Thermography in H2 combustion

Why is thermography so important in the combustion of gases, especially hydrogen (H2)?

"In hydrogen combustion, it is essential to measure temperatures, especially when we are talking about hydrogen (H2). Because the flame cannot be seen, it is invisible to the human eye. " - Isabel Alava, Head of the Combustion Laboratory at IKERLAN.

Isabel Álava is a Senior Researcher at IKERLAN, a technology center specialized in industrial digitalization and technology transfer to companies, belonging to the Mondragon Group and the BRTA - Basque Research & Technology Alliance. She is currently Head of the Combustion Laboratory, with more than 20 years of experience working in the company.

We are fortunate to be able to talk to her to tell us how the collaboration between Grupo Álava and Ikerlan came about. Not only do they use the Teledyne FLIR thermal imaging cameras that we provide them with to monitor temperatures, but also as a security element.

We are dedicated to energy, combustion, design and development of efficient systems, heat transfer processes and optimization. Both at domestic and industrial level, for sectors such as heating and cooking. We have been working on combustion issues for more than 20 years and we have a laboratory that we will inaugurate in 2019, which apart from being designed to test and validate conventional gases and fuels, we have built it as a laboratory for 100% hydrogen. Green hydrogen, generated and produced from renewable energies, is part of one of the key technologies for the decarbonization of the planet. We have all the protocol, detection systems... That's mainly what we do in the combustion group, which is included in the mechanical unit.

We have quite a wide range of customers, and our key activity today is hydrogen. We're taking a toll on the planet... CO2 reduction through the use of hydrogen as a fuel, being able to develop solutions that are not available today. There is no technology for hydrogen combustion, there are no hydrogen burners, there are no systems to detect hydrogen. So, we can say that we are at the forefront of technological development.

We have been working together for many years now, because one of the key technologies we use to monitor, design, develop and validate the systems we optimize, improve or design is infrared thermography. Knowing what temperatures are in the burner, whether the heat distribution is homogeneous or not, is very interesting. For us it is a key tool, but especially when we are talking about hydrogen, because it is transparent to the visible. We can see a natural gas flame, but not a hydrogen flame. So the only way to detect it is by temperature, by infrared thermography. We are not only using the Teledyne FLIR thermal imaging cameras that you provided us with to monitor temperature, but as a safety feature.

It allows us to monitor flame temperatures, specifically hydrogen, up to 2000ºC, something that other versions of other chambers would not allow us to do. It's a technology that suits us very well. And I talk about hydrogen, but historically I could talk about when we have developed burners for gas ovens, where you have to see if the heat of the system is homogeneous inside the oven. In short, there are infinite problems that we solve with this technology.

We work from design, product improvement, testing, validation and even pre-certification testing levels. We are not a certification center, but we guarantee the customer that the product we have developed is at an industrialization level. We use the tool on a daily basis, depending on where we are in the project, design, validation, and especially validation of results.

We have to have tools in the laboratory that allow us to validate the theoretical models we are using. Thermography is one of the basic tools, along with other types of tools. In hydrogen combustion it is fundamental to monitor temperatures, because the flame is not visible. You can be burning hydrogen, but because you can't see it, you run the risk of getting burned.

Positive, close and reliable. When I have a technical need, I make a call, you try to solve it, or you give me names of reference centers or institutions that have had the same problem.

Then, in addition, from time to time we usually ask for training courses. It comes in handy when we purchase a product, because we have our own "vices" in the use of the tool. It is always good to be close to a supplier like you.