Online monitoring of coal particle size and flow distribution in coal-fired power plants: Dynamic effects of a varying mill classifier speed

The fineness of the coal powder and the uniformity of the coal flow sent to the burners are crucial parameters to achieve an effective combustion in coal-fired power plants. This study presents a methodology for the online monitoring of the (i) coal particle size distribution and (ii) coal flow distribution between burners at the outlet of a roller mill installed in 660 MWe coal-fired power plant. The effect of a varying centrifugal classifier speed on these two properties was investigated. To the best knowledge of the authors, it is the first time that such an effect is monitored online in a large scale utility boiler. For a classifier speed between 73 and 99 rpm, the mass fraction of particles smaller than 75 µm varied between 66 and 74%. The coal flow distribution between burners was strongly improved when the particle size was the smallest: the maximum deviation from the average flow rate was reduced from 14% at 73 rpm to 9% at 99 rpm.