Development of a vane-swirler for use in a low NO{sub x} weak-swirl burner
- Lawrence Berkeley National Lab., CA (United States). Energy and Environment Div.
This paper describes the continuing development of the weak-swirl burner (WSB) for use in low NO{sub x} applications. Weak-swirl is a unique method for stabilizing lean-burning, premixed combustion as the flame is stabilized by flow divergence, not through recirculation as is commonly seen in nonpremixed industrial burners. Earlier versions of the WSB used a tangential air jet swirler that offers flexibility for determining the range of operation and evaluating the performance of the WSB. Though common in large applications, air swirler may not be amenable to small and medium-size appliances. To reduce manufacturing costs and burner complexity, the authors have developed a fixed vane swirler to replace the air jet swirler in the WSB. This paper describes the operating characteristics and key design parameters of the vane swirler. A new expression for determining swirl number intensity is developed. Testing of a laboratory water heater fitted with a WSB with the new vane-swirler shows 0 < NO < 20 ng/J, 10 < CO < 70 ppm, and thermal efficiencies {approx} 78% over the lean burning range of 0.70 < {phi} < 0.90. The continuous firing rate is robust for a 53 mm vane-swirled WSB, with initial tests ranging from 40,000 to 400,000 Btu/hr. for 0.60 < {phi} < 1.0. Successful development of the new vane swirler demonstrates that the low emission WSB is adaptable to a wide variety of industrial applications.
- Research Organization:
- Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Energy Research, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC03-76SF00098
- OSTI ID:
- 414339
- Report Number(s):
- LBNL-39354; CONF-9610206-1; ON: DE97001252; TRN: AHC29701%%37
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 1996 international symposium of the American Flame Research Committee, Baltimore, MD (United States), 2 Oct 1996; Other Information: PBD: Oct 1996
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Effects of enclosure on the performance of the weak-swirl burner
Stability characteristics and emission levels of a laboratory hot water heater utilizing a weak-swirl burner