The uncooled, compact external camera for thermal monitoring and mapping of any object inside a kiln, furnace, boiler or reactor. Pyroscan-U increases efficiency in Waste-To-Energy facilities around the world.

In the United States alone, we generate 254 million tons of trash. About 29% of this is recycled, 63.5% is landfilled and 7.6% is processed at waste-to-energy facilities according to the Energy Recovery Council.

Waste-to-energy is a technology used around the world to generate clean, renewable energy from the sustainable management of municipal solid waste. With 7.6% of America’s waste processed through these facilities, more than 30 million tons of trash per year are burnt in these plants. Each ton of waste that is burnt and converted to energy can power a household for a month. As the number of waste-to-energy plants in the United States continue to grow, we must now look at improving the efficiency of these plants.

Over the last two years, HGH Infrared Systems has developed a unique algorithm specially designed in partnership with a worldwide leader in waste incineration to provide accurate flame-front detection in furnaces of waste-to-energy plants. This ruggedized HD camera, Pyroscan-U, is positioned outside the calcination chamber or high temperature burning zone of furnaces, boilers, incinerators or reactors, looking through a standard window. It works at ambient temperature, without any cooling system, and captures images that are processed by a dedicated powerful software, and the results of this analysis are sent through OPC to DCS (distributed control systems) in real time. Through the software, the user can view thermal information for any point within the field of view including: temperature, temperature profile and temperature profile evolution; features such as flame-front monitoring are also available.

When integrated with the control software of the furnace, it allows real-time stabilization of the location of the flame-front along the grate, thus improving overall efficiency, significantly reducing the residual amount of unburnt organic materials in the clinker, and avoiding excessive wear of the furnace.

Pyroscan-U, as well as the cooled version of the camera, Pyroscan, can be used in industries processing high heat in combustion processing such as: pulp, paper, lime, alumina, ceramics, metal processing and casting, waste incineration, coal or fuel burners and boilers. Plus, this equipment is guaranteed to have zero maintenance, a low environmental footprint and minimal infrastructure and hardware costs for an overall cost-effective tool to help ensure improved efficiency in these harsh burning environments.