Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Completes Ammonia Combustion Test with Single-Fuel Burners

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) successfully completed a combustion test for an ammonia single-fuel burner as part of the development of ammonia utilization technology in thermal power generation boilers. MHI conducted the test using combustion test equipment at the Nagasaki District Research & Innovation Center in Nagasaki, Japan.

The test furnace operated with a fuel consumption rate of 0.5 tons per hour (t/h). The tests included a single-fuel burner test with an ammonia burner and a high-ratio ammonia co-firing test with coal. Both tests confirmed stable combustion, reduced NOx emissions compared to coal firing, and a complete combustion of the ammonia.

Ammonia combustion test equipment (0.5t/h furnace); Image Credits: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries

In addition to serving as an energy carrier for the transport and storage of hydrogen energy, ammonia can be used as a fuel for thermal power generation as it does not emit CO₂ during combustion. The test confirmed that the structure of the burner provides stable combustion of ammonia and reduction in NOx emissions, allowing for the application of the technology in thermal power generation boilers.

For the next phase of the project, MHI will conduct a combustion test using a full-size burner in a larger 4t/h combustion test furnace. Depending on the results, MHI will then take steps to apply the burner in thermal power plants in Japan and overseas. By fiscal year 2024, MHI plans to develop burners capable of ammonia single-fuel firing for circular firing and opposed firing burners.