The invention relates to a system and process for hydrogen combustion for industrial or steam generation applications, and more particularly to a hydrogen combustion burner or retrofit kit combustion system and process using a primary pure hydrogen fuel source. The burner or retrofit kit combustion system and process may also use one or more secondary fuels, such as natural gas, methane, propane, or the like, to reduce emissions of CO.sub.2. Additionally, the inventive burner, system and process can use a flame temperature reducing fluid for lowering the bulk flame temperature of the burner to increase equipment life and decrease equipment failure. The flame temperature reducing fluid can include flue gas recirculation (FGR), water injection, steam injection, and a combination thereof.

A water heater according to the present invention includes: a heating unit that includes a burner provided to cause a combustion reaction from air and fuel, and that is provided to generate heated water by using heat generated by the combustion reaction; and a humidifier unit that generates water steam by evaporating water using a combustion gas generated by the combustion reaction and discharged from the heating unit, and provides the water steam together with the air to the burner.

A method and an apparatus for treating comminuted waste material the method comprising: •a) providing a heating chamber (28) and one or more combustion heating means (40a-f) for heating the contents of the heating chamber (28), the heating chamber (28) having an inlet (21) and an outlet (22), •b) feeding comminuted waste material through the inlet (21) and into the heating chamber (28); •c) heating the comminuted waste material in the heating chamber (28), using the combustion heating means (40a-f), to generate a combustible gas; and •d) supplying at least a portion of the generated combustible gas to the one or more combustion heating means (40a-f) for heating the heating chamber (28).

A method of treating comminuted waste material, the method comprises: a) feeding comminuted waste material into a heating chamber (28); b) introducing steam into the heating chamber (28); c) contacting the steam and comminuted waste material; d) heating the steam and comminuted waste material to generate a combustible gas; and e) altering or controlling the ratio of steam to comminuted waste material such that the generated combustible gas comprises a target amount (e.g. value or percentage) of a component thereof.

The present disclosure provides for improving flame propagation in a combustor, particularly in a combustor for use in a power production system and method. At least one stream being passed into the combustor (e.g., a fuel, an oxidant, a diluent, a coolant, a working fluid, water, or steam) can be independently heated to a temperature that is about the autoignition temperature of the fuel or greater. Further, flame stabilization, including promoting ignition, can be improved as described herein through controlled addition of one or more NOx species into the combustor or combustion chamber.

Disclosed herein are embodiments of a flare control method and a flare apparatus for automatically controlling, in real-time, the flow of one or more of fuel, steam, and air to a flare. The disclosed embodiments advantageously allow for automated control over a wide spectrum of operating conditions, including emergency operations, and planned operations such as startup and shutdown.

A burner for producing a stabilized flame with an inertisation front upstream from the stabilized flame includes a swirl generator and an inlet device with a passage therethrough. The swirl generator swirls an inert process medium about a swirl axis in a flow direction and one or more openings in the inlet device provide one or more partial mass flows containing combustion educts. The inert process medium inhibits combustion of the combustion educts through the inertisation front to displace the stabilized flame from the one or more openings.

An assisted flare apparatus and method which increase the amount of air which is inducted into each of the flare combustion tip assemblies used in the apparatus by injecting the steam or other assist media used in each tip assembly into an inner conduit of the tip assembly which is configured such that at least a lower portion of the inner conduit is in the form of a venturi flow structure in which a straight venturi flow section is followed by a diverging venturi bell outlet section.

A process for in situ thermal recovery of hydrocarbons from a reservoir is provided. The process includes: providing an oxygen-enriched mixture, fuel, feedwater and an additive including at least one of ammonia, urea and a volatile amine to a Direct-Contact Steam Generator (DCSG); operating the DCSG, including contacting the feedwater and the additive with hot combustion gas to obtain a steam-based mixture including steam, CO.sub.2 and the additive; injecting the steam-based mixture or a stream derived from the steam-based mixture into the reservoir to mobilize the hydrocarbons therein; and producing a produced fluid including the hydrocarbons.

The invention is directed to a method for reducing NOx emission from an industrial process furnace comprising a firebox containing a burner and a tube, which method comprises subjecting an oxidant gas and/or a fuel gas (1) to humidification, thereby obtaining a humidified gas; and pre-heating the humidified gas with an external waste heat stream (20) before feeding the gas to the burner.