57 4-2013 heat processing

Burner & Combustion REPORTS

Practical burner applications in
consideration of DIN EN 746-2
by Dirk Mder, Ren Lohr, Octavio Schmiel Gamarra
Since October 2010, the new version of DIN EN 746-2 Standard, Issue 2011-02, has to be applied. Said version is still
indispensable for the constructive design of gas-heated thermoprocessing installations. However, it offers important
guidelines and instructions not only for manufacturers but also for the end-users. Amendments thereto were made, for
instance, as regards such topics as start-load limitation or outfit of each burner with two class A valves. In the following
report, practical applications and examples to meet the more stringent demands are introduced and compared one to
another under practical as well as safety-related aspects.
O
wing to their intended use and connection media,
thermoprocessing installations necessarily entail
a considerable number of risks and hazards.
Although more recently built installations are particularly
safe, some personal and installation damages may occa-
sionally occur. Therefore, it is imperative to optimise the
safety standards on the basis of experience gained in the
past. Up-to-date burner applications provide the highest
degree of safety and reliability. Fig. 1 shows a recupera-
tor burner including jacket radiant tube, however, with-
out safety control elements in sectional view as typically
applied on furnace installations for indirect heating. Some
amendments to the standard will be explained hereinafter
and resultant practice-related burner applications derived
therefrom.
BURNER EQUIPMENT WITH TWO
AUTOMATIC SHUTOFF VALVES
The revised version of DIN EN 746-2 states that gas supply to
each burner or a burner group must always be safeguarded
by two automatic shutoff valves of class A pursuant to EN 161
connected in series and installed in the gas supply pipe [1].
As to installations heated by one single burner only and
already equipped with such a gas valve on burner and a
main gas valve in the gas-pressure control, measuring, and
safety system, nothing will change. The same applies to an
installation comprised of one single burner group where
all burners are activated and deactivated at the same time.
In both cases, however, the main gas valve must also close
upon every deactivation of a single burner. According to
the obsolete version of standard, it was admissible to pro-
vide a main gas valve and a valve before the burner and, in
case of flame failure, shutdown by process control or fault
shutdown, to close the latter only.
Use of double valves has stood the test in practice to
meet the relevant demands. The manufacturer of thermo-
processing installations very often prefers an all-around cycle
control system instead of an ON/OFF zone control as higher
temperature uniformity can thus be achieved in the furnace
chamber. Said cycle control offers further benefits for media
supply to the burners as, according to experience, minor
pressure fluctuations will occur in the piping systems.
To be noted: When using double valves, the mainte-
nance input for the annual leak test prescribed does not
Fig. 1: Sectional view of a recuperator burner including jacket
radiant tube for indirect heating
58 heat processing 4-2013
REPORTS Burner & Combustion
necessarily increase as both valves can be tested simultane-
ously for inner and outer leaks. The potentially higher pres-
sure loss of both valve seats must be considered accord-
ingly in the constructive design of heating unit.
START-LOAD LIMITATION
Ignition of a burner with quick-opening valves still offers
some special advantages that can be seen particularly in
gas consumption, emissions, ease of burner adjustment as
well as temperature uniformity in the combustion cham-
ber of thermoprocessing installation [2] but also in the
comparably easily feasible supervision of volumetric flow
rates stipulated in the standard as they are always constant.
Said advantages, however, can be exploited only when
burners with especially good ignition behaviour are used.
Plenty of burners available on the market can be ignited
only with a reduced start load i.e. limited. The Noxmat
burners are equipped with a patented ignition chamber
separately applied to the swirl disk where exactly uniform
conditions for a trouble-free ignition cycle are maintained
that ensures controlled combustion in the whole com-
bustion chamber i.e. the space between the inner side
of burner tube and the outer side of swirl disk inside the
burner within fractions of a second. These advantages
as regards ignition behaviour are particularly noticeable
upon cold start.
STANDARD APPLICATION: QUICK-OPEN-
ING VALVES ON GAS AND AIR SIDES
Fig. 2 shows a NOXMAT-HGBE cold-air burner in standard
configuration including gas and air supply as well as burner
control, depicted really on the left (without pressure control-
ler) and schematically on the right. The resultant volumetric
flow rates are qualitatively shown below on a V

-t-chart. This
application is also suited similarly for the use of recuperator
burners. Not shown therein, but optionally available, the
burner unit can be equipped with an additional cooling-air
pipe and an additional cooling-air solenoid valve offering
the opportunity to operate the burner as cooling unit. The
cooling-air quantity supplied can be selected significantly
higher than the proper combustion-air quantity.
As a consequence of standard revision, direct burner
ignition at full power was limited to a maximum of 120 kW.
As far as certain preconditions have been met, the aforesaid
advantages can also be used moreover. In any case, the
combustion chamber and/or useable space, waste-gas
tracts as well as piping system must be configured so that
the maximum pressure rise is considered [1]. The relevant
evidence thereto must be furnished by the manufacturer
of thermoprocessing installation. The peak values of safety
times must be taken into account as well.
If direct ignition at full power is not possible, the stand-
ard offers some practical opportunities to limit the start
Fig. 2:
Standard application with-
out start-load limitation,
shown on the example of a
NOXMAT-HGBE high-velocity
burner (real and schematic
representation with V

-t-chart)
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