APPENDIX: STEAM BOILERS AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS

Boiler Mountings
These are the fittings and devices necessary for the safety of the boiler and complete control of the process of steam
generation. According to Indian Boiler Act Regulation, the following mountings should be always fitted to a boiler.

1. Two safety valves

2. Two water level indicators
3. A pressure gauge
4. A feed check valve
5. A fusible plug
6. A steam stop valve
7. A blow-off cock
8. A man hole
9. An attachment for inspector’s test gauge

1. Safety Valves
As per Boiler Act Regulation every boiler must be fitted with two safety valves for precautionary measures.

Function
The function of the safety valve is to blow off steam from the boiler to the atmosphere when the pressure of the
steam inside the boiler exceeds the working pressure. As soon as the steam pressure inside the boiler exceeds the
external force equivalent to rated pressure, the safety valve opens automatically and the excess steam rushes out to
the atmosphere till the internal pressure drops down back to its normal value.

Location
These are the devices attached to the steam chest generally on the top of the boiler shell.

Types
There are four types of safety valves

a) Dead weight safety valve

b) Lever safety valve
c) Spring-loaded safety valve
d) High-steam low water safety valve

Three of these four safety valves are described below:

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 A Dead Weight Safety Valve
Construction: Figure 1 shows a dead weight safety valve. It consists of a large vertical steel pipe with a flange at the
bottom for fitting it on the boiler shell. At the top of the pipe, valve seat is fixed. The valve rests on this valve seat.
The valve supports a large weight carrier in which dead weight rings are placed and enclosed by cover. Thus the total
load on the valve is made up of the weight of the carrier, the dead weight rings, the cover and the valve itself.

Figure 1: Dead Weight Safety Valve

Working: When the force due to steam pressure is less than the total load of the valve, the steam will not escape.
When the force due to the steam pressure is equal to the total load of the valve, it will be in the position of just
blowing. When the force due to steam pressure exceeds the total load of the valve, it lifts and the steam escapes
through the discharge pipe. The valve returns automatically when pressure drops to its normal value. Any steam
condensed while passing through the valve is drained through the drain pipe line. The uplift of the valve is guided by
the feather.

Advantages
1. Simple in construction.
2. Reliable with regard to Satisfactory performance during operation
3. Suitable for low-pressure stationery boilers.
4 it cannot be readily tempered with because any change in weight made by any unauthorized personnel can be
easily detected.

Disadvantages
1. Large amount of weight required.
2. The effective weight changes when the boiler is on the slope
3. Unsuitable for marine and locomotive boilers
4 Unsuitable for high-pressure boilers because a large amount of weights are required to balance th steam pressure.

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 B Lever Safety Valve
Construction: Figure 2 shows a schematic diagram of a lever safety valve. It consists of a casing with a
flange at the bottom for fitting it on the top of the boiler shell. Valve seat is fixed inside the top end of the
casing. The valve rests on the valve seat. The valve is loaded by a lever, whose one end is fulcrum and the
other end is loaded by weights. The thrust on the valve is transmitted by the strut attached to the lever.

Figure 2: Lever Safety Valve

Working: When the steam pressure of the boiler is less than the working pressure equivalent to thrust
on the valve developed by the weights over the lever, the valve remains at its position shown in the figure. But when
the steam pressure exceeds the working pressure, the valve lifts and the steam escapes to the atmosphere till the
pressure in the boiler becomes equal to the working pressure.
A guide fork is provided on the casing for preventing lateral movement of the lever. It also limits the
maximum lift of the valve and prevents it blowing away in case the valve is broken.

Advantages
1. The lever arrangement used in this valve gives a large thrust and serves the purpose of maintaining higher
pressure by a small weight applied on it. This eliminates heavy weight.
2. A small displacement of the weight can be made to readjust the working pressure of the boiler. This
eliminates the additional weight needed for readjustment of the working pressure.

Disadvantages
1. Due to two pivot points the valve is affected more by friction.
2. Unsuitable for high-pressure boilers.
3. Unsuitable for boilers where vibration and movement are experienced such as locomotive.

