Reliable combustion requires more than simply confirming that a flame is present.
Industrial burners, boilers, furnaces, ovens, heaters, and other thermal processes depend on multiple systems working together. Flame monitoring provides critical visibility into burner flame conditions, while the control system manages the broader process conditions, sequences, interlocks, and safety functions that support reliable operation.
For facilities already using or considering advanced flame monitoring, taking a broader look at combustion control can be the next step toward a more complete burner management strategy.
That is where Honeywell IFM650 Advanced Flame Monitoring System and ControlEdge™ HC900 can complement one another.
Start With the Flame: Honeywell IFM650
Flame monitoring is a critical part of industrial combustion.
The Honeywell IFM650 Advanced Flame Monitoring System is designed to provide reliable flame monitoring for demanding burner applications. The system combines the S650 Viewing Head with the P650 Signal Processor, giving operators greater visibility into flame conditions.
By continuously monitoring the flame, the system helps determine whether the burner is operating as expected and provides critical flame information to the burner management system.
But detecting the flame is only one part of managing the overall combustion process.
Go Beyond Monitoring With ControlEdge™ HC900
A combustion system also needs dependable control of the process surrounding that flame.
Honeywell’s ControlEdge™ HC900 is designed for process and safety applications, including burner management and combustion control. SIL 2-certified configurations can support safety-related control requirements in demanding thermal processes.
This allows facilities to address a broader range of combustion functions from process conditions and operating sequences to permissives, interlocks, alarms, and shutdown logic.
Put simply:
IFM650 monitors what is happening at the flame.
HC900 helps control what is happening throughout the process.
A More Complete Approach to Combustion
Combining advanced flame monitoring with capable process and safety control creates an opportunity to look at burner management as a complete system rather than a collection of individual components.
For facilities operating boilers, furnaces, ovens, process heaters, kilns, thermal oxidizers, and similar equipment, that broader approach can help support:
Enhanced Safety
Reliable flame monitoring combined with appropriate safety and process control helps operators respond to abnormal combustion conditions.
Improved Reliability
Better visibility into flame conditions and coordinated process control can help facilities identify issues before they develop into larger operational problems.
Consistent Operation
Managing burner sequences, process conditions, permissives, and interlocks alongside flame monitoring helps support repeatable burner operation.
Simplified System Strategy
Using complementary Honeywell technologies can provide a more cohesive approach to flame monitoring, combustion control, and burner management.
Already Using Honeywell Flame Monitoring?
If your facility already relies on Honeywell Thermal Solutions equipment or flame monitoring technology, it may be worth asking a broader question:
What is controlling the rest of your combustion process?
Adding advanced flame monitoring doesn’t necessarily mean the rest of the burner management system should remain unchanged. Likewise, upgrading process control presents an opportunity to evaluate whether the flame-monitoring technology is keeping pace.
The goal isn’t simply to add another product.
It’s to determine whether the different parts of the combustion system are working together to provide the visibility, control, and safety your operation requires.
Don't Forget the Fundamentals
Even advanced technology depends on proper system design, startup, testing, and verification.
Before putting a burner management system into operation, teams should verify critical components and functions from flame detection and fuel-train components to permissives, interlocks, trips, and shutdown sequences.
We’ve put together 10 practical checks that can make industrial combustion easier to manage and help reduce nuisance trips.
Is Your Burner Management System Ready for Startup?
Read our Burner Management System Startup Checklist: 10 Checks That Make Industrial Combustion Easier to Manage (and Reduce Nuisance Trips).
