal 27.54 21.834 9.066 0.6045 2.310 1.18 0.962 10.30 Value % Description Value OUTPUT, Gcal/ Hr % 37.15 29.45 12.22 0.08 3.16 1.59 1.29 29.73

Chemical heat of fuel combustion

Physical heat of preheated air

Total heat 74.108

100

Total output

74.12 100.0 1

Input Output and Efficiency of Furnace on the

Units 11-02-09 12-02-09 13-02-09 16-02-09 Gcal/hr Gcal/hr Nm3/hr 81970.5 90071.02 78139.97 85331.59 12.07 8.49 0.413 2.307 1.936 0.962 25.01 77.45 26.26 1.941 0.962 23.55 79.28 29.27 2.652 0.496 0.496 2.367 1.929 0.962 16.83 72.99 31.52 8.37 7.898 12.04 10.984 12.065 8.252 0.434 2.155 1.938 0.962 23.72 77.30 27.77 Gcal/hr Gcal/hr Gcal/hr Gcal/hr Gcal/hr Gcal/hr Gcal/hr Gcal/hr Gcal/hr 8.76 9.81 8.66 9.67 68.69 69.47 64.34 67.63 65.47 9.87 78253.16 10.79 8.487 0.549 2.348 1.946 0.103 27.9 75.34 23.26 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 017-02-09 Sl. No.

% 33.913 36.915 43.176

35.92

30.88

Input Output and Efficiency of Furnace on

01-03-09 58.43 8.47 78019.49 8.59 8.25 0.36 2.74 1.92 0.962 21.54 66.90 22.51 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 17.26 5. 4. 3. 2. 1. Sl. No. Description Chemical heat of fuel combustion Physical heat of preheated air Total flue gas flow Heat lost to flue gas E.C.S loss Indirect cooling water loss Radiation and convection loss Loss due to conduction Loss due to radiation through doors Unaccounted losses Total heat input Useful heat output

18-02-08 19-02-09 20-02-09 28-02-09 64.10 7.6 7.65 58.66

33.39

69.71

7.76

8.87

74684.26 100769.5 92497.82 81219.98 7 12.39 7.96 0.427 2.21 1.95 0.962 21.04 71.70 24.76 66.31 27.44 0.962 1.95 2.22 0.549 7.38 8.53

7.9

12.17

8.49

8.37

0.488

0.305

2.39

1.83

1.93

1.96

0.962

0.962

5.497

17.74

41.15

78.58

13.51

35.27

32.83

44.88

34.54

26.03

33.65

13.

Thermal efficiency

Gcal/hr

Gcal/hr

Nm3/hr

Units

Gcal/hr

Gcal/hr

Gcal/hr

Gcal/hr

Gcal/hr

Gcal/hr

Gcal/hr

Gcal/hr

Gcal/hr Useful heat output 12.

Physical heat of preheated air

E.C.S loss

Indirect cooling water loss

Radiation and convection loss

Unaccounted losses

Total flue gas flow

Loss due to conduction

Heat lost to flue gas

Loss due to radiation through doors

Total heat input

1.

Chemical heat of fuel combustion

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

Sl. No.

CHAPTER 6
CONCLUSIONS
The following are the salient conclusions arrived from the analysis:1. FURNACE PRESSURE: If the negative pressure exist in the furnace, air infiltration is liable to occur through the cracks and openings thereby affecting air-fuel ratio control. Ensuring auto operation of damper for pressure control facilitates the rise in retention time of furnace cobs products, there by improves combustion efficiency. It is suggested that during capital repairs, these air infiltration points should be identified and these are to be repaired. This will not only improves fuel consumption but also aids in increasing heat

13.

Thermal efficiency

Description

exchange. If the furnace pressure is slightly higher than air pressure (as in the case of reheating furnace) during its operation, the combustion gas inside may blow off through openings and heat is lost with that. But damage is more if outside air intrudes into the furnace, making temperature distribution uneven and oxidizes the billets. Ex-filtration is less serious than infiltration of air. Some of the associated problems with exfiltration are leaping out of flames, over heating of the furnace refractories leading to reduced brick life which increases furnace maintenance, burning out of ducts and equipments attached to the furnace. Neglecting furnace pressure could mean problems of cold metal and non-uniform metal temperatures which could effect subsequent operations like forging and rolling and result in increased fuel consumption. This heat loss is about one percent of the total quantity of heat generated in the furnace, if furnace pressure is controlled properly. From optimum fuel consumption, slight positive pressure should be maintained in the furnace as shown if figure. In addition to the proper control on furnace pressure, it is important to keep the openings as small as possible and to seal them in order to prevent the release of high temperature gas and intrusion of outside air through openings such as the charging inlet, extracting outlet and peephole on furnace walls or the ceiling.

