The oil heating industry is keeping ahead of the game and should be ready to comply with the new lower NOx emission legislation on a range of appliances before the September 2018 deadline, says OFTEC.
New requirements on flue gas emissions, covered by the Energy Related Products (ErP) Directive, state that from September 2018, NOx emissions from oil boilers must not exceed 120mg/kWh.
To meet these new levels, burner manufacturers such as Riello and EOGB have developed a range of low NOx burners.
Riello has developed its RDB BX burner which allows for the recirculation of combustion gases within the flame tube, creating lower NOx and CO emissions. One key benefit is that the combustion head is a proven Riello design and has been re-engineered to simply fit into existing high efficiency boilers.
Ahead of time, Riello has also produced the RDB BLU, a blue flame burner which meets the more stringent NOx levels expected in 2022. New components include UV flame detection and a high-spec digital control box featuring fault diagnostics and status indications.
At the same time, EOGB has a range of commercial burners meeting the new targets and has also developed a fully modulating low NOx blue flame burner for domestic applications with an operating range of 10-30Kw, which will be officially launched next year. The new burner is likely to already meet more challenging NOx reduction levels expected in 2022.
Amongst its standout features, the versatile model offers full electronic control of fuel and air management, UV flame scanner and diagnostic plugin capabilities, plus low voltage variable speed fans as standard for further energy saving. In addition, EOGB’s burner management system can be tailored to suit different manufacturers’ heat exchangers.
EOGB’s new control system will also allow the burner to operate as fully modulating, two stage or on/off; or two stages for heating and third stage for hot water demand if utilised with a combination boiler.
OFTEC CEO, Paul Rose, commented: “Innovation throughout the oil heating industry remains strong with improved performance condensing boilers, better controls, wireless fuel monitoring and importantly, with the new ErP legislation looming, the development of low NOx burners and boilers.
“Manufacturers such as Riello and EOGB have risen to the challenge and not only produced burners which meet the new 2018 standards, but also developed models in anticipation of the next round of ErP regulations in 2022 which are expected to enforce even lower NOx levels. Although, of course, how these standards affect the UK will be governed by our relationship with the EU in six years’ time.”
In 2014, OFTEC helped secure a major win for the industry, challenging an EU standard which would have required oil heating appliances to meet NOx levels as low as 92mg/kWh by 2018. This level can only be achieved with a blue flame burner rather than the yellow flame burners currently in use.
Riello Managing Director, Barry Gregory, commented: “It was very important from the outset of the RDB BX and RDB BLU projects to ensure that, despite the burners having to incorporate new combustion technology, they could be integrated into boiler design with little disruption.
“The RDB BLU burner is still very simple to commission and service with minimal additional adjustments required over the existing yellow flame burners. Riello will continue to innovate to meet and exceed the requirements of manufacturers and contribute to the further evolvement of the oil heating industry.”
EOGB Technical Director, Martin Cooke, added “The oil industry is having to adapt to comply with forthcoming NOx reductions and the pressure is on burner manufacturers to come up with a suitable solution.
“EOGB believes the oil industry still has a positive future, hence our significant investment to produce the next generation of oil burners that will ensure the industry continues to provide heat for many more years to come.”
