Chemical Reaction

The combustible elements in solid and liquid fuels are carbon,

hydrogen and sulphur. The combustibles undergo complete
combustion by well defined overall chemical reactions.

a) When sufficient quantity of oxygen is combined with

carbon produces carbon-dioxide along with excessive quantity
of heat.
C + O2  CO2
In terms of molecular mass,
12 kg + 32 kg  (12 + 32) = 44 kg
 1 kg of carbon + 8/3 kg of oxygen = 11/3 kg of CO2.

(b) Due to inadequate supply of O2, carbon combined with

oxygen to form CO.
2C + O2  2 CO
 2 x 12 + 32  2(12 + 16)
24 + 32  56
 1 kg of carbon + 4/3 kg of O2  7/3 kg of CO.
1 kg of carbon is completely burnt with 4/3 kg of oxygen to
produce 7/3 kg of CO.
 (c) Carbon monoxide formed as per above combines with
oxygen to form carbon dioxide.
2 CO + O2  2 CO2
56 + 32  2 x 44
1 + (32/56)  88/56
1 kg of carbon-monoxide + 4/7 kg of oxygen  11/7 kg of
CO2.
1 kg of CO combines with 4/7 kg. of oxygen producing
11/7 kg CO2.

(d) Sulphur combines with O2 to form sulphur dioxide.

S + O2  SO2
32 + 32  (32 + 32)
1 kg of sulphur + 1 kg of oxygen  2 kg of sulphur
dioxide.
It means that 1 kg of sulphur requires equal amount of
oxygen to form 2 kg of suphur dioxide.

e) Hydrogen combines with O2 to produce H2O

2 H2 + O2 = 2 H2O
4 +32 = 36
1+ 8 = 9 kg
1 kg of hydrogen + 8 kg of oxygen = 9 kg of water
Minimum air required for complete combustion of solid
fuel
Let us consider 1 kg of fuel and also let the mass of carbon in
the fuel be 'C' kg, mass of hydrogen be 'H2' kg and mass of
sulphur be 'S' kg.

We know that for complete combustion 1 kg of carbon requires

8/3 kg of O2. Similarly 1 kg of H2 requires 8 kg O2 and 1 kg of
sulphur requires 1 kg of oxygen.

Total oxygen required for complete combustion of 1 kg of

8 
fuel   C  8H  1S  k g
3 

The fuel itself contains some amount of O2 as its

constituent. Let the amount of oxygen on the fuel be O2
kg.

So the amount of oxygen required for complete

combustion of 1 kg fuel.   8 C  8H


 S  O

3
Since the atmospheric air contains 23% of oxygen based on
mass, the amount of air required to obtain 1 kg of oxygen is
100/23 = 4.35 kg.
Hence the amount of air required for complete combustion
of fuel
1 0 0  8  
  C  8 H  S   O k g .
2 3  3  

MCQ
1. 1 kg of carbon requires 4/3 kg of oxygen and CO
produced is
A) 7/3
B) 8/3
C) 11/3
D) 11/7
Combustion of Gaseous Fuel
(a) Carbon monoxide combines with oxygen to form carbon
dioxide.
2CO + O2  2 CO2
2m3 + 1m3  2 m3
 1 + 1/2 m3  2/2 m3
1 m3 of carbon monoxide + 0.5 m 3 of oxygen  1 m3 of
CO2

This means that to convert 1m 3 of carbon monoxide to 1

m3 of carbon dioxide, 0.5 m3 of oxygen is necessary.

(b) 2H2 + O2  2H2O

2m3 + 1m3  2m3

1m3 + 0.5 m3  1m3

0.5 m3 oxygen is necessary to form 1 m3 of water or steam

from 1 m3 of hydrogen.

(c) CH4 + 2O2  CO2 + 2H2O

1m3 + 2m3  1m3 + 2m3

From the above equation 2m 3 of oxygen is required to

form 1m3 of CO2 and 2m3 of water from 1 m3 of methane.
 (d) C2H4 + 3O2  2CO2 + 2H2O

1m3 + 3m3  2m3 + 2m3

1 m3 of ethylene completely burns with 3 m 3 of oxygen.

The product of combustion is 2m3 of carbon dioxide and

equal quantity of steam.

Minimum air requirement for complete combustion of

gaseous fuel

Considering 1 m3 of gaseous fuel, the amount of oxygen

required for complete combustion of 1m 3 fuel

= (0.5 CO + 0.5 H2 + 2CH4 + 3 C2H4) m3

Since the fuel itself contains some amount of O2, let the
quantity of oxygen in fuel be O2 m3.

