ENV-97-15 MITIGATE NOx BY STEAM INJECTION

Description:

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. owns and operates over thirty steam-methane reformers to supply the refining and petrochemical industry with hydrogen, carbon monoxide, and/or synthesis gas. This paper presents a case study of one such reformer furnace where steam has been injected into the burners to reduce NOx emissions to the atmosphere, despite an increase in plant production/fuel firing rate. Although the practice of steam addition is well known among burner manufacturers, the application to reformer-furnace burners, to our knowledge, is not widespread. This paper also provides the rationale for selection of steam injection over other options and the results of stack testing for NOx with and without added steam. With other process conditions held constant, NOx was reduced by as much as 23% when steam was introduced into the combustion air at up to 0.3 lb of steam per lb of natural-gas fuel.