Combustion Optimizer

Stable combustion is the first step towards increasing the ramp rate and lowering the minimum load. In general, coordinated control is mainly commissioned at nominal load so that the performance of the control deteriorates at new operating points, such as reduced minimum load. Additionally, flexible operation increasingly focuses on the dynamic behavior of the process rather than the stationary behavior leading to new requirements for existing control.

ADEX Combustion Optimizer tackles the problem of the changing nature of the process using the capacities of its Self-tuning AI Controllers.

Thermal Power Plant Managers would love to accurately control the excess of O2, in order to improve the combustion and minimize the generation of CO2, NOX and CO. ADEX Combustion Optimizer can reduce this excess to a real minimum surpassing the constraints that current control systems bring and increasing the stability of the boiling process.

Thank to this Optimizer, we enable an improvement of the efficiency of the plant, an increasing of the ramping rates on load changes, minimizing the thermal stress and thermal fatigue of materials. These advantages make Plants more available, flexible, dispatchable and profitable, squeezing the price per kWh on imbalance settlements through system operators.

Additionally, Biomass and Waste to Energy Power Plants need to stop on regular basis to clean the heat exchangers in order to maintain the efficiency of the Plant. ADEX Combustion optimizer is able to improve the overall combustion having a primary effect on the reduction of ashes and dirt of the plant. That extends drastically the cleaning periods which bring extra operating days to the P&L of the Plant making the payback of the ADEX optimizer incredibly short.

There are several Advance Process Control systems in the market which promise optimization of the combustion. They are supported by rigid PID controllers on the DCS layer. That sets a technological improvement limit, no matters how good your engineers are or how much time you spend classifying potential scenarios. Even the widest Big Data system will not ever fully cover 100% of the dynamics of a thermal combustion: humidity and source of fuel, dirt on exchangers, temperature and pressure flow within the furnace, etc.

But Adaptive Predictive Expert Controllers handle all that uncertainty and fine tune automatically to the dynamics of the process on top of today’s demanding operational environment pushing plants to become HELE plants.

ADEX Combustion optimizer is already installed in several Coal fired power plants, biomass power plants or Waste for Energy power plants around the globe.