A 100 kW three-phase plasma torch for low LHV fuel valorisation and other applications

Sabri Takali (1) , Frédéric Fabry (1) , Vandad-Julien Rohani (1) , François Cauneau (1) , Laurent Fulcheri (1)

1 PERSEE - Centre Procédés, Énergies Renouvelables, Systèmes Énergétiques

High density power supply is valuable in great number of industrial applications such as material processing and lean mixtures combustion enhancement. The most common technology used for these applications is actually fossil fuel burner, a process known for its limited efficiency and high operating expenses. Another alternative consists in plasma torches and in particular those with three phase current supply. In addition to its instantaneous response, security of use and low cost maintenance, Three-phase Arc Torch (TAT) with graphite electrodes is able to provide high efficiency thermal conversion and deliver dense radical formation at high temperature. In this paper, the development of a new 100 kW plasma torch with graphite electrodes is detailed. This plasma torch is working with atmospheric air as plasma gas and has three-phase current supply at 680 Hz. The nominal air flow rate is at 60 Nm3.h-1 and the gas outlet temperature is above 2500 K. At the beginning, graphite electrodes erosion by oxidizing medium was studied and controlling parameters were identified through parametric set of experiments and then tuned for optimal electrodes life. Then, a new concept respecting specifications aiming at erosion reduction, power increasing and heat efficiency enhancement was modelled and simulated on ANSYS platform for accurate results and concept validation. Here, multiple assumptions have been taken for the CFD Fluent simulation concerning plasma radiation [1] and arc discharge modelling [2]. We expose hereafter, the characteristics of the plasma flow and its interaction with the environing elements of the torch. The following step consisted in developing a detailed mechanical design respecting a close reproduction of theoretical boundary conditions.

Domaines: Energétique

Sabri Takali, Frédéric Fabry, Vandad-Julien Rohani, François Cauneau, Laurent Fulcheri. A 100 kW three-phase plasma torch for low LHV fuel valorisation and other applications. 13th High-Tech Plasma Processes Conference, Jun 2014, Toulouse, France. 7 p. ⟨hal-01058084⟩