ORNLs award-winning ultraclean condensing high-efficiency natural gas furnace includes a cost effective add-on innovation that can get rid of more than 99.9% of acidic gases and other emissions. The technology can also be added to other natural gas-driven devices.” Currently, AGR-enabled furnaces would need offline regrowth of the gadget about once every three years under regular use conditions,” Gao stated. “The AGR unit could be eliminated by a house owner or service technician and carried to a regeneration and recycling place. This would be similar to how customers bring their empty natural gas tanks for their outside grills to a dealership to exchange them for complete tanks.”
To show the effectiveness of acidic gas decrease in a heater, the researchers made an AGR driver, enclosed it in a metal housing and installed the gadget on a standard commercially readily available high-efficiency condensing heating system. Outcomes after a 400-hour reliability and resilience test showed the AGR nearly completely gotten rid of harmful emissions from the flue gas and produced a nonacidic condensate with a neutral pH level.
To take a look at the internal condition and soot distribution of the post-test AGR without harming the gadgets gas flow-through channels, the scientists used neutron computed tomography at ORNLs High Flux Isotope Reactor, or HFIR. Unlike X-rays, neutrons can penetrate the metal real estate to tape-record images that are then used to produce 2D and 3D representations of the utilized gadget.
” Such insights will allow better AGR gadget styles for a more self-cleaning and uniform gas flow pattern,” said Gao. “This will likewise assist relieve extreme soot build-up to improve AGR-enabled furnace efficiency.”
Soot particles, which generally form because of the incomplete combustion of hydrocarbons, consist of considerable hydrogen. Neutrons are specifically proficient at mapping and detecting hydrogen and other light aspects.
” Neutron imaging and mapping after the AGR test supplied information about how the flue gas streamed through the AGR, which exposed the heavy accumulation of soot particles in the middle of the catalyst,” stated ORNLs Yuxuan Zhang, a neutron instrument scientist at HFIR.
AGR technology would enable heating system makers to utilize products that are more cost effective than the stainless-steels used in the majority of heat exchangers. This increased affordability could allow furnace producers to sell more high-efficiency heating systems that meet Californias proposed new standards for industrial and residential furnace emissions.
” Currently, AGR-enabled heating systems would need offline regeneration of the device about once every 3 years under typical usage conditions,” Gao stated. “The AGR unit could be eliminated by a house owner or professional and carried to a regrowth and recycling place. This would be similar to how customers bring their empty gas tanks for their outdoor grills to a dealer to exchange them for full tanks.”
Reference: “Nondestructive neutron imaging diagnosis of acidic gas decrease driver after 400-Hour operation in natural gas furnace” by Zhiming Gao, Yuxuan Zhang, Shuo Qian, Weiwei Yang, Zili Wu, Kyle Gluesenkamp, Kashif Nawaz and Anthony Gehl, 2 November 2022, Chemical Engineering Journal.DOI: 10.1016/ j.cej.2022.140099.
In 2022, the ORNL AGR innovation received a desired R&D 100 award and was selected for targeted investment through ORNLs Technology Innovation Program.
The research was sponsored by the DOE Building Technologies Office and used resources at ORNLs Building Technologies Research and Integration Center, HFIR and the Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences, or CNMS.
ORNLs award-winning ultraclean condensing high-efficiency gas furnace includes an affordable add-on technology that can remove more than 99.9% of other emissions and acidic gases. The technology can likewise be added to other natural gas-driven equipment. Credit: Jill Hemman/ORNL
Gas heating systems not just heat your house, however they likewise produce a lot of pollution.
Even contemporary high-efficiency condensing furnaces produce substantial amounts of destructive acidic condensation and unhealthy levels of nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, and methane. These emissions are generally vented into the atmosphere and end up polluting our water, air, and soil.
Now, researchers at the Department of Energys Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have actually developed a budget friendly add-on technology that eliminates more than 99.9% of other emissions and acidic gases to produce an ultraclean gas heater. This acidic gas decrease, or AGR, technology can likewise be included to other natural gas-driven equipment such as water heating systems, commercial boilers, and industrial furnaces.
” Just as catalytic converters help in reducing emissions from billions of lorries worldwide, the brand-new AGR technology can essentially get rid of bothersome greenhouse gases and acidic condensation produced by todays brand-new and existing domestic gas heating systems,” stated Zhiming Gao, personnel researcher with ORNLs Energy Science and Technology Directorate. “An environmentally friendly condensate removes the need to utilize corrosion-resistant stainless-steel materials for heater heat exchangers, which decreases production expenses.”
