Adaptable Energy Sources

Natural gas is the most common fuel for industrial burners due to its wide availability, clean combustion, and ease of control. Modern combustion systems integrate advanced controls and innovative designs to ensure reliable heat generation while meeting stringent environmental regulations.

Key Technologies

• Premix Gas Burners: Mix fuel and air prior to combustion for a stable flame and reduced emissions.
• Forced-Draft Burners: Use fans to ensure optimal air supply, improving efficiency and lowering NOx/CO output.
• Alternative Gases: Systems can be adapted to burn biogas, propane, or refinery off-gases with appropriate tuning.

Oil-fired burners are used where gas is unavailable or as backups. Light fuel oils (diesel, kerosene) and heavy oils (like mazut) offer high energy content but require careful handling.

Technical Features

• Atomizing Nozzles: Spray liquid fuel into fine droplets to ensure thorough mixing with air.
• Fuel Preheaters: Essential for heavy oil to reduce viscosity before combustion.
• Emission Control: While oil typically produces higher NOx/SOx, improved burner designs can significantly lower pollution levels.

Dual-fuel burners offer the flexibility of switching between two fuels (usually natural gas and oil) without changing the burner hardware. This is crucial for energy security—firing on cleaner, cheaper gas when available and automatically switching to oil if gas supply is interrupted.

Advanced control systems enable seamless transitions between fuels, maintaining stable combustion during switchover. Recent high-efficiency boiler packages offer "true dual-fuel capability" allowing operation on natural gas, #2 oil, propane, or hydrogen.

As industries pursue decarbonization, burners that fire hydrogen (H₂) or hydrogen-blended fuels are emerging. Hydrogen burners produce only water vapor as a combustion byproduct, eliminating CO₂ emissions.

Challenges & Solutions