Smart Refractory Sensor Systems for Wireless Monitoring of Temperature, Health and Degradation of Slagging Gasifiers

The goal of this project is to demonstrate a high-temperature sensor concept for the monitoring of reaction conditions and health within slagging coal gasifiers. The technology will include the development of a smart refractory brick, which will contain embedded temperature, strain/stress, and spallation sensors throughout the volume of the refractory brick. The project will also develop a method to interconnect the sensors to the reactor exterior, where the sensor signals will be processed by low-power electronics and transmitted wirelessly to a central processing hub. The data processing and wireless transmitter hardware will be specifically designed to be isolated (with low power consumption) and will be adaptable to future implementation of energy-harvesting strategies for extended life. The collected data will be used for model-based estimation of refractory degradation, which can help to monitor the health of the refractory in real time.

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Schematics depicting possible embedded sensor designs Source: West Virginia University Project Narratives

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Smart Refractory Sensor Systems for Wireless Monitoring of Temperature, Health, and Degradation of Slagging Gasifiers (March 2017)
Presented by Edward Sabolsky, West Virginia University Research Corportation, Project Review Meeting for Crosscutting Research, Gasification Systems, and Rare Earth Elements Research Portfolios, Pittsburgh, PA.
Smart Refractory Sensor Systems for Wireless Monitoring of Temperature, Health, and Degradation of Slagging Gasifiers (April 2016)
Presented by Edward M. Sabolsky, West Virginia University, 2016 NETL Crosscutting Technology Research Review Meeting, Pittsburgh, PA.
Smart Refractory Sensor Systems for Wireless Monitoring of Temperature, Health, and Degradation of Slagging Gasifiers (April 2015)
Presented by Edward Sabolsky, West Virginia University, 2015 NETL Crosscutting Technology Research Review Meeting, Pittsburgh, PA.

Principal Investigator

Edward Sabolsky

ed.sabolsky@mail.wvu.edu

Project Benefits

This project will demonstrate a high-temperature sensor concept for the monitoring of reaction conditions within slagging coal gasifiers. The development of a more reliable and non-intrusive method of monitoring gasifier temperature and refractory health is expected to result in lower operating and maintenance costs of slagging gasifiers. As well, the final sensor system development can be applied to other applications such as conventional coal-fired boiler technology, biomass gasification, and steel and glass manufacturing.

Project ID

FE0012383

Website

West Virginia University Research Corporation

http://hr.research.wvu.edu/