Amount of O2 required for complete combustion of 1 m 3 of

fuel considering the amount of O2 in fuel is

= (0.5 CO + 0.5 H2 + 2CH4 + 3 C2H4) - O2

The atmospheric air contains 21% of oxygen by volume. Hence

the amount of air required for complete combustion of 1 m 3 of
fuel is given by:

= (100/21)[(0.5 CO + 0.5 H2 + 2CH4 + 3 C2H4) - O2]m3

N.B. Hydrocarbon fuels in particular have the general chemical
formula Cm Hn. The combustion equation for such fuels may be
written as;
 n  n
O2  3.76 N 2   mCO 2  H 2 O  3.76 m 
n
Cm H n   m  N 2
 4 2  4

Stoichiometric air, excess air, and air-fuel ratio

The stoichiometric air is defined as the minimum amount of dry

air that would supply sufficient oxygen for complete
combustion. This is also known as theoretical air.

Excess air is required in practical combustion devices to

achieve complete combustion. It is defined as the amount of
excess air supplied for combustion in excess of theoretical air
requirements. It is usually expressed as a percentage of the
theoretical air. So ‘120% theoretical air’ is equivalent to 20%
excess air.

The air fuel ratio (A/F) is defined as the ratio of the mass of air
to fuel.
The stochiometric air-fuel ratio is defined as the correct mass
ratio of air to fuel in order that the fuel may just burn
completely.

The inverse of A/F ratio is fuel air ratio.

Percentage excess air = [(x – xstoich)/xstoich]×100

Review Questions

1. A fuel has the following composition by mass : carbon =

82%, hydrogen = 13%, and the remaining is oxygen.
Calculate the minimum air supplied per kg of fuel for its
complete combustion. In addition calculate the mass of
product of combustion per kg of fuel. ( 13.812 kg, 4.17 kg)
Conversion of Volumetric Analysis into Mass Analysis or
Gravimetric Analysis
The following steps are followed to convert volumetric analysis
into gravimetric analysis:

1. Multiply the volume of each constituent by its own

molecular mass. The product is the proportional mass.

2. Add up all proportional masses.

3. Divide the individual proportional mass by cumulative

mass.

4. Express it as a percentage.

5. The calculated percentage indicates the proportion on

gravimetric basis.

Review Question

Let us consider the following examples for conversion

into gravimetric analysis. Volumetric analysis of gas is CO2
= 9%, CO = 1%, O2 = 8%, N2 = 82%.
Constituen Volume in Molecular Proportion Mass in 1 % by
3
ts 1 m of mass al mass kg of gas mass
gas (4)=2x3 5=4/(4) (5)x100
(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6)
CO2 0.09 44 3.96 0.133 13.3%

CO 0.01 28 0.28 0.0094 0.94%

O2 0.08 32 2.56 0.0836 8.36%

N2 0.82 28 22.96 0.7715 77.15%

Total 1.00 (4) =

29.76

The gravimetric composition of ingredients are CO2 = 13.31%,

CO = 0.94%, O2=8.36% and N2 = 77.15%.

Conversion of Gravimetric Analysis into Volumetric

Analysis The following steps may be followed for the
conversion of gravimetric analysis into volumetric analysis:

1. Divide the % of mass by its own molecular mass.

2. The ratio is termed as proportional volume.

3. Find the summation of proportional volume.

4. Divide the individual proportional volume by the

cumulative proportional volume.

5. Express them as %.
Review Question

Convert the following mass analysis of a fuel into volumetric

analysis.

CO2 = 20%, CO = 0.9%, O2 = 5.5%, N2 = 73.6%.

Constituen % of Molecular Proportion Volume in 1 % of

m3 of gas
ts mass mass al mass (5)=4/(4) volume
(4)=(2)/(3) (5) (6)
(1) (2) (3) (4)
CO2 20 44 0.454 0.1381 13.81

CO 0.9 28 0.0321 0.0098 0.98

O2 5.5 32 0.1718 0.0522 5.22

N2 73.6 28 2.6286 0.7998 79.98

Total 100% (4) = 1.000 100%

3.2865

The fuel gas composition by volume is;

CO2 = 13.81%, CO = 0.98%, O2 = 5.22%, N2 = 79.98%.

Source: Fuels abd Combustion by Samir Sarkar, Wiley Publication

Review Questions

1. Why excess air is always required to be supplied for combustion?

2. What are important coal properties relevant to boilers,

3. What are the energy losses that take place in a steam generator?
Performance of Boiler
The performance of a boiler is often measured in terms of its
evaporative capacity. The amount of steam generated by the
boiler in kg per hour at full load is known as evaporative
capacity which is represented in terms of kg/kg of fuel burnt,
kg/m2/hr or kg/m3/hr.

