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US 6,299,433 B1Granted
Burner control
AssigneeGas Research Institute
InventorsGautam Gauba, Charles Edward Benson, Johannes H. J. Thijssen, Stephan Erwin Schmidt, Scott MacAdam
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method and apparatus for controlling the operation of a burner apparatus are provided via the flame intensity of combustion reaction mixtures of oxidant and fuel gas.
Claims37
A method for controlling operation of a burner apparatus in which a combustion reaction mixture of a combustion oxidant and a fuel gas are burned, the method comprising:
- burning a first combustion reaction mixture in the burner apparatus wherein the combustion oxidant and the fuel gas are at a first oxidant to fuel ratio;
- measuring a first flame intensity for the first combustion reaction mixture;
- burning a second combustion reaction mixture in the burner apparatus wherein the combustion oxidant and the fuel gas are at a second oxidant to fuel ratio, wherein the second oxidant to fuel ratio and the first oxidant to fuel ratio differ in a known relative proportion;
- measuring a second flame intensity for the second combustion reaction mixture, wherein neither the first flame intensity nor the second flame intensity occurs at a peak in a plot of flame intensities versus oxidant to fuel ratios for the burner apparatus;
- mathematically transforming the measured first and second flame intensities to corresponding parameter values R1 and R2, respectively, with a plot of values of the parameter R versus oxidant to fuel ratio forming a curve having a slope M and a shape which are independent of the burner apparatus firing rate and which slope M varies relative to oxidant to fuel ratio in a known relationship such that, for the burner apparatus, each oxidant to fuel ratio is uniquely associated with a particular M value;
- and
- using the parameter values R1 and R2, the known relative proportion difference of the first and second oxidant to fuel ratios, and the known relationship by which the parameter R varies relative to oxidant to fuel ratio for the burner apparatus, determining the second oxidant to fuel ratio associated with the second flame intensity.
4 more elements
The method of claim I additionally comprising the step of:
- adjusting the combustion oxidant to fuel gas ratio of the combustion reaction mixture to a desired oxidant to fuel ratio.
A method for controlling operation of a premixed gas burner apparatus, the method comprising:
- burning a combustion reactant mixture comprising a fuel gas and a combustion oxidant;
- monitoring a first degree of ionization (I1) of gases resulting from combustion of the reactant mixture at a first equivalence ratio (φ1) of the fuel gas and the combustion oxidant;
- determining a selected combustion reactant flow parameter (R1) for the reactant mixture at the first degree of ionization, where R1=ln(I1);
- varying the combustion reactant flow parameter for the combustion reactant mixture being burned;
- monitoring a second degree of ionization (I2) of gases resulting from the combustion of the reactant mixture at a second equivalence ratio (φ2) of the fuel gas and the combustion oxidant at the varied combustion reactant flow parameter;
- determining the corresponding combustion reactant flow parameter (R2) for the reactant mixture at the second degree of ionization, where R2=ln(I2);
- determining the log slope (l.s.) where l.s.=ln(I2/I1) ln(φ2/φ1), where l.s. varies relative to oxidant to fuel ratio in a known relationship and each oxidant to fuel ratio is uniquely associated with a particular l.s.value;
- and
- adjusting the selected combustion reactant flow parameter to establish a desired equivalence ratio of the fuel and combustion oxidant being supplied to the burner apparatus.
6 more elements
An apparatus for controlling the operation of a gas burner apparatus in which a fuel gas and a combustion oxidant are burned and in which at least one of the fuel gas and the combustion oxidant is supplied in a regulatable manner, the control apparatus comprising:
- a sensor for sensing a degree of flame intensity resulting from combustion of the fuel gas with the combustion oxidant, the sensor operably disposed within the burner apparatus and generating a signal representative of the degree of flame intensity of the gases;
- first means for varying a rate of supply of one of the fuel gas and the combustion oxidant into the burner apparatus;
- and
- a controller operably associated with the sensor and the first means, the controller mathematically transforming flame intensity values to create a corresponding parameter R value which varies relative to oxidant to fuel ratio in a known relationship such that each oxidant to fuel ratio is uniquely associated with a particular R value and a plot of R versus oxidant to fuel ratio has a slope which is independent of the burner apparatus firing rate, the controller emitting a first signal to the first means so that the first means varies the rate of supply of one of the fuel gas and the combustion oxidant in response to a sensed degree of flame intensity.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.