Experimental study of the combustion process of gaseous fuels containing nitrogen compounds with the use of new, low-emission Zonal Volumetric Combustion technology Dariusz Szewczyk a, * , Radoslaw Jankowski a , Rafal  Slefarski b , Jan Chmielewski a a ICS Industrial Combustion Systems Sp. z o.o., J. Ostroroga 17/1, 60-349 Poznan, Poland b Poznan University of Technology (PUT), Faculty of Machines and Transport, Chair of Thermal Engineering, Laboratory of Gas Technology (LTG), Piotrowo 3, 60-965 Poznan, Poland article info Article history: Received 18 December 2014 Received in revised form 23 April 2015 Accepted 24 April 2015 Available online 30 May 2015 Keywords: Zonal Volumetric Combustion NO X emission reduction LHV gases utilisation HiTAC technology Volumetric combustion IED/BAT abstract The article presents the description and the result of the test of the innovative Zonal Volumetric Com- bustion (ZVC) technology, applying several primary methods for the reduction of toxic compounds (mainly NO X , CO and C X H Y ) produced during the combustion of gaseous fuels, also those of a low calorific value like syngas, biogas, and waste gas of a different chemical composition, in industrial combustion systems. The experimental studies included the influence of nitrogenous compounds (NH 3 ) in the fuels on the total emission of NO X and CO. The ZVC technology was designed and developed by the ICS Company. It has been shown that the best conversion factor (CF), which describes the amount of NO X produced relative to the amount of nitrogen compounds in the fuel, was obtained for the case where in the reducing zone oxygen was at a very low level. Even with such a small amount of oxygen in the reducing zone of the combustion chamber, the measured CO emission was less than 5 ppm. The application of the above combustion technology in new and retrofit, large and medium com- bustion plants allows achieving the emission levels of toxic compounds lower than those resulting from the IED [12] and BAT conclusions [5]. © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction The EU climate and energy policy, e.g. among others introduced through the strategy “Europe 2020”, included [11]:  20% reduction in emissions,  20% increase in energy efficiency,  20% share of energy from renewable sources. Additionally, the new “EU 2030” climate and energy policy [1] included a target of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 40% by 2030, compared with the 1990 levels, as part of the road map target of 80% emission reduction by 2050. In general, the above mentioned EU strategies implied a far- reaching decarbonisation process especially in the energy pro- duction sector. The achievement of these goals imposes utilisation of new renewable fuels like: biomass, municipal solid waste, waste gases or syngas, through using innovative technologies in the field of high-efficiency, low-emission and small-scale distributed energy sources (particularly electricity) which are linked to the global network (smart grid). All technologies have to fulfil new, more restrictive emission limits regarding the utilisation of all fuels in the combustion pro- cess in the energy production sector. The limits are described in the Industrial Emission Directive (IED) [12] for Large Combustion Plants (LCP) to enter into force on 1st January 2016 and to be further tightened in 2019 under the BATconclusions (Best Available Tech- niques) [5] and the MCP Directive for Medium Combustion Plants in 2025 [6]. * Corresponding author. Tel.: þ48 618 866 918; fax: þ48 618 652 141. E-mail address: dariusz.szewczyk@icsco.eu (D. Szewczyk). Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Energy journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/energy http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.energy.2015.04.063 0360-5442/© 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Energy 92 (2015) 3e12