Booster Fan Design and Selection is the Hot Topic on May 13, 2010 at 10 a.m. CDT
Existing power plants are facing many challenges with their booster fans. Fuel switching and adding biomaterials to the fuel mix can cause the combustion air requirements to differ significantly from those when the fan was originally designed. The power industry is also installing more scrubbers and SCR systems with significant pressure drop that increase the load on existing fans. To make matters worse, there are many fans in use in the U.S. power plant fleet that are already well beyond their designed lifespan. These issues along with the drive to improve plant efficiency and reduce maintenance as well as changes to the plant load cycle and new noise regulations cause power engineers to consider replacing or upgrading their FD or ID fans.
When faced with the decision to upgrade or replace and the following decision of which new fan or upgrade method to choose, the engineer has many options to select from and many factors to consider. Should they simply use one of the available techniques to improve the performance of their existing fan such as blade tip extension for centrifugal fans or should they replace the whole rotor. Or is the most economical choice to replace the fan with a completely new design. When completely new fans are required, both centrifugal and axial fans should be considered. The choice of which type of fan is best to use involves many factors some of which are: expected load cycle for the unit; flow rate and pressure drop required; capital cost versus operating efficiency; operating experience with fan types at other plants; spare parts and maintenance cost; and expectations for future requirements such as combusting biomass or adding CO2 capture.
The following presenters will address these and other issues related to the upgrading of existing booster fans, when the existing fan should be replaced and the designed, selection, installation and operation of a new booster fan.
Jim Greenzweig, Director of Market Development and Application Engineering at FlaktWoods Americas will discuss the many choices that are available for the fan equipment required when adding a SCR /FGD/NOx/CC system to an existing coal-fired unit or designing a new unit. Booster fans are one of these choices. The presentation will review some of the factors that go into selecting the appropriate fan and means of control for booster fans for coal-burning power stations as well as certain design considerations.
Dan Banyay, Director of Energy Sales and Product Development at Robinson Fans, Inc. will describe “The Right Way to Retrofit Fan Rotors”. System changes affect the fan requirements. Often the existing fan can be used with a rotor replacement that is more suitable for the revised performance, which can also have other benefits such as increased energy efficiency and improved mechanical reliability. There are several critical details that must be addressed, which will be discussed during his presentation.
David Marshall, Vice-president of Sales at Howden Variax, Inc. will discuss fans designed for high efficiency and stable operation to minimize the parasitic load on the plant and also operation for extend service time with minimal maintenance.
To register for the "Hot Topic Hour" on May 13, 2010 at 10 a.m. CDT (Chicago time), click on: http://www.mcilvainecompany.com/brochures/FGDnetoppbroch/Default1.htm
Bob McIlvaine
President
847 784 0012 ext 112