| Fast pyrolysis oil, or bio-oil, has been investigated to replace traditional fossil fuels in industrial burners. However, flame stability is a challenge due to its high water content. In order to address its instability, bio-oil was co-fired with natural gas in a lab scale 10kW swirl burner at energy ratios from 0% bio-oil to 80% bio-oil. To evaluate the combustion, flame shape, exhaust and particulate emissions, temperatures, as well as infrared emission were monitored. As the bio-oil energy fraction increased, NO emissions increased due to the nitrogen content of bio-oil. CO and particulate emissions increased likely due to carbonaceous residue exiting the combustion zone. Unburnt Hydrocarbon (UHC) emissions increased rapidly as combustion became poor at 60-80% bio-oil energy. The temperature and infrared output decreased with more bio-oil energy. The natural gas proved to be effective at anchoring the bio-oil flame to the nozzle, decreasing instances of extinction or blowout. |