Mathematically
Q u a n t it y o f s t e a m p r o d u c e d
E v a p o r a t io n r a t e = , k g / h r.
T im e p e r io d in h r

T o ta l s te a m p ro d u c e d
or E v a p o r a t io n r a t e = , kg / m / h r.
G ra te a re a

T o ta l s te a m p ro d u c e d
or E v a p o r a t iv e r a t e = , kg / m / h r.
F u r n a c e V o lu m e

Equivalent Evaporation
Water evaporated in boiler depends on following factors

 Feed water temperature

 Working pressure
 Fuel
 Quality of steam

Equivalent evaporation is defined as the amount of water evaporated

from the feed water at 100o C and converted to dry saturated steam at
100o C at a standard pressure of 1.01325 bar. It is usually expressed
as “ from and at 100o C.
Let t1 = temperature of feed water in oC
hf1 = enthalpy of feed water at t1 oC
.h = total heat of steam in kJ/kg at the given working pressure

For wet steam h = hf + x × hfg

Equivalent evaporation
= total heat required to evaporate feed water/2257

E = ms (h-hf1)/2257 ( ms = mass of water)

Boiler Efficiency
It is the ratio of heat required to convert water into steam to the
heat liberated by the combustion of fuel at the same time.
Mathematically it is represented as:
H e a t r e q u ir e d t o p r o d u c e t h e s t e a m
 
H e a t lib e r a t e d fr o m t h e fu e l

m (h  h )

m C V

Where:
Ms = Mass of steam produced in kg
mf = Mass of fuel burned in kg
h = Total enthalpy of steam in kJ/kg.
hf1 = Fluid enthalpy of feed water at t1 oC.
CV = Calorific value of fuel in kJ/kg.
In the above expression ms/mf in kJ/kg of fuel is nothing
but evaporation rate or actual evaporation.
Heat losses in boiler

1. Heat lost to flue gases

Heat lost to dry flue gases per kg of fuel is given as
= mg× Cpg × (tg –tb)
Where mg = mass of flue gases per kg of fuel in kg/kg of
fuel
Cpg = Specific heat of flue gases in kJ/kgK
tg = Temperature of flue gasesin oC leaving the boiler.
tb = boiler room temperature in oC

2. Heat lost in moisture present in fuel

= mm ( hsup –hb) where
hsup = hg + Cp ×(tg –t)
t = saturation temperature at 1.01325 bar = 100o C
tg = temperature of gas leaving the boiler
mm = mass of moisture present in kg of fuel
hb = total heat of water at boiler room temperature
hg = 2676 kJ/kg
Heat lost = mm [2676+ Cp (tg – 100) – hb ]
3. Heat lost due to unburnt carbon

Heat lost due to unburnt carbon per kg of fuel

= m1 × CV1 kJ
Where m1 = mass of unburnt carbon
CV1 = CV of carbon

4. Heat lost due to incomplete combustion of carbon to CO

It is given as m2 × CV2

Where m2 is mass of CO in flue gas and CV2 is CV of CO

5. Heat lost to steam formed by combustion of hydrogen per kg

of fuel

It is given as = mb × {hsup-hb}

Where mb = mass of steam formed = 9 kg

hg = total enthalpy of dry saturated steam at atmospheric
pressure = 2676 kJ/kg

6. Heat lost due to radiation

There is no direct method to find out heat loss due to

radiation.
The total heat losses from types 1 to 5 and heat gained by
steam per kg of fuel is deducted from the heat released from
per kg of fuel.

Heat released by fuel = mf ×CV kJ

Boiler Trial

Boiler trial is made to determine the following

1. To determine boiler efficiency

2. To determine and check the generating capacity of the
boiler while working at full load condition
3. To prepare the heat balance sheet
 MCQ

1. The performance of a boiler is measured by

A) Amount of water evaporated per hour
B) Steam produced in kg/hr
C) Steam produced in kg/kg of fuel burnt
D) All of the above
E) None of the above

2. Maximum heat loss in a boiler occurs due to

A) Flue gas
B) Incomplete combustion
C) Unburnt carbon
D) Moisture in fuel

3. The main objective in boiler trial is

A) To determine the thermal efficiency of the boiler when
working at a definite pressure
B) To draw heat balance sheet of the boiler
C) Both (A) and (B)
D) None of the above