Abstract
Despite the difficulties connected with employing this indigenous energy source, there is little doubt that South Africa has enough coal resources to supply the future demands for the foreseeable future. The findings of an experimental investigation on a 660 MW Once-through Benson boiler unit at full load fired with various coal qualities are presented. A boiler's heat losses and main gaseous pollutants (CO2, CO, NOx and SO2) as a function of the operating parameters and coal qualities are discussed. Using the standard procedures, coal samples analysis was assessed at both the proximate and ultimate analysis. Additionally, each coal type's combustion performance in the boiler was assessed based on different coal qualities. The best-performing coal was found to be sample 3 based on emissions, heat losses and overall efficiency coals. This study advances our knowledge of how different coal grades and boiler operating conditions affect boiler efficiency.
Keywords: Boiler efficiency, Coal; Coal quality; Combustion; Power
