Literature Review

Process heating Process heating is a critical step of manufacturing operations, used to heat materials in production of metals such as steel and aluminum, and nonmetals such as glass, cement, rubber, plastic, petroleum products and ceramics. Heat is applied to raise temperature of solids, liquids or gases in heating equipment such as furnaces, process heaters, melters, ovens, or dryers. The heating process softens, melts, or evaporates the materials, and may promote chemical reactions, molecular rearrangements, or breakdown of molecules of the materials being heated. Heat required in process heating equipment comes from fuels such as natural gas, fuel oil, coal, and other energy sources such as electricity or steam.. The different types of process heating systems: The three most common types of process heating systems are: fuel-based, electricity-based and steam-based systems. In fuel-based process heating, heat is generated by the combustion of solid, liquid, or gaseous fuels, and transferred either directly or indirectly to the material. The combustion gases are either in contact with the material (direct heating), or are confined and separated from the material (indirect heating; e.g., radiant burner tube, radiant panel, muffle). Examples of fuelbased process heating equipment include furnaces, ovens, heaters, kilns, and melters. Electric-based systems (electro-technologies) use electric currents or electromagnetic fields to heat materials. Direct heating methods generate heat within the material by either (1) passing an electrical current through the material, (2) inducing an electrical current (eddy current) into the material, or (3) by exciting atoms/molecules within the material with electromagnetic radiation (e.g. microwave). Indirect heating methods use one of these three methods to heat a heating element or susceptor which transfers the heat either by conduction, convection, radiation (or a

combination of these) to the material. Examples of electric-based heating systems include induction heating and melting, electric arc furnaces, infrared ovens, and vacuum furnaces. Steam-based systems use steam to supply heat to the materials directly or indirectly. Direct systems inject steam into liquids or gases. Indirect systems use a heat exchanger in which steam is cooled and condensed in tubes; the heated tubes supply heat to the liquids and gases. Steam offers several advantages in process heating operations, such as high heat capacity, ease of transport, low toxicity and cost, and can be generated by a variety of by-product fuels. Examples of steam-heated systems include distillation columns, water or air heating, paper drying, and humidification. Hybrid systems use a combination of process heating systems using different energy sources. An example is a paper drying process that combines an electric-based infrared technology with a fuel-based dryer.

Continuous Reheating Furnace:

The main function of a reheating furnace is to raise the temperature of a piece of steel, typically to between 900C and 12500C, until it is plastic enough to be pressed or rolled to the desired section, size or shape, The furnace must also meet specific requirements and objectives in terms of stock heating rates for metallurgical and productivity reasons. In continuous reheating, the steel stock forms a continuous flow of material and is heated to the desired temperature as it travels through the furnace. All furnaces possess the features shown in Figure

A refractory chamber constructed of insulating materials for retaining heat at the high operating temperatures. A hearth to support or carry the steel. This can consist of refractory materials or an arrangement of metallic supports that may be watercooled.

 Burners that use liquid or gaseous fuels to raise and maintain the temperature in the chamber. Coal or electricity can be used for reheating. A method of removing the combustion exhaust gases from the chamber A method of introducing and removing the steel from the chamber. These facilities depend on the size and type of furnace, the shape and size of the steel being processed, and the general layout of the rolling mill. Common systems include roller tables, conveyors, charging machines and furnace pushers.

Fig:2 Reheating Furnace Feature

Heat Transfer in Furnaces The main ways in which heat is transferred to the steel in a reheating furnace are shown in Figure . In simple terms, heat is transferred to the stock by: Radiation from the flame, hot combustion products and the furnace walls and roof; Convection due to the movement of hot gases over the stock surface.

At the high temperatures employed in reheating furnaces, the dominant mode of heat transfer is wall radiation. Heat transfer by gas radiation is dependent on the gas composition (mainly the carbon dioxide and water vapors concentrations), the temperature and the geometry of the furnace.

Figure 3 : Heat Transfer in furnace 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 re-circulating 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. i) Pusher Type Furnaces The pusher type furnace is popular in steel industry. It has relatively low installation and maintenance costs compared to moving hearth furnaces. The furnace may have a solid hearth, but it is also possible to push the stock along skids with water-cooled supports that allow both the top and bottom faces of the stock to he heated. The design of a typical pusher furnace design is shown schematically in Figure.

Pusher type furnaces, however, do have some disadvantages, including: Frequent damage of refractory hearth and skid marks on material

Water cooling energy losses from the skids and stock supporting structure in top and bottom fired furnaces have a detrimental effect on energy use;

Discharge must be accompanied by charge:

Stock sizes and weights and furnace length are limited by friction and the possibility of stock pile-ups. All round heating of the stock is not possible.

ii) Walking Hearth Furnaces The walking hearth furnace (Figure.) allows the stock to be transported through the furnace in discrete steps. Such furnaces have several attractive features, including: simplicity of design, ease of construction, ability to cater for different stock sizes (within limits), negligible water cooling energy losses and minimal physical marking of the stock. The main disadvantage of walking hearth furnaces is that the bottom face of the stock cannot be heated. This can he alleviated to some extent by maintaining large spaces between pieces of stock. Small spaces between the individual stock pieces limits the heating of the side faces and increases the potential for unacceptable temperature differences within the stock at discharge. Consequently, the stock residence time may be long, possibly several hours; this may have an adverse effect on furnace flexibility and the yield may be affected by scaling.

iii) Rotary hearth furnace The rotary hearth furnace (Figure 4.7) has tended to supersede the recirculating bogie type. The heating and cooling effects introduced by the bogies are eliminated, so heat storage losses are less. The rotary hearth has, however a more complex design with an annular shape and revolving hearth.

