VAFF Vertical Atmospheric Flexi Fuel Furnace

VAFF consists mainly of a ceramic lined reactor with a top-mounted burner. Thermal power corresponds to about 100 kW. VAFF is a flexible facility that can be used for research experiments with many different types of liquid or powdered fuels, such as pyrolysis oils, bio-oils, wood powders, etc. The ability to vary oxidation media (e.g. air, pure oxygen (O2), water vapor, or combinations of these) makes VAFF a suitable facility for finding answers to current issues in both industry and academia. The range of variation for oxidation media enables experiments in areas such as oxygen-blown, biomass gasification and combustion experiments at elevated oxygen levels and/or oxyfuel conditions.

Associated analytical equipment and instrumentation quantify relevant gas components and any fly ash/particles. Optical access in combination with tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy (TDLAS) paves the way for the capacity to study rapid variations, and gas/particle concentrations in different parts of the reactor.