Research Paper on

STEAM POWER PLANT: BOILER OPERATION

AND THE PRODUCTION OF STEAM.

Submitted by: Berin,Jherel M

Submitted to: Engr. Masangcay

I.

Introduction
A boiler is an enclosed vessel in which water is heated and
circulated, either as hot water, steam, or superheated steam for the
purpose of heating, powering, and/or producing electricity. The furnace of
the boiler is where the fuel and air are introduced to combust; fuel/ air
mixtures are normally introduced into the furnace by using burners, where
the flames are formed. The resulting hot gases travel through a series of
heat exchangers, where heat is transferred to the water flowing through
them. The combustion gases are finally released to the atmosphere via
the stack of exhaust section of the boiler.

II.

Boiler Types and Classifications

There are two general types of boilers: ''fire-tube'' and ''water-tube''.
Boilers are classified as "high-pressure" or "low-pressure" and "steam
boiler" or "hot water boiler." Boilers that operate higher than 15 psig are
called "high-pressure" boilers.
A. Fire-tube Boilers
In fire-tube boilers, combustion gases pass through the inside of
the tubes with water surrounding the outside of the tubes. The
advantages of a fire-tube boiler are its simple construction and less
rigid water treatment requirements.
The disadvantages are the excessive weight-per-pound of
steam generated, excessive time required to raise steam pressure
because of the relatively large volume of water, and inability to respond
quickly to load changes, again, due to the large water volume.

The most common fire-tube boilers used in facility heating

applications are often referred to as ''scotch'' or ''scotch marine''
boilers, as this boiler type was commonly used for marine service
because of its compact size (fire-box integral with boiler section).

The name "fire-tube" is very descriptive. The fire, or hot flue

gases from the burner, is channeled through tubes that are surrounded
by the fluid to be heated. The body of the boiler is the pressure vessel
and contains the fluid. In most cases, this fluid is water that will be
circulated for heating purposes or converted to steam for process use.
B. Water-tube Boilers
In a water-tube boiler, the water is inside the tubes and
combustion gases pass around the outside of the tubes. The
advantages of a water-tube boiler are a lower unit weight-per-pound of
steam generated, less time required to raise steam pressure, a greater
flexibility for responding to load changes, and a greater ability to
operate at high rates of steam generation.
A water-tube design is the exact opposite of a fire-tube. Here,
the water flows through the tubes and is encased in a furnace in which
the burner fires. These tubes are connected to a steam drum and a
mud drum. The water is heated and steam is produced in the upper
drum.
Large steam users are better suited for the water-tube design.
The industrial water-tube boiler typically produces steam or hot water
primarily for industrial process applications, and is used less frequently
for heating applications. The best gauge of which design to consider
can be found in the duty in which the boiler is to perform.

III.

Boiler System Major Components and its Functions

A. Boiler shell: It is made up of steel plates bent into cylindrical from reverted
or welded together. A boiler shell should have sufficient capacity to contain
water and steam.
B. Combustion chamber: It is the space generally below the boiler shell,
meant for burning fuel in order to produce steam from the water contained
in the shell.
C. Gate: It is the platform in the combustion chamber, upon which fuel is
burnt. The gate, generally consist of cast iron bars which are spaced a
part so that air can pass through them. The surface is of the gate over
which the fire takes place is called gate surface.
D. Furnace: It is the space above the gate and the boiler shell in which the
fuel is actually burnt the furnace is also called fire box.
E. Heating surface: It is that part of boiler surface which exposed to the fire.
F. Mountings: There are the fittings which are mounted on the boiler for its
proper functioning. A boiler cannot function safely without mountings.

Through there are many types of boiler mountings yet the following are
important from the subject point view.
1. Water indicator: It is an important fitting which indicate the water
level inside the boiler to an observer.
2. Pressure gauge: A pressure gauge is used to measure the pressure
of the steam boiler. It is fixed in front of the steam boiler.
3. Safety valves: There are the devices attached to the steam chest
for preventing explosions due to excessive internal pressure of
steam. There are four types of safety valves.
a) Lever safety valve
b) Dead weight safety valve
c) High steam and low water safety valve
d) Spring loaded safety valve
4. Stop valve: It is the largest valve on the steam boiler. It is used to
control the flow of steam from boiler to the main steam pipe.
5. Blow off cock: It is fitted to the bottom of a boiler drum and consists
of a conical plug fitted to the body or casting. Its function is to
empty the boiler whenever required and to discharge the mud,
scale or sediments which are accumulated at the bottom of the
boiler.
6. Feed check valve: It is a non-return valve fitted to a screwed
spindle to regulate the lift. Its function is to regulate the supply
water which pumped into the boiler by the feed pump.
7. Fusible plug: It is fitted to the crown plate of the furnace or the fire.
Its object is to put off the fire in the furnace of the boiler when the
level of water in the boiler falls to an unsafe limit and thus avoids
the implosion which may take place due to overheating of the
furnace plate.
8. Blow down valve: It is fitted to the lower side of the boiler. Its
function is to reduce the impurities of the boiler.
G. Accessories: These are the devices which form an integral part of a boiler
but are not mounted on it. It may be noted that the accessories help in
controlling and running the boiler efficiency.
Though there are many types of accessories yet the following are
important from the subject point of view.

