Reducing Sulfur Emissions in a Fossil-Fuel Plant

Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) released by fossil-fuel power plants, when not properly controlled, can cause dangerous levels of smog and soot. To combat high soot concentrations, wet flue-gas desulfurization (FGD) employs a slurry spray tower to reduce SO2 emission. This has become a popular and effective technique accepted by the industry. Nozzle parameters and placement are critical for optimizing wet-FGD applications as properly controlling the spray can ensure maximum SO2 reduction while minimizing slurry buildup. Optimizing the spray system design requires rigorous analysis and understanding of our customers power system and process.

In this case, a CFD model was used to examine potential scrubber designs along with a series of nozzle designs. The nozzle designs were selected for high capacity slurry flow to ensure our customer's process requirement.
We tested nozzle parameters, such as drop size, flow rate and velocity, in the lab prior to CFD testing to ensure the most accurate nozzle data was used. We then applied sorbent and SO2 chemical reaction models combined with nozzle features to simulate the process and determine uniformity, removal and system efficacy.  

Utilizing CFD helped us optimize our customer's FGD scrubbing system. The simulation allowed us to understand the spray's behavior and interaction with the gas flow. This then allowed us to determine the optimal nozzle capacity, quantity and position. In the end, the final design options minimized wall impingement and removed pollutants to an outstanding degree. 

Environments like those found in SO2 towers make it impossible to obtain accurate performance evaluations. In cases like this, CFD is the perfect solution, allowing us to virtually simulate the enviornment while also optimizing the process using tested, verified spray data collected in our labs.