CLEARSIGN TECHNOLOGIES CORPORATION — Department of Energy SBIR Phase II: C54-21c

Description

Industrial heating processes are a significant contribution to global carbon emissions. There is an urgent need to reduce these emissions by decarbonizing such processes. While transitioning to hydrogen-based fuels is a promising solution, there are no existing process burners that can operate with 100% hydrogen and still comply with strict NOx emission requirements. To tackle this challenge, ClearSign Technologies Corporation is developing a state-of-the-art process burner that can efficiently operate on 100% hydrogen fuel, as well as on various blends of gaseous fuel blends, while maintaining ultra-low NOx emissions below 5 ppm. This advanced technology will play a crucial role in supporting the oil & gas industry's decarbonization efforts and promoting the adoption of green hydrogen as a primary fuel source. It is in line with the DOE's interest in advancing cleaner industrial processes for the benefit of the public. Building on its existing ClearSign Core™ technology and their success in Phase I, the overall objective of the combined Phase I and Phase II projects is to create a scalable, easy-to-install solution that meets stringent performance requirements and can be tailored to various customer needs. In Phase I, ClearSign successfully demonstrated a prototype process burner capable of operating on 100% hydrogen fuel, achieving ultra-low NOx emissions below 5 ppm for the first time. The insights gained from Phase I will help to optimize and scale the burner design in the Phase II work. Phase II will see ClearSign focusing on further developing the technology by increasing the burner size from 2 MMBtu/hr to 4 MMBtu/hr and integrating the design elements from Phase I with their original natural gas burner. The result will be a fuel-flexible burner that meets rigorous performance standards, such as ultra-low NOx emissions (< 5 ppm), CO emission requirements, wide turndown ratio (~5:1), and efficient operation at various oxygen levels (3%-5%). The project will also scale up to an 8 MMBTU/hr burner to test multi-burner configurations and assess interactions between burners. Ultimately, ClearSign will develop a suite of internal design tools during Phase II testing to adapt the technology for different sizes (1-20 MMBTU/hr) and multi-burner configurations. A major advantage of this technology is its complete fuel flexibility, allowing refineries to install the burners immediately and use them with their current fuel sources without any disruption to their processes. This capability will enable a smooth transition to hydrogen as it becomes more available and cost-effective. The commercial applications and other benefits of this technology include assisting the refining industry in moving towards 100% hydrogen operations, significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions, facilitating cleaner industrial processes, and promoting environmental sustainability.