Course detail

Combustion and Fuels

FSI-LPSAcad. year: 2025/2026

The subject discusses the properties of fuels and the influence of these properties on the construction and operation of boilers in energy facilities. Fuels are divided into solid, liquid and gaseous. Fossil fuels are supplemented by alternative fuels. Great emphasis is placed on synthetic gaseous and liquid fuels and biofuels. Another area is the fuel management of solid, liquid and gaseous fuels, including mechanical treatment technologies, i.e. crushing, grinding and drying of fuels, equipment construction, operation and safety regulations during transport and disintegration, fuel handling (landfilling and transport), chipping, pelletizing and briquetting of biomass. The last area that students will be introduced to is the chemistry of combustion reactions and reaction kinetics. This knowledge will then be followed by the topics of burners and combustion chambers.

Language of instruction

Czech

Number of ECTS credits

5

Mode of study

Not applicable.

Guarantor

Ing. Pavel Milčák, Ph.D.

Department

Energy Institute (EÚ)

Entry knowledge

Knowledge of thermodynamics, basic laws of thermodynamics, heat transfer and flow of gases and vapors, turbomachinery and the subject of experimental methods. Knowledge of practical application of fuel combustion, boiler, furnace or small fuel consumers is recommended.

Rules for evaluation and completion of the course

For granting the credit is required attendance in exercises, active performed of calculations, as well as the credit test according to the assignment. The exam is written and oral.
Controlled participation in lessons: Exercises are compulsory. The student will be compensated for absence by agreement with the tutor. Lectures are optional.

Aims

The subject focuses on fuels, their characteristics and influence on the construction and operation of energy facilities. Fuels are divided into solid, liquid and gaseous. Fossil fuels are supplemented by alternative fuels. Great emphasis is placed on synthetic gaseous and liquid fuels and biofuels.
The second part of the subject focuses on the design and construction of transport, storage and preparation of fuels equipment before their combustion.
Prerequisites and co-requisites Knowledge of physical chemistry with focus on combustion of fossil and alternative fuels, as well as in the field of fuel preparation and fuel economy in industrial applications.

Study aids

Study supports are located on e-learning.

Prerequisites and corequisites

Not applicable.

Basic literature

ATKINS, P. W. (Peter William). Physical chemistry. 6th ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998. ISBN 0-19269068-x. (EN)
BOYCE FELLOW, American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME. Gas Turbine Engineering Handbook (4th Edition). 4th ed. Chantilly: Elsevier, 2012. ISBN 0123838428. Dostupné z: https://doi.org/10.1016/C2009-0-64242-2. (EN)
GLASSMAN IRVIN. Combustion (5th Edition). Elsevier, 2015. ISBN 012407913X. Dostupné z: https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-088573-2.X0001-2. (EN)
MUKHOPADHYAY, Achintya a SEN, Swarnendu. Fundamentals of combustion engineering. Boca Raton: CRC Press, 2019. ISBN 978-1-4822-3330-8. (EN)
PETERS, Bernhard. Thermal conversion of solid fuels. Southampton: WIT, 2003. ISBN 1-85312-953-4. (EN)

Recommended reading

Not applicable.

Classification of course in study plans

  • Programme N-ETI-P Master's

    specialization ENI , 2 year of study, winter semester, compulsory

Type of course unit

 

Lecture

26 hod., optionally

Teacher / Lecturer

Ing. Pavel Milčák, Ph.D.

Syllabus

1. THERMODYNAMICS AND MODELING OF PROCESSES IN THE FIELD OF FUELS AND COMBUSTION – ideal and real behavior of gases, specific heat capacity, internal energy, enthalpy.
2. BALANCE OF FUELS AND THERMOCHEMICAL CONVERSION PRODUCTS – system balance, derivation of statics of combustion reactions for a selected fuel.
3. SOLID FUELS – fuel classification, characteristic properties of solid fuels – coal, biomass, waste.
4. INFLUENCE OF SOLID FUEL PROPERTIES ON THE CONSTRUCTION AND OPERATION OF BOILERS – calorific value, moisture content, ash content, volatile matter, nitrogen, sulfur, chlorine.
5. GASEOUS FUELS – industrial gaseous fuels, biogas, methods of treating-upgrading gaseous fuels.
6. GASEOUS FUELS – hydrogen, synthetic gas from the gasification process, synthetic methane.
7. GAS TURBINES COMBUSTION CHAMBERS – process balance, design, operation.
8. LIQUID FUELS – petroleum derivatives, bioethanol, methyl ester, synthetic liquid fuels from the process of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide hydrogenation.
9. PREPARATION AND TRANSPORT OF SOLID FUELS – transport, emptying, storage, tanks, conveyors – potential risks of fire and explosion.
10. MILLING CIRCUITS – types of mills, drying, inertization.
11. FUEL MANAGEMENT OF LIQUID AND GASEOUS FUELS – transport, storage.
12. CHEMICAL EQUILIBRIUM OF COMBUSTION REACTIONS, COMBUSTION KINETICS.
13. BURNERS – solid, liquid, gaseous fuels.

Computer-assisted exercise

26 hod., compulsory

Teacher / Lecturer

Ing. Pavel Milčák, Ph.D.

Syllabus

1. Calculation of changes in the compressibility factor for air components at different and pressures. Commenting on the effect of neglecting real gas properties on the accuracy. Recalculation of the solid fuel composition.
2. Stoichiometry of solid fuel, calculation of air quantity and flue gas production. Mass balance check.
3. Determination of the dew point temperature of flue gases, determination of saturation temperatures of other gases. Balance calculation of daily fuel consumption for the boiler of the Maloměřice heating plant (ktM). Area required for the growth of rapidly growing biomass for boiler consumption.
4. Calculation of the air fan power for a grate boiler (ktM) burning biomass.
5. Analysis of the capacity of municipal waste incineration plants in the Czech Republic. Analysis of existing sources, analysis of projects before implementation and plan, comparison with production of waste, calculation of steam production from the amount with the composition of SAKO Brno waste, combustion diagram of the grate and boiler, explanation of operating states.
6. Calculation of the uncooled flame temperature for a grate boiler (ktM) burning biomass.
7. Analysis of the effect of changing operating conditions on the uncooled flame temperature. Effect of the input material moisture, effect of the excess air coefficient, effect of air enrichment with oxygen, effect of recirculated flue gases (temperature, recirculation ratio).
Finding the current composition of natural gas for Brno, conversion to the molar fraction of hydrogen in the range of 0-100%.
8. Preparatory calculations for the combustion chamber of a combustion turbine operating with a natural gas and hydrogen mixture.
9. Calculation of the uncooled flame temperature for the combustion chamber of a combustion turbine operating with a mixture of natural gas and hydrogen. Creation of a compressor model.
10. Expansion model in the turbine. Mass and energy balance.
11. Assessment of the effect of adding hydrogen in the mixture on the combustion turbine as a whole.
12. Chemical equilibrium and kinetics of combustion reactions.
13. Credit test