DEPLOYING ADAPTIVE MODEL BASED CONTROL ON TANGENTIALLY FIRED UTILITY BOILERS

摘要

The use of modern adaptive control technology for improving power plant operation relative to NO_x reduction is the goal of the project described. Environmental Protection Agencies at the federal and state levels have an increased focus on power plant emissions in pending regulations. The opportunity to avoid future potential penalties for noncompliance was the rationale for a combustion optimization system was installed on a Combustion Engineering steam generator with tangentially oriented burner arrangements. The goals of the project were lowing NO_x emissions while maintaining other key parameters such as carbon monoxide (CO) and unit heat rate at acceptable levels. Project methodology from initial start to final commissioning will be outlined. The results from the first quarter of 2012 and through day to day operation showed considerable NO_x reduction (well above the initial project goals) at various load levels while maintaining other key plant variables. This paper will discuss the project design and execution, how adaptive model based control was implemented and utilized, and the results of the commissioning tests.