Figure: Effect of air on the location of zero level and infiltration of air. 2. COMPLETE COMBUSTION WITH MININIMUM EXCESS AIR: The amount of heat lost in the flue gases (stack losses) depends upon the amount of excess air. To obtain complete combustion of fuel with the minimum amount of air, it is necessary to control air infiltration, maintain pressure of combustion air, and fuel quality and excess air monitoring. Higher excess air will reduce flame temperature, furnace temperature, and heating rate. On the other hand, if the excess air is less, then unburnt components in flue gases will increase and would be carried away in the flue gases through stack. The figure indicates the relation between air ratio and exhaust gas loss. The optimization of combustion air is the most attractive and economical measure for energy conservation. The impact of this measure is higher when the temperature of the furnace is high. Air ratio is the value that is given by dividing the actual air amount by the theoretical combustion air amount and it represents the extent of excess of air. If a reheating furnace is not equipped with an automatic air/ fuel ratio controller, it is necessary to periodically sample gas in the furnace and measure its oxygen contents by gas analyzers. More excess air also means more scale losses which is equally a big loss in terms of money.

Figure: Relation between air ratio and exhaust gas loss.

3. PROPER HEAT DISTRIBUTION: Furnace design should be such that in a given time, as much of the stock could be heated uniformly to a desired temperature with minimum fuel firing rate. Following care should be taken when using burners, for proper heat distribution: i) The flame should not touch any solid object and should propagate clear of any solid object. Any obstruction will deatomise the fuel particles thus affecting combustion and create black smoke. If flame impinges on the stock, there would be increase in scale losses (Refer Figures).

Heat distribution in a furnace ii) If the flames impinge on refractories, the incomplete combustion products can settle and react with the refractory constituents at high flame temperatures. iii) The flames of different burners in the furnace should stay clear of each other. If they intersect, inefficient combustion would occur. It is desirable to stagger the burners on the opposite sides. iv) The burner flame has a tendency to travel freely in the combustion space just above the material. In small furnaces, the axis of the burner is never placed parallel to the hearth but always at an upward angle. Flame should not hit the roof.

Alignment of burners in a furnace v) The larger burners produce a long flame, which may be difficult to contain within the furnace walls. More burners of less capacity give better heat distribution in the furnace and also increase furnace life. vi) Care should be taken that the scales which get deposited on the bottom of the furnace are removed regularly as they obstruct the flame coming out of the burners.

4. OPTIMUM CAPACITY UTILIZATION: One of the most vital factors affecting efficiency is loading. There is a particular loading at which the furnace will operate at maximum thermal efficiency. If the furnace is under loaded a smaller fraction of the available heat in the working chamber will be taken up by the load and therefore efficiency will be low. The best method of loading is generally obtained by trial-noting the weight of material put in at each charge, the time it takes to reach temperature and the amount of fuel used. Every endeavor should be made to load a furnace at the rate associated with optimum efficiency although it must be realized that limitations to achieving this are sometimes imposed by work availability or other factors beyond control. The loading of the charge on the furnace hearth should be arranged so that: It receives the maximum amount of radiation from the hot surfaces of the heating chambers and the flames produced. The hot gases are efficiently circulated around the heat receiving surfaces. Stock should not be placed in the following position In the direct path of the burners or where flame impingement is likely to occur. In an area which is likely to cause a blockage or restriction of the flue system of the furnace. Close to any door openings where cold spots are likely to develop. The other reason for not operating the furnace at optimum loading is the mismatching of furnace dimension with respect to charge and production schedule. In the interests of economy and work quality the materials comprising the load should only remain in the furnace for the minimum time to obtain the required physical and metallurgical requirements. When the materials attain these properties they should be removed from the furnace to avoid damage and fuel wastage. The higher the working temperature, higher is the loss per unit time. The effect on the materials by excessive residence time will be an increase in surface defects due to oxidation. The rate of oxidation is dependent upon time, temperature, as well as free oxygen content. The possible increase in surface defects can lead to rejection of

