Abstract: Emissions of sulfur oxides produced during combustion of a sulfur-bearing fossil fuel in a furnace chamber 10 are reduced by injecting a sulfur oxide absorbing particulate into the product gases in an upper region 60 of the furnace chamber. The sulfur oxide absorbing material is dispersed into a quantity of air which is introduced in the furnace chamber through a plurality of nozzles 80, 82 and 84 disposed at different elevations. The air streams with entrained absorbent are introduced at each elevation tangent to an imaginary circle, with the radii of the circles of the elevations being different, thereby distributing the sulfur oxide absorbent over a wide volume of the furnace chamber.

Abstract: The method of operating a furnace including the steps of conveying (30) pulverized coal in an air stream towards a furnace (10), separating (34) the stream into two portions (36,38), one being a fuel rich portion (38), and the other being a fuel lean portion (36), introducing (40) the fuel rich portion into the furnace in a first zone, introducing (42,44) air into the first zone in a quantity insufficient to support complete combustion of all of the fuel in the fuel rich portion, introducing (46) the fuel lean portion into the furnace in a second zone, introducing (48) air into the second zone in a quantity such that there is excess air over that required for combustion of all of the fuel within the furnace, and introducing (50) lime into the furnace simultaneously with the fuel, so as to minimize the peak temperature within the furnace, and also minimize the formation of NO.sub.x and SO.sub.x in the combustion gases.