Gas quality changes: consequences for industrial combustion processes

The liberalization of the German market for natural gas, a changing supply situation in Europe as well as the increasing role of fuel gases from sustainable sources such as biogas and gases from „power-to-gas“ applications will lead to greater variations of the chemical composition and hence combustion characteristics of the natural gas distributed in the German gas grid. While this growing flexibility and diversity of the natural gas supply offer a number of economic and ecological benefits, operators of sensitive thermal processes, for example in the glass, ceramics and metals industries, are confronted with new challenges since even small changes in furnace conditions may have a direct impact on product quality, process efficiency and pollutant emissions in these manufacturing processes. In the course of a DVGW-funded research project, the potential consequences of gas quality variations on industrial combustion processes were investigated. Critical aspects were identified and possible solution approaches presented.