Figure Rotary hearth type furnace

Fuels Used in Industrial process Heating Equipment:

Low Calorific Value Gaseous fules Heating value:3.7 to 26 MJ/m3 Examples: Coke Oven Gas,Blast Furnace Gas, Digester Gas, Landfill Gas etc. Composition: Hydrogen, Carbon Monoxide, Carbon Dioxide, Nitrogen. Medium Calorific Value Gaseous fules Heating value: 30 to 45 MJ/m3 Examples: Natural Gas, Waste Gases Composition: Methane, Ethane. High Calorific Value Gaseous fules Heating value: 96 to 121 MJ/m3 Examples: Propane, Butane , LPG Composition: Propane, Butane. Distillate Fuel Oils Heating value: 36- 41 MJ/m3 Examples: Light Oils, Kerosene, Diesel Residual Fuel Oils Heating Value: 40- 45 MJ/m3 Examples: Bunker C, Asphalt, Tar Solid Fuels Heating Values : 20 - 35 MJ/m3 Examples: Lignite, Bituminous Coal, Anthrasite, coke, Wood & wood Wastes, Biomass.

Working of Reheating Furnace

The main working of Reheating Furnace is to supply heat to the steel billet coming from the continuous casting machine. Give the heat up to 1250 0 C . This heating is done in the Reheating Furnace, mainly in the three working zones. These zones include: 1. Preheating Zone: In the preheating zone the billets are entered in the reheating furnace at the atmospheric temperature, with the help of fuel firing burners the billets will be heated up to 350 0 C . 2. Heating Zone: In the heating zone the billets coming from preheating zone with temperature 350 0 C will be more heated up to 900-1150 0 C . 3. Soaking Zone. : In this soaking zone the billets are allowed to be heated uniformly throughout the dimension. At JNIL Walking Hearth Type Reheating Furnace is using with 18 producer gas fuel fired burners. The dimension of the Reheating Furnace is 20m x 5m x7m, with capacity of 50 T/day. Fuel use in Reheating Furnace at JNIL is blast furnace gas with heating value 3.6 MJ/m3 (800Kcal/Nm3), with pressure 700 to 800 mm WG, 35 to 400C and composition:

Compositional Analysis of Blast Furnace Gas (volumetric percent).

Carbon Monoxide Carbon Dioxide Hydrogen Methane Nitrogen Oxygen 25.6 % 14.9 % 4.5% 0.5 % 54.4 % 0.1 %

Area of Heat loss and Efficiency Improvement for Process Heating System Reduction or elimination of heat losses is the most important consideration in reducing energy use for process heating equipment. In cases where it is impossible to reduce the losses, consider recovering part of the energy lost and using it within the process itself or for other useful purposes. Several heat recovery methods exist that can be used within the heating system itself, within the plant, or converted into easily transportable energy such as electricity. Efficiency of heating equipment is measured by the ratio of amount of heat used by the material being heated to the amount of energy supplied to the heating equipment. For example, if a heating equipment uses 10 MMBtu/hr heat and the load or material uses or receives 6 MMBtu/hr heat during the heating process, thermal efficiency of the process is considered 60%. The heat not used by the material is lost through the system. Heat loss depends on many factors, such as the type of heat supply system used, equipment design, operations, and maintenance of the equipment.

The performance and efficiency of a process heating system can be described with an energy loss diagram, as shown in Figure 3. The main goals of the performance optimization are reduction of energy losses and increase of energy transferred to the load. It is therefore important to know which aspects of the heating process have the highest impact.

Performance and efficiency improvement opportunities can be grouped into five categories (shown in italics in Figure 4): Heat generation: discusses the equipment and the fuels used to heat a product Heat containment: describes methods and materials that can reduce energy loss to the surroundings Heat transfer: discusses methods of improving heat transferred to the load or charge to reduce energy consumption, increase productivity, and improve quality Waste heat recovery: identifies sources of energy loss that can be recovered for more useful purposes, and addresses ways to capture additional energy Enabling technologies: addresses common opportunities to reduce energy losses by improving material handling practices, effectively sequencing and scheduling heating

tasks, seeking more efficient process control, and improving the performance of auxiliary systems. Enabling technologies include: - Advanced sensors and controls Advanced materialsidentifying performance and efficiency benefits available from using advanced materials Auxiliary systemsaddressing opportunities in process heating support systems. Figure 4 shows several key areas where the performance and efficiency of a system can be improved. It is important to note that many opportunities affect multiple areas.

Here are some areas of heat loss and steps to take to reduce or recover the heat loss.