A study of the heat transfer processes between an over-bed burner flame and a fluidized bed during start-up as been conducted Owing to the difficulty of estimating the flame to bed convection coefficient in an industrial boiler, convection coefficients were determined using a laboratory bench scale unit. Such convection heat transfer coefficients are obtained for 3 kg, 4 kg and 5 5 kg initial bed inventories by combining measured temperatures and flow rates with a mathematical model representing the complex energy exchange in the system. Results show that the height of the fluidized bed and its distance to the flame are an important factor in the overall heat transfer process, both by convection and radiation For 5 5 kg, 4 kg and 3 kg initial bed inventories, the convection coefficients obtained, at the end of start-up. are 180 +/- 30 W/m(2) K, 150 +/- 20 W/m(2) K and 95 +/- 10 W/m(2) K respectively The determined convection coefficients can be utilized in the future as guides in the design of start-up systems for BFB boilers The energy analysis performed also identified the major sources of heat losses in the bubbling fluidized bed. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd All rights reserved