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 C. Spring-Loaded Safety Valve
Construction: Figure 3 shows Rams bottom spring-loaded safety valve, usually employed for all the boilers. It
consists of a casing having two valve chess for flow of the steam. Valve seat is fixed at the upper end of both valve
chests. Valves are held down on their seats by helical spring and lever arrangement. The lever is provided with two
conical pivots. One pivot is integrally forced with the lever while the other is pin connected to its one end. The helical
spring has one end fixed to the lever and the other end to a shackle fixed on the valve chest. Thus spring pulls the
lever downward and applies load on the valve. A link is also provided to prevent the valves being blown away in case
of spring break.

Figure 3: Spring-loaded safety valve

Working: When the boiler pressure is less than or equal to the working pressure equivalent to the
thrust of spring over the valve, it remains on its seat firmly. But when the boiler pressure exceeds the
working pressure, the valve automatically lifts, opening the passage for steam to escape to the atmosphere until
boiler pressure falls back to its working pressure. So the spring is subjected to a tensile load
during release of excess pressure. The valve spring pressure can be altered by tightening or loosening the screw nut.
The lever projected on one side has an extension projected into the driver’s cabin. This is for manual lifting of the
valve and blowing off the steam in order to ensure satisfactory working of the device and the valves are
not stuck to their seats.

Advantages
1. Elimination of heavy weights.
2. Easy maintenance and examination
3. Not affected by jerks, pitching and rolling.
4. Suitable for stationery and mobile boiler.
5. Suitable for both high- and low-pressure boilers.

Disadvantages
1. The load on the valve increases with the lift of the valve as stiffness of the spring is not constant. This means
that the pressure required to open it is less than that required to open it fully.

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2. Water-Level Indicator
Function
The function of the water-level indicator is to show the level of water in the boiler.

Location
It is fixed at the front end of the boiler to make it easy visible to the attendant. To carry out the function, its upper
end opens to the steam space while the lower end opens in the water space.

Construction
Figure 4 shows a Hopkinson’s water-level indicator. It consists of glass tube which is very tough and hard to
withstand boiler pressure. The stuffing boxes connect the ends of the glass tube to the metal pipe flanged to the
front plate of the boiler. A steam cock is fixed in the upper pipe controlling passage between steam space and the
glass tube. A water cock is fixed in the lower pipe controlling passage between water space and the glass tube. A
third cock known as the drain cock is fixed to drain out the sediments and foreign matter deposits in water-level
indicator at a regular interval. To make the drainage comfortable, a hollow metal column with their ends joining
both upper and lower pipe is provided just above the drain cock. A red mark on the glass tube indicates the safe
water level.

Figure 4: Water level Indicator

Working
At normal working condition, the steam cock and the water cock is in open position and the drain cock is in close
position. During this, the handles of all the cock are in vertical position. The glass tube indicator shows the level of
water inside the boiler.
As the indicator tube is made up of glass, there is a possibility of its breakage. So a provision is made for
automatically shutting off the steam and water supply to the glass tube. For this purpose, two balls are provided
whose position under normal working condition is shown in the figure. When the glass tube breaks, the steam and
water at a high pressure try to rush out with a high velocity from upper pipe end and the lower pipe end,
respectively. This rushing out steam carries the bails along with it at a position, shown by dotted ball in the figure,
which block the water and steam escaping from the boiler. The operator can now easily turn off the cocks and
replace a new gauge glass tube. To protect the operator from the flying pieces of the broken glass, the glass tube is
covered with a guard made up of tough glass.

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3. Pressure Gauge

Function
The function of pressure gauge is to indicate the pressure of the steam in the boiler.

Location
The pressure gauge is usually connected to a siphon pipe at the front top end of the boiler shell. It is
located in a manner that it is visible to the boiler attendant with ease.

