Zonal™ Combustion Optimization System

GE’s Zonal™ Combustion Optimization System is a combination of sensors and proprietary software with optional adjustable burners, airflow and coal flow dampers.

Together these technologies work to improve efficiency, reliability, availability and reduce emissions.

The environmental challenge

One important part of the solution to the mounting global energy scarcity issue is improving the efficiency of the existing infrastructure. Through technologies like GE’s Zonal™ Combustion Optimization System, GE can assist customers in realizing the value of optimizing boiler operations and helping to reduce the impact of utilizing fossil fuels on the environment going forward.

GE's innovative solution

In an effort to increase the efficiency of existing infrastructure, GE developed the Zonal™ Combustion Optimization System. A fully integrated solution, GE’s Zonal™ Combustion Optimization System combines combustion monitoring, analysis and optimization in one package, allowing the customer to deal with a single party who is responsible for the system’s performance. Combining the components allows the system to monitor the performance of each component, resulting in higher system performance and greater benefits for the customer.

This approach to optimizing combustion uses proven technology to improve conditions in any fossil-fired boiler; however, coal-fired boilers benefit most from the GE Zonal™ Combustion Optimization System because of the complexity of coal milling, coal pipe balancing, airflow balancing and combustion. Slag related outages and load drops are minimized through an improved controlled temperature profile and improving gas composition. This results in higher availability of the unit, higher generating capacity and improved efficiency.

Environmental impact

GE's Zonal™ Combustion Optimization System improves combustion conditions allowing utilities to operate at a reduced O2 level, which in one case improved boiler efficiency by approximately 0.4 percent and reduced NOx emissions. GE’s Zonal™ Combustion Optimization System can also maintain or improve carbon in ash and assist in optimizing mercury control to reduce ash disposal requirements.

GE's Zonal™ Combustion Optimization System can significantly reduce NOx emissions from coal-fired units. In one instance, GE demonstrated NOx reductions of 13 percent over baseline. On a typical 500 MW boiler, this reduces annual NOx emissions by more than 1,200 tons per year. This is the equivalent to removing 66,000 cars from U.S. roads annually.

Reducing costs

The Zonal™ Combustion Optimization System consistently helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions and reduce boiler maintenance. The results include reduced fuel use, lower CO2 and NOx emissions and improved performance, positively impacting the bottom line of operations.

Potential operating results include an increase in peak power capacity, reduction in operating costs, extended time between outages, improved burner and OFA performance and improved SCR performance.