T. Afolabi Morakinyo^1,, A. Isaac Bamgboye²

This paper presented the optimization of the operational parameters of a biomass fire-in-tube boiler using Taguchi design method to enhance boiler thermal efficiency and throughput. Taguchi’s experimental design of orthogonal array L9 (3⁴) was employed to generate nine runs of experiment. Response surface method was used to optimize processing parameters and validated using Taguchi’s table. Experimental results were analyzed and dependent operation parameters were predicted using linear multiple regression modeling. Hence, coefficients of correlations were established using Karl Persons’s formula. The optimum operational parameters for boiler were 2 dm², 483.6 MJ, 100 L and 280 mm for aspirator orifice area, biomass composite, volume of cold water and vertical distance of fire grate to the kettle respectively. The coefficient of correlations between experimental and predicted values of super heated steam for temperature, pressure and volume were: 0.84, 0.96 and 0.89 respectively.

Taguchi design, optimization, biomass composite, vertical boiler, operation parameters