AMETEK Land offers an innovative way to diagnose fuel feed issues in biomass boilers.
Biomass fuel sources often pose problems that traditional coal- or gas-fired boilers do not. The nature of many biomass fuels can exacerbate operational difficulties, including inconsistent fuel feeds and slagging.
Understanding the conditions within the boiler is therefore essential for efficient and safe operation. This can be accomplished using a borescope thermal imager operating in the 3.9 µm mid-infrared region, which provides detailed information on the conditions within the boiler.
A radiometric thermal imager shows the temperature distribution within its field of view and allows accurate temperature measurements at any point.
The 3.9 µm wavelength is a spectroscopic window where flames do not emit infrared radiation, which makes them invisible to the imager. This means the imager can look through the flames to measure the temperature of the grate and boiler tubes as well as the slag build-up on the boiler tubes. It can also view the biomass fuel as it burns on a moving grate.
For this application,
AMETEK Land offers the
MWIR-B-640 radiometric infrared borescope imaging camera with spectral filtering for continuous temperature measurement and furnace profiling applications.
This gives operators a clear view of the critical areas within the boiler, providing more than 300,000 accurate point temperature measurements in the range of 300-1800 °C (572-3272 °F).
Its high-resolution image and wide-angle field of view (90°) allow multiple areas to be imaged and measured simultaneously.
The
MWIR-B-640 is supported by advanced
IMAGEPro thermal imaging and data processing software, which supports long-term data trending and enables the early detection of leaks and temperature variations to help optimise biomass boiler processes.
AMETEK Land’s solutions for biomass applications were recently highlighted by the company’s Global Product Manager of Power,
Derek Stuart, in his presentation,
“Thermal Imaging of Fuel Feed Issues in Biomass Boilers,” at the International Biomass Conference in Jacksonville, Florida.
Stuart said:
“We have used mid-infrared imaging to visualize fuel flows and solve problems in a variety of biomass boiler configurations. Our experience with different boilers shows that thermal imaging can identify many combustion problems, such as poor fuel feeds and slagging of heat transfer surfaces, as well as practical issues such as obscuration of the viewports by slag.
“Identifying and resolving these problems leads to reduced maintenance and fuel costs, and a cleaner, more efficient process that helps extend the lifetime of the boiler and other equipment.”
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