Linear Array Burner Flame Ports Reduce NOx Emissions
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing gas burners produce high levels of nitrogen oxides (NOx), particularly thermally reactive NOx, due to inefficient combustion designs, leading to environmental pollution and health risks, as they emit excessive NOx during combustion.
Innovation Solution
A burner with linear arrays of fire holes featuring a 2:1 repeated longitudinal arrangement of flame ports, modified fuel and gas regulation channels, and elongated primary air inlet openings, along with circular auxiliary air inlet openings, to increase the burning area, reduce flame height, and lower combustion temperature, thereby decreasing NOx emissions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the combustion area is increased to improve combustion efficiency, then the flame height increases, but the flame temperature increases causing higher NOx emissions
Solution Approach 1:
The combustion unit is divided into multiple flame ports arranged in linear arrays with a 2:1 repeated longitudinal arrangement. This segmentation increases the total combustion area while distributing the heat release across multiple smaller ports, preventing excessive flame height and temperature buildup that would generate NOx emissions
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the burner are given different qualities: the flame ports have specific dimensional ratios (width-to-length) optimized for low-NOx combustion, the primary air inlet openings are elongated to provide sufficient oxygen at the combustion zone, and the gas regulation channels have varying cross-sections to control fuel-air mixing locally. This local optimization allows efficient combustion while maintaining lower flame temperatures
2Object-generated harmful factors
If the flame height is reduced to lower flame temperature and reduce NOx emissions, then the combustion area decreases, but combustion efficiency is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of increasing flame height (vertical dimension) to expand combustion area, the invention uses linear arrays of flame ports arranged horizontally with a 2:1 repeated longitudinal pattern. This dimensional shift allows large combustion area while maintaining short flame height, achieving both low NOx emissions and high combustion efficiency simultaneously
3Area of stationary object
If the number of flame ports is increased to expand combustion area, then the burner structure becomes more complex, but manufacturing difficulty increases
Solution Approach 1:
The combustion unit is designed as a standardized module with flame ports, gas regulation channels, and air inlet openings that can be replicated and arranged in linear arrays. This universal module design allows multiple flame ports to be implemented while maintaining simple manufacturing processes, as each module can be produced independently and assembled systematically
Solution Approach 2:
The flame ports are arranged in a periodic 2:1 repeated longitudinal pattern along the combustion unit. This periodic arrangement creates a regular, predictable structure that simplifies manufacturing and assembly compared to irregular configurations, while still providing expanded combustion area through multiple ports
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The burner design effectively reduces NOx emissions, lowers flame temperature, and minimizes vibration and noise, while maintaining stable combustion, resulting in a more environmentally friendly and efficient combustion process.
Implementation Method 1
the ejected stream of fuel gas will also drive first surrounding air into the combustion unit as well as mix with the fuel gas in the fuel gas mixing section to obtain a first mixed gas
Implementation Method 2
the ejected stream of fuel gas will also drive first surrounding air into the combustion unit as well as mix with the fuel gas in the fuel gas mixing section
Implementation Method 3
The nitrogen oxides produced in the combustion process of a gas burner are mainly NO and NO2
Implementation Method 4
the first one is the oxidation of nitrogen in combustion-supporting air during the combustion process
Implementation Method 5
primary air inlet openings in elongated shapes and auxiliary air inlet openings in circular shapes are provided on the main flat surface of the secondary air regulation panel allowing second surrounding air to flow through into each combustion unit
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~3
Figure 4~5
AI summary
A burner with linear arrays of fire holes, comprising at least one combustion unit, a secondary air regulation panel and a fuel gas transmission unit; the present invention uses a pattern of 2:1 repeated longitudinal arrangement of flame ports along each combustion unit and modifies the structures of the fuel gas channel and the gas regulation channel, so as to increase the burning area of the fire holes, change the burning power at the surfaces of the fire holes, and reduce the height of the burning flame at the fire holes. By using the primary air inlet openings having elongated shapes and auxiliary air inlet openings having circular shapes on the secondary air regulation panel, the combustion coefficient a1 of the fuel is changed so that the flame is lowered and hence reduces the emissions of NOx during thermal reaction. The present invention reduces the height of the burning flame at the fire holes, reduces the temperature of the flame, and obviously reduces the emissions of NOx during thermal reaction of the burner. Thus, the burner of the present invention has the advantages of small load, reduced vibration and reduced noise during burning.