Design of Dynamics of a Recuperative Catalytic Combustor: Enhancement in Operation and Control

The current contribution is aimed to describe and design the dynamics of the recuperative catalytic combustor. The step responses of the combustible concentration, fuel flow rate, fuel temperature and three manipulated variables are determined for the non-controlled combustor. The time delays, time constants and gains are determined for the temperatures measured in two points in the catalytic zone and its dependencies on the process and geometrical parameters are discussed. The frequency response analysis conducted shows that in the combustor with a higher time constant medium term input disturbances are effectively attenuated. In order to handle long term impulses of lean or rich fuels, the control strategy dedicated to the current combustor is proposed. It is verified in the example in which the frequently used control algorithm is applied to simulate the process control. The results show that the improvement is attained in combustor transient operation and control.