1. Energy Research Centre

2. Varkaus and Varkaus Campus
• Varkaus is an integral part of Finland’s largest and internationally
recognised energy cluster focusing on combustion and heat
exchange technologies.
• Varkaus is host to a range of companies manufacturing generation
plants and energy-related products and employing over 1,000
people.
• The mission of the Varkaus campus Energy Research Centre of the
Savonia University of Applied Sciences is to contribute to the energy
expertise available in the region and offer related services to
companies in Finland and worldwide.
Energy Research Centre 27.5.2016

3. • The Energy Research Centre offers customer-responsive
energy research services for technology companies and public-
sector actors.
• The Centre provides facilities for studying, developing and
testing the combustion, corrosive behaviour and emissions
and emission control potential of recycled fuels, woodchips,
peat and pyrolysis oil in both fire grate and fluidized bed
environments.
• Additionally, the Energy Technology Laboratory offers a wide
range of measuring and analysis tools for assessing the
operation and energy performance of machinery and
processes in both laboratory and field conditions.
Energy Research Centre 27.5.2016
Energy Research Centre

4. Fluidized bed boiler
• The fluidized bed boiler is the ‘heart’ of the Research
Centre. With a maximum output of 300 kW, it is a
drop-flue boiler comprising four segments. It is
8,150 mm high with a flue gas volume of 600 nm3/h
and a firebox diameter of 494 mm.
• The fluidized bed design makes it possible to study the
effect of fuels and mixing ratios on the production of
flue gases, the impact of air feed rates on combustion,
and the impact of the recycled gas feed on the boiler.
Additionally, the boiler features a large number of
measuring unions for monitoring temperature
behaviour in the various zones of the boiler.
• The flue gases exiting the fluidized bed boiler can be led
to the smokestack via a filter or to a corrosion testing
chamber to determine the corrosive properties of the
flue gas and the impact of the various fuels on the
corrosive properties of these gases.

6. Burner system for pyrolysis oil
• The Research Centre houses a special boiler equipped with a
pyrolysis oil burner and the necessary ancillary equipment.
• With a maximum output of 500 kW, the pyrolysis burner generates
a flame with a diameter of 0.6 m and a length of 2.1 m. Using the
pyrolysis oil burner system, it is possible to study problems related
to the sedimentation of oil; carry out start-up tests with oil; reduce
the corrosive effect of oil and its consequences through testing; and
reduce boiler contamination by pyrolysis oil and its consequences.
• From the pyrolysis oil burner and boiler, the flue gases can be
passed through various scrubbers while performing a range of
measurements to determine gas components and particle
concentrations. Alternatively, the flue gases exiting the pyrolysis
boiler can be passed through a corrosion testing chamber to
determine the corrosive behaviour and contamination of various
heat exchangers in the given flue gas stream.

8. Fuel containers
Ash disposal
system
Leveling silo
Limestone
and sand
silos
Flight
conveyor
Ammonia
feeding
system
Fluidized
bed boiler
Grate
boiler
Electrostatic
precipitator
Pyrolysis oil
burner
system
Material testing chamber
Chimney
Accumulator
Bag filter
Radiator
Automation system

9. Testing and development services
Fuel analyses
Bio oil sedimentation
and deposition testing
Boiler and heat
exchanger material
testing in materials
testing chamber
Corrosion testing of
boiler materials using
a corrosion probe
Bio oil burner and
combustion testing
and oil behaviour and
performance tests

10. Testing and development services
Fluidized bed performance
test with complex fuels
Ash characteristics with
various mixed fuels and ash
elements analysis (SEM)
Tests of the effect of
contamination on the
operating model, ash
behaviour and corrosion
Flue gas analyses
Serving as a reference
particle emission measuring
station
Scrubber testing with
different flue gas streams
Hybrid system, heat
exchanger and reservoir
testing services
Fibre-based distributed
temperature measurements
(DTS)

11. Training services
• The research facilities are also used for the
provision of basic and advanced education
in energy technology. At the same time,
they serve as a learning environment for
customised training projects.

12. Contact Information
Lecturer Jukka Huttunen, M.Sc. (Tech.)
Email: jukka.huttunen@savonia.fi
Mobile: +358 044 785 5765
Savonia University of Applied Sciences
Energy Research Centre
P.O. Box 1000 (Opiskelijankatu 3),
FI-78201 Varkaus, Finland

13. www.savonia.fi
energiatutkimus.savonia.fi