Renewable Electrical Heater for Reforming Combustion Air Preheating
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing reforming processes face inefficiencies and environmental challenges due to high energy input requirements, waste heat management, and sulfuric acid corrosion, particularly in cold regions, and the intermittent nature of renewable energy sources like solar and wind power.
Innovation Solution
Integrating renewable electrical energy to preheat combustion air in a reforming process, using electrical heaters between cold and hot air preheaters, and optionally in waste heat sections, to reduce fuel firing and CO2 emissions, while maintaining process plant design integrity and avoiding sulfur dew point corrosion.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-generated harmful factors
If electrical heaters are used to preheat combustion air using renewable electrical energy, then fuel firing and CO2 emissions are reduced, but the intermittent nature of renewable energy sources creates operational challenges
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the degree of preheating based on renewable energy availability. When renewable energy is abundant, electrical heaters provide significant preheating; when unavailable, the system transitions to conventional preheating methods, ensuring continuous operational flexibility throughout the process
Solution Approach 2:
The preheating temperature parameter is dynamically changed based on renewable energy availability. The system optimizes the balance between electrical preheating and conventional preheating to maintain operational efficiency while maximizing renewable energy utilization and minimizing CO2 emissions
2Loss of energy
If flue gas temperature is reduced to maximize thermal efficiency, then energy efficiency improves, but metal temperature of preheater surfaces drops below sulfur dew point causing severe sulfuric acid corrosion
Solution Approach 1:
Electrical heaters act as an intermediary heating source that supplements conventional flue gas preheating. This allows the system to maintain higher preheat temperatures without requiring excessively high flue gas temperatures, thereby avoiding sulfur condensation and corrosion while still achieving high thermal efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces part of the thermal preheating system with an electrical heating system. This substitution enables independent temperature control of the preheated air, allowing optimization of thermal efficiency without being constrained by the sulfur dew point limitation of conventional flue gas preheating
3Object-affected harmful factors
If additional steam-fired air-preheater is installed to prevent sulfuric acid corrosion in cold regions, then corrosion protection is improved, but capital expenditure, operational expenditure, and CO2 emissions increase
Solution Approach 1:
Electrical heaters serve as an intermediary solution between conventional preheating and steam-fired preheating. They provide the necessary temperature boost to prevent sulfur condensation without requiring additional steam generation infrastructure, thereby avoiding the complexity and costs associated with steam-fired air-preheaters
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the preheating function from the steam generation system and implements it separately using electrical heaters. This separation eliminates the need for additional steam-fired equipment while maintaining corrosion protection, reducing both capital and operational expenditures
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
This approach reduces fuel firing, lowers CO2 emissions, increases reforming tube lifetime, and prevents sulfuric acid corrosion, while seamlessly integrating zero to peak renewable electricity, enhancing thermal efficiency and operational expenditure.
Implementation Method 1
Integrating renewable electrical energy to preheat combustion air in a reforming process, using electrical heaters between cold and hot air preheaters
Implementation Method 2
Overall, a steam-reforming reaction is highly endothermic and an associated optimum reaction temperature required for the reaction is relatively high, namely in a range of 700° C. to 950° C.
Implementation Method 3
heat is supplied via radiation from flames in a furnace box where fuel is burned in burners
Implementation Method 4
Some existing approaches may use part of the aforesaid waste heat for preheating feed and combustion air
Data Source
AI summary
A method for improving a reforming process by using renewable electrical energy as a heating input to the reforming process is provided. The method includes partially preheating combustion air using a first electrical heater, wherein the first electrical heater is configured to be supplied with the renewable electrical energy generated by a renewable source, wherein the first electrical heater is integrated in between a cold air preheater and a hot air preheater of a process plant that performs the reforming process; utilizing, by the first electrical heater, a bad based on an availability of the renewable electrical energy received from the renewable source; and providing, by the first electrical heater, the preheated combustion air at an outlet of the first electrical heater to a boiler of the process plant based on the bad utilized by the first electrical heater.