A review on research and development of CFB combustion technology in China

The development history and present status of the circulating fluidized bed combustion (CFBC) technology in China are reviewed. This technology has been developed for nearly 40 years since the early 1980s in China, and its development history can be divided into five stages, including a learning stage, an improvement stage, a scale-up stage, a maturing stage, and an ultra-low emission and ultra-supercritical stage. There are currently >3500 units of CFB boilers operating in the country, with unit capacities covering the range of 35-2000 t/h in steam output, mainly used for coal firing. Among the units, the world's first 600 MW supercritical CFB boiler was successfully demonstrated in 2014 and was regarded as a milestone of CFBC technology in the world. CFB boilers are playing an important role in thermal and power generation in China. Several achievements in engineering application and fundamental research are achieved. The reviewed history and achievements could be used as references for researchers and engineers in future CFBC technology development. At the end of the paper, the prospects of CFBC technology in the area of carbon neutralization are discussed. Though the application in coal combustion is shrinking, CFBC technology will play an important role in CO2 reduction and carbon neutralization.