May 2011
Our special report this month should be of great interest to all you foodies out there. Gavin Chait writes about food chemistry and science, a not so unlikely combination, as it turns out. Cooking is, after all, a science and Gavin takes us on a rollicking trip through the ages looking at these connections.
On a more technical note, our water treatment article is all about how inclined-plate lamellas increased water treatment efficiency for the English city of Carlisle. The scheme involved a GBP-16-million upgrading of the existing water treatment plant at Cumwhinton both to increase capacity and to reduce the risk of Crytosporidium.
The corrosion and coatings engineering feature comes to us from Germany and deals with selective plasma coating of metal surfaces. Inès Melamies explains how atmospheric-pressure plasma ensures corrosion resistance. Whether for corrosion protection, as an adhesion agent prior to bonding, or for ease of surface cleaning, this newly developed method allows for selective coating of metal surfaces with different functionalized layers.
Our features for June are Waste management; Emerging technologies; Separation and filtration technologies; and lastly, Mining and minerals processing. Can you believe we are nearly ready to celebrate the Winter Solstice?
Another highlight from the May issue described below.
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Principles of burner design for biomass co-firing
This is the title of the article in our chemical plant design and construction feature by Bradley W Moulton, Director of Environmental Systems at Foster Wheeler North America Corp, in New Jersey, USA. Renewable portfolio standards and an intensified interest in greenhouse gas reduction has resulted in numerous utilities and industries, along with federal and state regulatory agencies, giving consideration to biomass co-firing in both existing facilities and new facilities.
Proposed biomass have included wood wastes ranging from bark to sawdust, agricultural materials (and wastes) such as switchgrass, alfalfa stalks, rice straw and hulls, poultry litter, hog waste, cattle manure, and more. The boilers proposed to utilize these fuels have included coal-fired cyclones, pulverized coal units, and circulating fluidized bed units.
This article summarizes the principles of burner design for biomass co-firing covering wall-fired (front and opposed) and tangential-fired boilers and focuses on key burner design issues such as injector design and emissions associated with biomass co-firing.
