Advanced ultra supercritical steam generator
AssigneeThe Babcock & Wilcox Company
InventorPaul S Weitzel
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A supercritical steam generator includes a downdraft furnace enclosure, a hopper tunnel, and a convection pass enclosure, with the hopper tunnel joining the downdraft furnace enclosure and convection pass enclosure together. Flue gas passes down through the downdraft furnace enclosure through the hopper tunnel and up through the convection pass enclosure. This structure permits the outlet steam terminals, which provide access to the resultant supercritical steam and/or reheat steam, to be located at a base of the steam generator rather than at the top of the steam generator as with conventional boilers. This reduces the length of the steam leads from the steam generator to a steam turbine that produces electricity using the supercritical steam.
Claims19
A steam generator, comprising:
- a downdraft furnace enclosure formed from walls made of water or steam cooled tubes, and wherein the furnace walls define a top end and a bottom gas outlet at a bottom end;
- a windbox and burners at the top end of the downdraft furnace enclosure for generating flue gas;
- a convection pass enclosure including a bottom gas inlet and horizontal tube banks located above the bottom gas inlet;
- a hopper tunnel connecting the bottom gas outlet of the downdraft furnace enclosure to the bottom gas inlet of the convection pass enclosure, such that hot flue gas exits the downdraft furnace enclosure and then flows upwards through the convection pass enclosure;
- and
- a steam outlet terminal located at a base of the steam generator;
- wherein flue gas exiting the convection pass enclosure is recirculated to one of:
- the top end of the downdraft furnace enclosure;
- a base of the downdraft furnace enclosure;
- or
- a base of the convection pass enclosure.
A steam generator, comprising:
- a downdraft furnace enclosure formed from walls made of water or steam cooled tubes, and wherein the furnace walls define a top end and a bottom gas outlet at a bottom end;
- a windbox and burners at the top end of the downdraft furnace enclosure for generating flue gas;
- a convection pass enclosure including a bottom gas inlet and horizontal tube banks located above the bottom gas inlet;
- a hopper tunnel connecting the bottom gas outlet of the downdraft furnace enclosure to the bottom gas inlet of the convection pass enclosure, such that hot flue pas exits the downdraft furnace enclosure and then flows upwards through the convection pass enclosure;
- and
- a steam outlet terminal located at a base of the steam generator;
- wherein flue gas exiting the convection pass enclosure passes through at least one of (a) a regenerative air heater and (b) a particulate cleaning device;
- and is then recirculated to the top end of the downdraft furnace enclosure, a base of the downdraft furnace enclosure, or a base of the convection pass enclosure.
A steam generator, comprising:
- a downdraft furnace enclosure formed from walls made of water or steam cooled tubes, and wherein the furnace walls define a top end and a bottom gas outlet at a bottom end;
- a windbox and burners at the top end of the downdraft furnace enclosure for generating flue gas;
- a convection pass enclosure including a bottom gas inlet and horizontal tube banks located above the bottom gas inlet;
- a hopper tunnel connecting the bottom gas outlet of the downdraft furnace enclosure to the bottom gas inlet of the convection pass enclosure, such that hot flue gas exits the downdraft furnace enclosure and then flows upwards through the convection pass enclosure;
- and
- a steam outlet terminal located at a base of the steam generator;
- wherein the hopper tunnel is formed by an outwardly-extending throat of the bottom gas outlet of the downdraft furnace enclosure that extends into a porthole of the bottom gas inlet of the convection pass enclosure.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.