Figure 5: (a) Pressure gauge, (b) U-tube siphon

Construction
Figure 5(a) shows a Bourdon pressure gauge commonly used for pressure measurement. It consists of a pressure
sensing element having elliptical cross-section called Bourdon tube. It is rolled into an arc of a circle. One end of the
tube is plugged while the other end is secured to steam space through a U-tube siphon (shown in Figure 5(b)}. The
siphon pipe contains condensed water. The plugged end consists of a connecting link and a lever carrying a toothed
sector pivoted by a pin. The sector gears with a small pinion mounted on the spindle which carries the pointer.

Working
The pressure of the steam forces the Bourdon tube to change its cross-section from elliptical to circular shape. This
tries to straighten the Bourdon tube. So the free end of the tube moves outward. The free-end movement pulls the
link which operates the toothed sector and pinion. The rotation of the pinion also rotates the pointer. The pointer
end indicates the pressure on a graduated dial. The whole mechanism is designed in such a manner that a slight
pressure variation gives a reasonable deflection to the pointer enabling readability of the pressure on the dial with
ease. It may be noted that the pressure gauge used for measurement of pressure is having its range usually twice of
the safe working pressure of the boiler. Also the reading obtained on the dial is the gauge pressure of the steam and
not the absolute pressure. A red mark is usually marked on the pressure gauge which indicates the safe pressure
limit of the boiler. A three-way cock is provided at the connection of pressure gauge and siphon pipe so that steam
space of the boiler could be connected with an inspector pressure gauge in order to test the accuracy of the pressure
gauge.

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4. Feed Check Valve
Function
The function of feed check valve is to regulate the supply of the water under pressure into the boiler and
simultaneously to prevent the back flow of water from the boiler in case of the pump failure or stopped.

Location
It is fitted in the water space of the boiler, slightly below the working level of the water in the boiler.
Construction
Figure 6 shows the schematic diagram of a feed check valve. It consists of a body with two flanges at right angle to
each other. Flange F1 is for bolting it to the boiler shell and flange F2 is for bolting it to make connection with the
feed pump supply line. The body contains two valves; one is called feed valve while other is called check valve. The
function of feed valve is to control rate of water supply to the boiler. Its position can be adjusted by turning the hand
wheel of the feed valve. The raising and lowering of the feed valve also limits the maximum lift of the check valve.
The function of the check valve is to allow the feed water to flow unidirectional and that too from the feed pump to
the boiler. It moves automatically up and down within its limit due to pressure difference of water acting on its top
and bottom side.

Working
When it is desired to feed water to the boiler, the feed valve is raised up from its seat. Under normal
working conditions, the pressure on the feed pump side is more than the boiler side. This pressure difference lifts
the check valve and water flows from the side of the check valve into the boiler.
In the event of failure of the feed pump, the pressure reduces on the feed pump side. The pressure exerting from
the boiler side provides greater force on the top side of the check valve. This force closes the check valve and
prevents the return flow of water from the boiler to the feed pump. In this manner the unidirectional flow is
maintained.

Figure 6: Feed Check Valve

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5. Fusible Plug
Function
The function of fusible plug is to extinguish the fire in the furnace of the boiler when the water level in the boiler
shell falls to an unsafe extent. Thus, it protects the boiler against damage due to overheating.

Location
It is fitted at the crown plate of the furnace or the combustion chamber at the lowest permissible water level.

Construction
Figure 7 shows the schematic diagram of a fusible plug. It consists of a hollow gun metal body having hexagonal
flange at the bottom for screwing to the crown plate. On the upper portion of the body a hollow gun metal plug is
screwed. There is another solid plug made of copper with a conical top and round bottom kept in the hole of gun
metal plug and held firmly by fusible metal likes tin or lead as shown in the figure.

Working
Under normal operating condition, the fusible plug is covered with water. The heat received by the fusible plug is
conducted to the water in the boiler. This keeps the fusible plug metal at an almost saturation temperature of water,
which is below the melting point of the fusible metal. When the water level falls below the safe level, the fusible plug
gets exposed to steam. The heat received by the fusible plug is now conducted to the steam. As steam has poor
conductivity compared to water, lesser heat is being conducted. So the plug gets overheated resulting into the
melting of fusible metal. Therefore, the inner solid plug falls down thereby opening a passage between the steam
space and the furnace. The steam and water under pressure immediately rush into the fire box through
the opened passage and extinguish the fire. Before restarting the boiler, a new fusible plug should be
screwed.

