Development of electrostatic precipitators for batch-fired straw boilers

The Danish regulations on emissions of dust from straw boilers in rural areas will be increased. From January 26, 2018 the European standard EN 303-5 regulations will be implemented according the Danish “Brændeovnsbekendtgørelsen”. The threshold for new batch-fired straw boilers will be 60 mg of dust per normal m3 flue gas. For straw boilers this threshold can’t be met without a flue gas filter.

The objective of this project is to develop and optimize an electrostatic precipitator solution for batch fired straw boilers. Significant challenges related to the batch fired boilers occur due to the periodic firing in the boilers. At start-up the boiler and filter will be cold, and moist flue gas is lead into the filter. Condensation on the electrical insulators will lead to electrical shorting and disturb operation of the filter. Focus will be on the development of a technique to ensure that the temperature of the insulators and other sensitive parts of the filter will have a temperature above the dew point of the flue gas. Thereby condense may be avoided and steady operation achieved. 

The project is a collaboration project.  Partners will be REKA A/S, Alcon A/S and Aarhus University.