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COAL BLENDING - EXPERTISE AND SERVICES OF KEMA

Coal quality and power plant operation
The quality of coals can vary over a wide range due to coalification history, mining and
upgrading of a coal after mining. A range of parameters determines coal quality, since power
plant operations cover a wide range of processes. Coal quality criteria therefore range from
basics like the lower heating value via moisture and sulphur content to grindability and
slagging propensity. The table below specifies a number of characteristic coal quality
parameters and their relevance for the operation of a coal-fired power plant.

Parameter Unit Relevant for
Lower heating value MJ/kg Power and load change rate
Moisture % or g/MJ Mill capacity, coal handling
Ash % or g/MJ Mill capacity, wear, ignition, fly-ash and bottom-
ash processing, fly-ash quality
Volatiles % or as fuel
ratio
Ignition, NO
x
-formation, unburned carbon
Hardgrove grindability HGI units Mill capacity and unburned carbon
Sulphur % or g/MJ FGD capacity, SO
2
emission
Chlorine % Corrosion risk
Ash fusion behaviour C Slagging and fouling propensity
Ash composition % Quality of fly-ash and bottom-ash, slagging and
fouling propensity, precipitator efficiency


Coal blending in the Netherlands
In the Netherlands only internationally traded coals are utilised for power generation. This
means that for more than thirty years different coals from all over the world are utilised in the
Netherlands. The quality of the imported coals in terms of lower heating value (LHV), ash,
volatile matter, moisture, sulphur and grindability (HGI) varied to a large extend. The table
below specifies the ranges over which these parameters varied in the last 10 years.

Minimum Maximum
LHV (MJ/kg) 19 29
Ash (% a.r.) 1.4 27
Volatile matter (% a.r.) 15 39
Moisture (% a.r.) 3.7 27
Sulphur (% a.r.) 0.01 2.5
Hardgrove grindability (HGI-units) 38 75

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These wide ranges of coal quality could only be fired due to blending facilities available for all
the power stations in The Netherlands. In close co-operation with the power stations KEMA
has performed since 1988 a large number of studies and experiments to optimise coal
blending in relation to power plant operation. Most of these studies has been performed in
full scale practice using all seven coal-fired boiler installations in The Netherlands.



It appears that coal blending is a powerful tool to optimise between fuel costs and power
plant operation. Striking examples are the successful results obtained at the Maasvlakte
power station at the Rotterdam harbour. This power station had to combat several problems
at their plant operation, which was symbolised by the so-called Diabolic Triangle. In order to
fulfil simultaneously the constraints for thermal efficiency, NO
x
-emission and unburned
carbon blending proved to be very effective means to meet these constraints at acceptable
fuel costs. From systematic analysis of power plant results for more than thirty different coals
and even more coal blends a number of relations has been formulated. Using these relations
the power plant was able to effectively compose coal blends within the existing constraints.

Extensive experience has been gained by KEMA in full-scale measurements with element
distributions in a power plant. This applies to the main elements in the coal and the ash as
well as the trace elements. It has resulted in a large database with the results of these
measurements obtained from firing single coals as well as coal blends. On the basis of these
data a model has been developed in order to predict element distributions over ashes (fly-
ash, bottom ash), gaseous emissions, FGD by-products and water effluent emissions.

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Difficulties in prediction of coal blend properties
For some coal parameters simple optimisation by coal blending is possible based on the
calculation of the arithmetic mean of the parameters from the individual coal in the blend.
This applies for example for total ash amount from the mean ash content or SO
2
emission
from the mean sulphur content. The relative amounts of fly-ash and bottom ash, however,
depend on the composition of the ash and this will influence slagging and fouling. These
parameters can not simply be calculated for a blend as arithmetic means. The behaviour of
individual ash particles in a blend is a decisive factor for these phenomenons. This means
that blending of coal with different ashes will not always result in a blend with a behaviour of
the mean but a behaviour that is dominated by one or two of the coals. Based on full-scale
experience KEMA has found that installation specific blending rules related to such
operational effects can however be developed to enable optimised use of coal blends.

Another important property of the coal is the Free Swelling Index (FSI). This parameter gives
information on the plasticity of coal during the initial heating stage of the coal. Several studies
have indicated that a too high contribution (in the blend) of a coal with a high FSI value may
lead to burner blockage and pf duct blockage leading an increased risk of fires in the pf
ducts. Also for the FSI the property of individual particles is the determining factor in the
behaviour of the blend. Therefore the calculation of the arithmetic mean of the FSI for a
blend does not give a relevant prediction for the actual behaviour of the blend in the boiler.

Literature example of the differences in actual HGI and calculated HGI for coal blends.


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Also with respect to other operational effects such as grindability or NO
x
-emission the
behaviour of a blend can not always be predicted by applying the arithmetic means of the
coal parameters of a blend. When in a blend coals are used having differences in grindability
that go beyond a defined range the grindability of the blend (and the resulting throughput and
coal fineness) will be determined by the coal with the lowest HGI-value. We have
experienced that the defined range of HGI values where this effect manifests itself, depends
on the type of coal mill as well as the absolute HGI values.