Figure 7: Fusible Plug

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6. Steam Stop Valve
Function
The function of steam stop valve is to regulate the flow of steam from boiler to steam pipe connecting the engine.

Location
It is mounted on the highest portion of the steam space of a boiler so that it can supply steam of maximum possible
quality.

Construction
Figure 8 shows the schematic diagram of a steam stop valve. It consists of valve body having two flanges at right
angle. One of the flanges is bolted to the boiler at the highest portion of the steam space while the other is
connected to the steam outlet pipe. A valve seat is secured at the chest of the valve body. The valve rests on the
valve seat. The valve is connected with the spindle in such a manner that spindle can rotate free in the valve and at
the same time it can carry the valve with it when raised or lowered. Spindle has a hand wheel at the top end by
which it is rotated. The spindle passes out of a gland and a stuffing box formed in the valve body in order to prevent
leakage of steam along the spindle.

Working
Under the normal working condition, the valve is open and steam flows from the boiler to the steam pipe. For
changing the flow rate of steam the valve may be raised or lowered by rotating the hand wheel and thereby the
spindle. When the steam is not at all required, the valve may be lowered completely to shut off the supply of steam.

Figure 8: Steam Stop Valve

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7. Blow-Off Cock
Function
The function of blow' off cock is to (i) discharge periodically the sentiments and other impurities settled at the
bottom of the boiler, (ii) empty the boiler for internal cleaning, inspection and repair and (iii) lower the water level
rapidly, in case of excess feed water input to the boiler

Location
The blow-off cock is fitted directly through an elbow- pipe at the lowest portion of the boiler shell.

Construction
Figure 9 shows the schematic diagram of a blow-off cock. It consists of a casing secured with two flanges. One of the
flanges is connected to the boiler and the other (outer) flange is connected to a discharge pipe which rakes the blow
off water out of the boiler house. For regulating the discharge, casing consists of a plug valve. The plug valve is of
conical shape having a hole/slot made into it and is fitted into a corresponding hole of the casing. The shank of the
plug valve passes through the stuffing box to prevent leakage when the boiler is steaming. At the top of the plug
valve a yoke is provided for fixing the spanner when the cock is in open position.

Working
The figure shows the stop/shut-off position of the valve. When it is desired to discharge the water or sediments, the
plug is rotated through a quarter so that the hole of the plug valve comes in line with the passage of the casing. The
water will flow out of the boiler and will get discharged out of the boiler house. To stop the discharge, a quarter
revolution of the plug is made either in clockwise or in anticlockwise direction. This brings the solid part of the plug
valve in line with the passage of the casing and the flow of water stops. This indicates that during the shut-off
position the axis of the hole of the plug remains perpendicular to the axis of the passage of the casing.

Figure 9: Blow-off cock

It may be noted that it the sediments will not be removed tor a long time, it will lead to accumulation of the
sediments on the side wall of the furnace. This reduces the heat transfer from the crown plate to the water. The
crown plate getting overheated will get fired, which will destroy the whole boiler.
Thus periodic removal of the sediments is essential.

Two other mountings are not described and students are encouraged to prepare descriptive materials on them for
completeness.

