New developments and applications of the Steinmueller mass burn grate system

The L. and C. Steinmuller GmbH (LCS) mass burn grate system has been extensively used in numerous mass burn waterwall waste-to-energy (WTE) facilities around the world. Among those are three WTE plants in the US; Portland, Maine; Long Beach, California; and Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. Since these facilities started operations some 8--10 years ago, the Steinmuller mass burn grate system has undergone further development in order to adapt the system to new applications such as tire burning, burning of highly contaminated wood and the co-firing of sewage sludge, hospital waste and other portions of the waste stream. The paper gives a detailed overview of the new improved design of the grate and boiler system. The first section of the paper describes in detail the continuous improvement process for the design of the top supported boiler in conjunction with the grate hanging in the waterwalls. The new feed chute design and its modified geometry is described as well as the newly introduced high alloy cladding on the stoker side wall weartubes. The second section contains an outlook on the next generation of mass burn grate technology employing the new Steinmuller water cooled mass burn grate system, a quantum leap in stoker technology,more » Finally the paper summarizes the future potentials and directions of further research and development on the Steinmuller mass burn grate system for continuous applications well into the 21st century.« less