the product. It is therefore essential that coordination between the furnace operator, production and planning personnel be maintained. 5. PREVENTION OF HEAT LOSS THROUGH OPENINGS: Heat loss through openings consists of heat by direct radiation through openings and the heat loss caused by combustion gas that leaked through openings. It is important to keep the openings as small as possible and to seal them in order to prevent the release of high temperature gas and intrusion of outside air through openings such as the charging inlet, extracting outlet and peephole on furnace wall or the ceilings.

6. MINIMIZING WALL LOSSES: About 30-40% of the fuel input to the furnace generally goes to make up for heat losses in intermittent or continuous furnaces. The appropriate choice of refractory and insulation materials goes a long way in achieving fairly high fuel savings in industrial furnaces. The heat losses from furnace walls affect the fuel economy considerably. The extent of wall losses depends on: Emissivity of wall, Thermal conductivity of refractories, Wall thickness, Whether furnace is operated continuously or intermittently. Heat losses can be reduced by increasing the wall thickness, or through the application of insulating bricks. Outside wall temperatures and heat losses of a composite wall of a certain thickness of firebrick and insulation brick are much lower, due to lesser conductivity of insulating brick as compared to a refractory brick of similar thickness. In the actual operation in most of the small furnaces the operating periods alternate with the idle periods. During the off period, the heat stored in the refractories during the on period is gradually dissipated, mainly through radiation and convection from the cold face. In addition, some heat is abstracted by air flowing through the furnace. Dissipation of stored heat is a loss, because the lost heat is again imparted to the refractories during the heat on period, thus consuming extra fuel to generate that heat. Furnace walls built of insulating

refractories and cased in a shell reduce the flow of heat to the surroundings. 6.1 Use of Ceramic Fiber: Ceramic fiber is a low thermal mass refractory used in the hot face of the furnace and fastened to the refractory walls. Due to its low thermal mass the storage losses are minimized. This results in faster heating up of furnace and also faster cooling. Energy savings by this application is possible only in intermittent furnaces. 6.2 Use of Ceramic Coatings: Ceramic coatings in furnace chamber promote rapid and efficient transfer of heat, uniform heating and extended life of refractories. The emissivity of conventional refractories decreases with increase in temperature whereas for ceramic coatings it increases. This outstanding property has been exploited for use in hot face insulation. Ceramic coatings are high emissivity coatings which when applied have a long life at temperatures up to 1350C. The coatings fall into two general categories-those used for coating metal substrates, and those used for coating refractory substrates. The coatings are non-toxic, nonflammable and water based. Applied at room temperatures, they are sprayed and air dried in less than five minutes. The coatings allow the substrate to maintain its designed metallurgical properties and mechanical strength. Installation is quick and can be completed during shut down. Energy savings of the order of 8-20% have been reported depending on the type of furnace and operating conditions. 7. IMPROVING SKID INSULATION: The double insulation method is suggested which uses high insulation ceramic fiber for internal surface and covers it with presentable ceramic fibre which has excellent fire resistance and insulation quality. It reduces the heat loss and specific fuel consumption. 8. DELAY STATEGY:

All the mechanical delays contribute to heat loss are to be monitored regularly to minimize the delays in order to reduce the gas consumption. 9. RECUPARATIVE/ REGENERATIVE BURNERS:

Figure: Self-recuperative burner Recuperative burners have in-built heat exchangers for preheating the combustion air. The integral heat exchanger with burner eliminates the disadvantages with external heat recovery device. In external heat exchanger the combustion products have to be rooted through them with a resultant heat loss and expensive ducting loss. In the self-recuperative burner, the combustion air is preheated with the burner itself by flue gases passing back through the burners as they leave the furnace. But combustion air and flue gas pass through narrow annuli. The heat exchanger is directly behind the burner nozzle and tunnel. The fuel is flowed to the burner nozzle through an inner tube concentric with the air tube. The flue gas is removed after the useful heat is extracted. A self recuperative burner is as shown in figure.