Palm kernel shell fuel boiler
In a palm oil mill Boilers are the heart of a palm oil mill. Where, this steam boiler is the source of energy and a source of steam that will be used to process oil palm. here we will discuss a little about steam boilers used in palm oil mills
Before we discuss the steam boiler used in the palm oil mill. it’s good if we know first what a boiler is and what it functions.
Steam boiler is an energy conversion tool that converts water into steam by heating and heat which requires water for evaporation obtained from burning fuel in the boiler boiler room.
Steam (heat energy) produced by steam boilers can be used on all equipment that requires steam in palm oil mills, especially turbines. The turbine here is a steam turbine where the driving source of the generator is steam produced from a steam boiler. in addition to other tool turbines in palm oil mills that need steam such as in sterilizers (Tools for cooking FFB) and oil refining stations (clarification). therefore the quality of the steam produced must be in accordance with the needs of the existing factory
In order for the quality of the steam produced from the steam boiler to be as desired / needed, a certain amount of heat is needed to evaporate the water, where the heat is obtained from burning fuel in the boiler combustion chamber. To get perfect combustion in the kettle, several conditions are needed, namely:
Comparison of fuel consumption must be appropriate (shell and fiber)
The air used must be sufficient
The time needed for the combustion process must be sufficient.
Enough heat to start combustion
Sufficient density to propagate the flame
In this case the fuel used is fibers and shells, but the reasons for using fibers and shells as fuel are:
1. Shell and fiber fuels are sufficiently available and easily obtained in the factory.
2. Shells and fibers are waste from oil palm mills if not used.
3. The calorific value of shell and fiber fuels meets the requirements to produce the required heat.
4. The remaining fuel combustion can be used as fertilizer for oil palm plants.
5. Prices are more economical.
Shells are a kind of solid fuel that is black shaped like a coconut shell and rather round, found on the inside of oil palm fruit which is covered by fibers.
In this shell fuel there are various chemical elements including: Carbon (C), Hydrogen (H2), Nitrogen (N2), Oxygen (O2) and Abu. Where the chemical elements contained in shells have a different percentage (%). This shell fuel after undergoing the combustion process will turn into charcoal, then the charcoal in the presence of air in the kitchen will fly as a small particle size called the incandescent peaticle.
If the use of this shell is too much from the fibers it will inhibit the combustion process due to the buildup of charcoal and the flame is less than perfect, and if the shell is used a little, the heat produced will be low.
Fibers are solid fuels that are shaped like hair, if they have undergone a process of processing light brown color, these fibers are found in the second part of the oil palm fruit after the fruit husk of the oil palm.
The amount of heat produced by fibers is smaller than that produced by the shell, therefore a greater proportion of fibers than the shells. Aside from the fibers, they become ash faster when burned, excessive use of fibers will adversely affect the combustion process because it can inhibit the heat propagation process on the water wall pipe, due to the ash from combustion flying in the kitchen room and covering the water wall pipe, besides making it difficult to discharge from the expansion door (Exit for ash and charcoal) due to excessive buildup.
