Suspension-firing of wood with coal ash addition: Probe measurements of ash deposit build-up at Avedøre Power Plant (AVV2)

This report is about full-scale probe measurements of deposit build-up and removal conducted at the Avedøreværket Unit 2, a 800 MWth suspension boiler, firing wood and natural gas with the addition of coal ash. Coal ash was used as an additive to capture potassium (K) from wood-firing. Investigations of deposit formation rate were made by use of an advanced online ash deposition/shedding probe. Quantification of ash deposition and shedding was made via deposit mass uptake signals obtained from the deposit probe. The influence of coal ash, flue gas temperature, probe surface temperature and boiler load on ash deposition propensity was investigated. Results of ash deposition propensity showed increasing trend with increasing flue gas temperature. Video monitoring revealed that the deposits formed were not sticky and could be easily removed, and even at very high flue gas temperatures (> 1350 oC), deposit removal through surface melting was not identified. SEM-EDS analysis of the deposits showed significant presence of Ca, Al and Si, indicating that a significant amount of K has been captured by coal ash to form deposits rich in calcium-aluminum-silicates, and possible release of Cl to the gas phase as HCl(g). Effect of boiler operational parameters on gas emissions has also been investigated.