Example of test runs where blending in the boiler was investigated


The behaviour of coal blends in relation to NO
x
-emission and burnout has been extensively
investigated by KEMA. In modern low-NO
x
combustion systems NO
x
-emission and burnout
appears to depend on several coal parameters, such as volatile matter, nitrogen content,
distribution of nitrogen over volatile matter and fixed carbon and ash content. Furthermore
the relative importance of these factors is also determined by the configuration of the
combustion system. This was investigated by KEMA in five power stations with different low-
NO
x
configurations. Over thirty full-scale trials have been performed. These trials ranged
from single coals and 50/50 blends, to blends with five different coal types, as well as
blending in coals in the boiler (firing different coal types at different burner levels). Installation
specific relations between volatile content, ash content, nitrogen content and nitrogen
distribution over volatile matter and fixed carbon on the one hand and NO
x
-emission and
burnout on the other hand have been developed.

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Example of NO
x
-results for individual coals and blends from these coals


Coal blending and fly-ash application
As in The Netherlands no land filling with fly-ash or bottom ash is allowed, a large amount of
effort has been given over the years to determine the effects of coal quality on the quality of
fly-ash and bottom-ash. The quality is related to industrial applications such as cement and
concrete manufacturing, road building and also to environmental properties (leaching
behaviour). This work has also been conducted in relation to the coal blending studies and
the studies on element distributions. The results have shown that in most cases, coal
blending leads to ash qualities that can be predicted on the basis of the individual coal.


KEMA publications related to coal blending
C.M. Rozendaal, C.H. Gast, H.N. van Vliet, and K.R.G. Hein, 1992. Coal blending and its
effects on NOx and unburned carbon in large scale power plants in The Netherlands. DVV-
Kolloquium "Kohlestaub-Aufbereitung: ein Betrag zur NOx-minderung. December 1992,
Essen, Germany.

C.M. Rozendaal, C.H. Gast, H.N. van Vliet, 1993. The diabolic triangle in modern low-NOx
coal firing. Proceedings of the 11th International Conference on Power Stations. September
1993, Liege, Belgium.

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C.M. Rozendaal, J.G. Witkamp, H.N. van Vliet, A.M.C. Vissers, 1997. Impact of coal quality
and coal blending on NOx emissions for two pulverized coal fired units. EPRI-DOE-EPA
combined utility air pollutant control symposium, "The Mega Symposium. August, 1997,
Washington DC, USA.

C.M. Rozendaal, A.J.C. Korthout, A. Meerkerk, 1997. Coal blending and the performance of
the low-NOx pulverized coal fired unit Amer 9 in the Netherlands. VGB-Fachtagung
"Feuerungen 1997". Essen, Germany.

MEIJ, R., 1997. Prediction of environmental quality of by-products of coal-fired power plants;
elemental composition and leaching. In: Proceedings of the international conference
WASCON '97, held in Houthem St. Gerlach, The Netherlands, June 4-7, 1997. The
proceedings are published in "Studies in Environmental Science 71, Waste Materials in
Construction; Putting Theory into Practice". edited by J.J.J.M. Goumans, G.J. Senden and
H.A. van der Sloot, published by Elsevier, Amsterdam, 1997, ISBN 0-444-82771-4.

C.M. Rozendaal, 1999. Impact of coal quality on NO
x
-emissions from power plants. Thesis
Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands. November 1999.

MEIJ, R., 1999. Mass balance studies of trace elements at coal-fired power plants including
co-combustion of waste and biomass. In: Proceedings of CEM 99, International Conference
on Emissions Monitoring, held at the University of Warwick, Coventry, UK, September 6-8,
1999. The paper was presented at the TraceElements Workshop organised by IEA on 9
September 1999.

MEIJ, R., WINKEL, B.H. te and LINDEMAN, J.H.W., 2001. Co-firing and ash quality.
Prediction of the elemental composition of the ash. In: Proceedings of Morella 2001
International Workshop on Novel Products form Combustion Residues: Opportunities and
Limitations, organised by EC Thematic Network PROGRES and held at Morella, Spain June
608, 2001.

J.G. Witkamp, C.H. Gast, C.M. Rozendaal, C.K. Man and J.R. Gibbins, 2002. Char nitrogen
and NO
x
-emissions. World Coal, January 2002, pp. 43 - 46.

C.H. Gast, M.C. Bouwmeester, A.J.C. Korthout, 2002. What is the real price for hard coal?
VGB Power Tech 9, pp 44-46, 2002

MEIJ, R. and TE WINKEL, B.H., 2003. The Emissions of SO2, NOx, PM, Trace Elements
and other HAPS of Coal-Fired Power Stations in the Netherlands. In the proceedings of the
12th International Conference on Coal Science, Cairns, Australia, 2nd - 6th November 2003.

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References
EON Benelux, Maasvlakte Power Station, two boilers of 520 MWe, tangentially fired
combustion system with low-NO
x
combustion.

Essent, Amer Power Station, two boilers of 600 MWe, tangentially fired combustion system.
One boiler with first generation low-NO
x
combustion. One boiler with modern low-NO
x

burners and low-NO
x
air distribution.

Delta, Borssele Power Station, one boiler of 400 MWe, tangentially fired combustion system
with low-NO
x
combustion.

Nuon Power, Hemweg Power Station, one boiler of 600 MWe, opposed wall firing with
modern low-NO
x
burners and low-NO
x
air distribution.

Electrabel, Gelderland Power Station, one boiler of 600 MWe, opposed wall firing with
modern low-NO
x
burners.