1. Feed pump: A feed pump needed to deliver water to the boiler. The
pressure of feed water is 20% more than that in the boiler. The feed
pump may be classified as simplex, duplex, triplex pumps
according to the number of pump of cylinder.
2. Super heater: A super heater is an important device of a steam
generating unit. Its purpose is to increase the temperature of
saturated steam without raising its pressure. It is generally an
integral part of a boiler and is placed in the path of hot flue gases
from the fluency. The heat given up by these flue gases is used in
super heating the steam.
3. Economizer: An Economizer preheater is used to recover heat from
the exhaust flue gases. It is installed between the economizer and
chimney. The air required for the purpose of combustion is drawn
through the air preheater where its temperature is raised. There is
an increase of about 2% in the boiler efficiency for each 35-40%
raise in temperature of air.
4. Air preheater: Air preheater are heat exchanger to preheat or air
heating of the combustion air by means of flue gas, steam, water or
thermal oil. Air preheaters are used when exhaust temperatures of
combustion systems are particularly high.

IV.

BOILER OPERATION
A. Before starting the Boiler
The following things should be checked thoroughly before starting
the boiler:
1. All the up-takes for the exhaust gases should be checked
properly for a clear flow and to prevent any kind of obstacle or
diversion. All the dampers should be checked for open position.
All the vents should also be kept open.

2. All feed water connections, combustion air connections and

pressure gauges should be opened or checked for proper
working condition
3. Alarms should be checked for sound and proper working
condition
4. The connections to the super heater and those in between the
super heaters should be opened fully to prevent any kind of
disturbance in the steam flow.
5. All the boiler water drains and blow-down cocks should be
properly closed.
6. The boiler should only be filled with De-aerated water till slightly
below the working level
7. All the header vents should be closed to prevent water leakage
8. Water level in the economizer should be checked and the vents
should be shut off after blowing out any trapped air.
9. Forced draft fans should be checked for speed and sound. In
case exhaust gas air heaters are provided, the connections to
the forced draft fans should be diverted.
10. Fuel oil system should be checked for any closed valves and
the fuel oil should be adequately heated before circulation to
prevent any kind of pipe blockage.
B. Starting a Boiler
1. Ensure that the vent valve on the boiler is open and check there
is no pressure in the boiler.
2. Check that the steam stop valve is closed.
3. Check that all the valves for fuel are open, and let the fuel
circulate through the system until it comes to the temperature
required by the manufacturer recommendation.
4. Check and open the feed water valves to the boiler and fill the
water inside the boiler drum to just above the low water level.
This is done because it is not possible to start the boiler below
the low water level due to safety feature which prevent boiler
from starting. Also, the level is not filled much because if filled
too much, the water inside the boiler might expand and over
pressurize the boiler.

5. Start the boiler in automatic mode. The burner fan will start the
purging cycle which will remove any gases present in the
furnace by forcing it out through the funnel.
6. After the pre-set purge time the pilot burner will ignite. The pilot
burner consists of two electrodes, through which a large current
is passed, via the transformer, producing the spark between the
electrodes. The pilot burner is supplied with diesel oil and when
the oil passes over, the former ignites.
7. The main burner which is supplied by heavy oil catches fire with
the help of pilot burner.
8. Check the combustion chamber from the sight glass to ensure
the burner has lit and the flame is satisfactory.
9. Keep a close eye on the water level as the pressure increases
and open the feed water when the level of water inside the
gauge glass is stable.
10. Close the vent valve after the steam starts coming outside.
11. Open the steam stop valve.
12. Once the working steam pressure is reached, blow down the
gauge glass and float chambers to check for the alarms.
C. Stopping a boiler
1. If the boiler is needed to be stopped for longer duration for
maintenance or opened up for survey, change the fuel to
distillate fuel.
2. If separate heating arrangement for heavy oil is present then
theres is no need to change over to distillate fuel and the oil is
3.
4.
5.
6.

kept on circulation mode.

Stop the boiler automatic cycle.
Close the steam stop valves.
Close the boiler feed water valves.
When the boiler pressure is just reduced to over atmospheric
pressure the vent valve is kept open to prevent vacuum

formation inside the boiler.

