KOH capture by coal fly ash

The KOH-capture reaction by coal fly ash at suspension-fired conditions was studied through entrained flow reactor (EFR) experiments and chemical equilibrium calculations. The influence of KOH-concentration (50–1000 ppmv), reaction temperature (800–1450 °C), and coal fly ash particle size (D₅₀ = 6.03–33.70 μm) on the reaction was investigated. The results revealed that, at 50 ppmv KOH (molar ratio of K/(Al + Si) = 0.048 of feed), the measured K-capture level (C_K) of coal fly ash was comparable to the equilibrium prediction, while at 250 ppmv KOH and above, the measured data were lower than chemical equilibrium. Similar to the KOH-kaolin reaction reported in our previous study, leucite (KAlSi₂O₆) and kaliophilite (KAlSiO₄) were formed from the KOH-coal fly ash reaction. However, coal fly ash captured KOH less effectively compared to kaolin at 250 ppmv KOH and above. Studies at different temperatures showed that, at 800 °C, the KOH-coal fly ash reaction was probably kinetically controlled. At 900–1300 °C it was diffusion limited, while at 1450 °C, it was equilibrium limited to some extent. At 500 ppmv KOH (molar ratio of K/(Al + Si) = 0.481), and a gas residence time of 1.2 s, 0.063 g K/(g additive) and 0.087 g K/(g additive) was captured by coal fly ash (D₅₀ = 10.20 μm) at 900 and 1450 °C, respectively. Experiments with coal fly ash of different particle sizes showed that a higher K-capture level were obtained using finer particle sizes, indicating some internal diffusion control of the process.