SBIR-STTR Award

Outdoor wood-fired boilers (OWB) are gaining in popularity for heating homes. As energy prices have risen, sales of OWBs are doubling each year because they provide a lower cost solution and use renewable fuel. There is concern about their air emissions, however. OWBs typically emit 18 times the pollution of an EPA certified wood stove and there are currently no emission controls for OWBs. The proposed work is an effort to design and test a catalytic combustor system that can be retrofitted into existing OWBs to reduce their emissions. ATI has previously developed EPA-certified catalytic combustors for woodstoves and fireplaces based on our patented reticulated engineered ceramic supports and an oxidation catalyst(s). The system will provide a significant reduction of VOC and PM emissions, will be virtually maintenance free, and should be integrative to existing OWBs. Results will also impact the design of new OWBs to incorporate the catalytic combustors. The work plan is divided into three main areas: (1) data collection needed to develop the retrofit system; (2) design and selection of suitable components for the retrofit system, including the housing and the catalytic combustor; and (3) a prototype system will be fabricated and tested to act as a proof-of-concept to take the program to a Phase II for technology optimization. With 500,000 existing OWBs and many more being installed each year, there are large commercial markets for the proposed catalytic systems. Incorporating these catalytic systems into OWBs will create a large positive impact on air quality, particularly in the Northeast U.S., where the use of OWBs is most common

There is growing concern about the particulate pollution emitted by outdoor wood-fired boilers (0WBs) and their related health effects. These systems are also referred to as outdoor wood-fired hydronic heaters or outdoor wood-fired furnaces. There are currently over 500,000 OWBs installed, primarily in the northern US. During the Phase I SBIR project, a catalytic combustor system that can be retrofitted onto existing OWBs to reduce their emissions was designed and tested. Testing was conducted on a Central Boiler Model Classic 5036. Results showed that visible smoke emissions were greatly reduced and that particulate emissions were reduced over 50 percent and carbon monoxide emissions were reduced by 65 percent. The Phase II program will further develop testing and measurement protocols, determine the optimum combustor catalyst-support combination, examine supplemental air supply for the combustor redesign the retrofit unit for easy maintenance, conduct testing of non-ideal fuels, and conduct long-term testing. It is expected that results from these tasks will identify an optimum retrofit design for use on existing 0WBs. In the commercialization option program, application of the catalytic combustor to new OWB models and units other than Central Boiler will be examined