D. Standby Protection
Many boilers used for heating or seasonal loads or for
standby service may have extended periods of non-use. Special
attention must be given to these, so that neither waterside or

fireside surfaces are allowed to deteriorate from corrosion.

Corrosion can be more serious during this down time than when the
boiler is actually in service. The key factors responsible for
corrosion are water, oxygen, and pH. Elimination of either moisture
or oxygen will prevent appreciable corrosion.
Two types of storage systems are widely used; these are wet
and dry storage methods. Wet storage is adopted for short duration
lay-up and dry storage is used for shut downs exceeding
approximately 30 days. No unit should be wet-stored when the
temperature could drop below the freezing point.
1. Wet Storage
a) As the boiler is being shut down and as the pressure
subsides, but before steaming stops, add chemicals to the
boiler to scavenge oxygen and to control pH, per the
recommendations of the Owner's water treatment
consultant.
b) When the boiler pressure gauge indicates about 10 psig
completely flood the system with deaerated treated water
with the drum vent open. Close the drum vent after it
begins to overflow. The steam stop valve should already
be closed. Water should be added through the feed pump
until 10 psig is maintained as indicated by the drum
pressure gauge.
c) Close the feedwater valves. Observe the steam drum
pressure gauge and maintain pressure. If pressure builds,
it may be due to leaking feedwater valves, which may not
be properly seated. A pressure loss (after the boiler is
cool) indicates leakage, so check all fittings and valves for
leakage.
d) Frequent water samples should be taken and analyzed by
the water treatment consultant. If the analysis indicates a
need for additional chemicals, the level in the boiler steam

drum should be lowered to normal level and chemicals

added. The boiler should be then be steamed to circulate
the solution, and the process of wet storage repeated as
previously described.
e) Close all gas side access doors. Isolate the system to
prevent cold air from reaching the heating surface.
Periodic inspections of the external surfaces of the
pressure parts should be made to guard against
condensation and subsequent corrosion.
f) During storage, steps should be taken to protect the
exterior components from the possibility of rust or
corrosion. These parts should be coated with a rust
inhibitor and protected from moisture and condensation.
Electrical equipment should likewise be protected.
Keeping the control circuit energized may prevent
condensation from forming in the control cabinet.
2. Dry Storage
When the unit will be idle for a considerable length of
time and a short period can be allowed to prepare the boiler
for return to service, the dry storage method is
recommended.
a) The unit should be cooled down and then completely
drained. Make sure that no pockets of water remain in the
drum, piping, water column, etc. Open all vents t to assure
complete drainage.
b) Open all the manways and thoroughly wash the water
side surfaces to remove any sludge deposits.
Mechanically clean residual particulate from the gas side
metal surfaces and inspect the system thoroughly.Dry the
system thoroughly. If an air hose is used, be sure
condensate from the air tank is not blown into the tubes
and that the air is oil free.

c) Place flat wooden trays of moisture absorbent, such as

quick lime or silica gel, inside the drums to absorb any
moisture that will be trapped when the unit is closed up.
The trays should be placed on supports to allow air to
circulate under them. For recommendations on quantity of
moisture absorbent, the Owner's water consultant should
be contacted. The trays should not be more than 3/4 full of
the dry absorbent to prevent overflow of the corrosive
liquid that has been absorbed.
d) After the entire system is dried the boiler system should
be pressurized with nitrogen to approximately 5 psig
though the drum vent. Close the steam outlet, drain
valves, and feedwater block valves. Ensure that the
system has been purged completely before pressurizing.
e) Close all the openings to prevent water, steam or air
leakage into the unit. Leave open the code required drain
valve between the process steam stop valves to prevent
back-leakage of condensate from any downstream header
that may be pressurized.
f) Isolate the boiler to prevent moisture from reaching the
heating surface.
g) Keep the boiler room dry and well ventilated to reduce
possible surface corrosion.

V.

Refferences
http://www.banksengineering.com/shutdown.htm
http://www.marineinsight.com/tech/boiler/boiler-operation-made-easyprocedure-for-starting-and-stopping-a-boiler/
http://www.brighthubengineering.com/marine-enginesmachinery/43844-boiler-starting-procedure-checks-and-techniques/
http://pages.qualichem.com/blog/8-steps-to-a-proper-boiler-startupprocedure
http://www.maxxtec.com/en/product/automatisch-aus-titelgenerieren/heat-exchanger/air-preheater
http://newmachineparts.blogspot.com/2012/09/boiler.html
https://www.myodesie.com/wiki/index/returnEntry/id/3061
http://www.e-inst.com/combustion/what-is-a-boiler