Performance analysis for glass furnace regenerator

Glass manufacturing is an energy intensive process where fossil fuel is used to maintain high temperature (about 1700 °C) for glass melting. Heat recovery from flue gas (1350–1500 °C) is usually in the form of combustion air pre-heating (900–1200 °C) using a regenerator. Dust from flue gas which is carried over from the furnace gets deposited in the regenerator storage matrix path. This leads to a deterioration of regenerator efficiency. A regenerator model is developed to estimate the actual performance of the regenerator and to compare it with the target performance. The proposed model is based on mass and energy balance of streams along with heat transfer characteristic equations. The model is illustrated for a 130 TPD (Ton per Day) furnace regenerator of an industrial glass plant at Mumbai, India. Model results for the regenerator studied indicate a blockage of 50% on the doghouse side and 22% on the non-doghouse side of the regenerator. The actual performance of the regenerator is found to be 7% lower than its target performance for the doghouse side regenerator. The model developed can also be used in other industrial sectors like steel, chemical etc.

► Glass furnace regenerator is prone to deposit and air ingress which lead to poor energy performance.
► In literature there is no methodology available for the estimation of regenerator blockage based on regenerator operating parameters.
► A model for regenerator performance prediction is developed and presented in this paper.
► Model is illustrated with experimental measurement of an industrial glass furnace in India.
► The model enables decision for regenerator cleaning and air leakage sealing.