Impact of Hydrogen/Natural Gas Blends on Partially Premixed Combustion Equipment: NO x Emission and Operational Performance

Paul Glanville, Alex Fridlyand, Brian Sutherland, Miroslaw Liszka, Yan Zhao, Luke Bingham and Kris Jorgensen
Additional contact information
Paul Glanville: Gas Technology Institute, 1700 S Mount Prospect Rd, Des Plaines, IL 60018-1804, USA
Alex Fridlyand: Gas Technology Institute, 1700 S Mount Prospect Rd, Des Plaines, IL 60018-1804, USA
Brian Sutherland: Gas Technology Institute, 1700 S Mount Prospect Rd, Des Plaines, IL 60018-1804, USA
Miroslaw Liszka: Gas Technology Institute, 1700 S Mount Prospect Rd, Des Plaines, IL 60018-1804, USA
Yan Zhao: Gas Technology Institute, 1700 S Mount Prospect Rd, Des Plaines, IL 60018-1804, USA
Luke Bingham: Gas Technology Institute, 1700 S Mount Prospect Rd, Des Plaines, IL 60018-1804, USA
Kris Jorgensen: Gas Technology Institute, 1700 S Mount Prospect Rd, Des Plaines, IL 60018-1804, USA

Energies, 2022, vol. 15, issue 5, 1-31

Abstract: Several North American utilities are planning to blend hydrogen into gas grids, as a short-term way of addressing the scalable demand for hydrogen and as a long-term decarbonization strategy for ‘difficult-to-electrify’ end uses. This study documents the impact of 0–30% hydrogen blends by volume on the performance, emissions, and safety of unadjusted equipment in a simulated use environment, focusing on prevalent partially premixed combustion designs. Following a thorough literature review, the authors describe three sets of results: operating standard and “ultra-low NO x ” burners from common heating equipment in “simulators” with hydrogen/methane blends up to 30% by volume, in situ testing of the same heating equipment, and field sampling of a wider range of equipment with 0–10% hydrogen/natural gas blends at a utility-owned training facility. The equipment was successfully operated with up to 30% hydrogen-blended fuels, with limited visual changes to flames, and key trends emerged: (a) a decrease in the input rate from 0 to 30% H 2 up to 11%, often in excess of the Wobbe Index-based predictions; (b) NO x and CO emissions are flat or decline (air-free or energy-adjusted basis) with increasing hydrogen blending; and (c) a minor decrease (1.2%) or increase (0.9%) in efficiency from 0 to 30% hydrogen blends for standard versus ultra-low NO x -type water heaters, respectively.

Keywords: hydrogen; natural gas; combustion; partially premixed; water heater; furnace; appliances; NO x emissions; hythane; hydrogen-blended gas (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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