Interfacing an Embedded Wireless Sensor Network for Monitoring the Temperature of Coal Gasifiers

Malik Mukdadi*, Alex DiLello, Steven Andryzcik, and David Graham

Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV 26506

Presentation Category: Physical Sciences & Engineering (Poster Presentation #151)

Student’s Major: Electrical and Computer Engineering

Coal gasification is the process of producing synthetic gas (syngas) from coal, water, and air and/or oxygen through intense heating: the produced syngas is more efficient than traditional natural gas for electricity generation. However, the byproducts from the intense heating cause degradation of the gasifier. Currently, there is a greater need for more electric consumption efficiency of battery-powered electronics due to the increase in popularity for Internet-of-Things through wireless protocols such as WiFi, 5G, and Bluetooth. The objective of this work was to connect a low-power wireless sensor system with refractory bricks to model and design a “smart-brick” that reliably collects data to monitor the temperature of the gasifier to prevent degradation. The brick was embedded with a thermally sensitive resistor, which results in numerical outputs. A resistive-sensing circuit was designed utilizing solely a traditional Wheatstone bridge and two operational amplifiers. As the smart brick’s resistance changed with temperature, a change in voltage was measured through an analog-to-digital converter (ADC). This resulted in transmittable data between the smart brick and a base station. Data was collected and analyzed using multiple Arduino Nano 33 IoTs which supports the Internet-of-Things and Bluetooth Low Energy. The Arduinos successfully transmitted data that was utilized to monitor significant temperature changes of the gasifier. However, the built-in ADC of the Arduino limited the precision of the transmitted data. This work contributed to the development of an alarm system while monitoring the health of the smart bricks in the coal gasifiers.

Funding: Department of Energy

Program/mechanism supporting research/creative efforts: Other, Undergraduate Research Assistant - Paid