In the realm of chemical process industries, where sustainability initiatives are gaining momentum, hydrogen emerges as a key player in the journey towards decarbonization. A groundbreaking collaboration between ExxonMobil Corp. and Zeeco, Inc. seeks to bring 100 percent hydrogen-ready burners into commercial fruition. Zeeco’s latest innovation, the Free Jet Gen 3 burner, boasts a cutting-edge design that facilitates ultra-low emissions of oxides of nitrogen while enabling the use of 100 percent hydrogen as fuel—a significant step towards reducing CO2 emissions compared to traditional fuels like natural gas.
The strategic partnership between Zeeco and ExxonMobil sets the stage for deploying these innovative burners at ExxonMobil’s Baytown Complex in Texas, a leading integrated petrochemicals and petroleum refining site. Eric Pratchard, director of burner technologies at Zeeco, underscores the collaborative effort: “In collaboration with ExxonMobil, we identified a need for a process refining burner that would allow the site to switch to a cleaner hydrogen fuel and provide or produce either similar or improved emissions results compared to what they would typically have had with a more traditional refinery fuel-gas blend.”
The initiative aligns seamlessly with Baytown’s ambitions to slash greenhouse gas emissions by up to 30 Percent. Mark Klewpatinond, hydrogen global business manager at ExxonMobil, emphasizes the importance of robust burner technology in achieving emissions reduction targets: “This burner technology is critical for our site to achieve emissions-reduction goals. If we’re going to switch from an incumbent fuel like natural gas to hydrogen, we need a robust burner we can place into our boilers and furnaces to ensure that we can combust hydrogen whilst remaining within our permit limits with regards to NOx.”
The design of the burners incorporates innovative techniques to address the challenges posed by hydrogen combustion, particularly in managing NOx levels. Pratchard explains the design process: “We took the traditional concept of internal fluegas recirculation and we tried to find additional, more creative ways to delay the reaction, both through the interaction of the air with the fuel, and in ways to further lean the fuel out before it reached a certain point.”
The pilot deployment of these burners at Baytown demonstrates their versatility and ease of integration into existing operations, without necessitating full shutdowns. Klewpatinond emphasizes the role of partnerships in facilitating emissions reduction efforts: “It’s through partnerships like this that we hope to lower the barrier of adoption for organizations to reduce emissions and do it as easily as possible.” This collaborative effort between ExxonMobil and Zeeco represents a significant stride towards a cleaner, more sustainable future in the CPI sector.
For more information visit www.zeeco.com