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ACCESSORIES
These are the fittings and devices installed to increase the efficiency of the boiler and for smooth working of the
plant. The following accessories are commonly employed in boilers:
1. Economizer
2. Air pre-heater
3. Superheater
4. Feed pump or injector
5. Steam separator or steam driver
6. Steam trap
The economizer, the air pre-heater and the super-heater are discussed below and students are encouraged
to add on the description of the feed pump, the steam separator and the steam trap.
1. Economizer
Function
The function of economizer is to extract some of the waste heat carried by flue gases going to the chimney and
utilize it for pre-heating the feed water supplied to the boiler.
Location
It is installed in the path of the flue gases between the boiler and the chimney.
Construction
Figure 10 shows Greens vertical tube economizer commonly employed in medium pressure range boilers. It consists
of a large group of vertical tubes which are fitted in between two heaters. The groups of vertical tubes are built in
section of 4, 6, 8, 10 or 12 tubes. The whole arrangement is placed in the passage of pipes of the against flue gases
entering into the chimney. A safety valve is fitted on the top heater for the safety of the pipes against any high
pressure of water that may be developed. A blow-off valve is also fitted at the lowest point of the economizer to
discharge the sediments collected from the feed water. A bypass arrangement is provided to the economizer so that
it may be put out of the action for necessary maintenance and inspection work.
Working
The feed water from the feed pump enters the bottom heater, passes through the vertical tubes, reaches the upper
header and is fed to the boiler through feed check valve. The flue gases flow over the external surfaces of the
vertical tubes. The water, while flowing upwards inside the vertical tubes, gains heat from the hot flue gases.
The flow of flue gases over the vertical tubes is likely to deposit soot which will retard the heat transfer from hot flue
gases to the water in the tube. To prevent the deposition of soot, a set of scrapper hung by a chain passing over the
pulley is fitted over the vertical pipes. The mechanically driven pulley moves the scrapper up and down continuously
over the vertical tubes and keeps the surfaces of the tubes free from soot. The scrapped away soot is collected in the
soot chamber placed below the bottom heater and removed periodically through the soot door.

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 Figure 10: Economizer

Advantages
1. It saves the fuel as waste heat from the flue gases is used for heating the feed water.
2. It improves the overall efficiency of the boiler as the fuel consumption is reduced.
3. It increases the evaporation capacity and maintains proper circulation of water as hot water is fed.
4. It reduces the thermal stresses in the boiler plates due to unequal expansion as the temperature range
between the various parts of boiler is reduced.
5. It reduced corrosion and pitting as the dissolved air and CO, are removed by pre-heating the feed water.
6. It reduces the loss of heat with flue gases.
7. It reduces the emission of soot and fly-ash through chimney.
2. Air Pre-heater
Function
The function of air preheater is to recover some of the heat carried by waste flue gases going to the chimney and
transfer to preheat the air entering into the furnace of the boiler for combustion of fuel

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 Figure 11: Air pre-heater

Location
It is installed between the economizer and the chimney.
Construction
The air preheater is generally classified as recuperative-type air preheater and regenerative-type air preheater. The
recuperative-type air preheater is either tubular-type air preheater or plate-type air preheater.
Figure 11 shows the tubular-type air preheater that is commonly used in small boiler plants. It consists of an
insulated tubular casing having a large number of tubes held by horizontal baffles. The baffles are placed in such a
way that it gives the passage to fresh air in a defined manner. The upper and lower ends of the tubes are fixed to the
flat plate so that flue gases and fresh air do not able to mix with each other.
Working
The flue gases are passed through the tubes and the air circulates around them. The air on its travel outside the
tubes is forced to defect by baffles in a zig-zag path for a number of times. This ensures a better heat gain from the
flue gases. Soot and other materials carried with the flue gases are collected in the hopper at the bottom and
removed periodically through the soot gate.

3. Super-heater
Function
The function of superheater is to remove the moisture from the steam coming out of the boiler and to increase the
temperature sufficiently above the saturation temperature.
Location
It is located in the path of the furnace gases.
Construction
Superheater is classified on the basis of arrangement as (i) attached super-heaters (here single furnace is used for
both boiler and superheater); (ii) separately fired superheaters (here superheater is placed in a separate furnace,
other than the furnace used for heating water). Super-heater used for Locomotive and Babcock-Wilcox boilers.
Figure 12 shows the attached-type superheater used in the Lancashire boiler. It consists of two headers connected
by a number of U-shaped tubes called superheater tubes. The header through which boiler steam enters the
superheater tubes is called saturate steam header and the other header through which the superheated steam is
obtained is called discharge header. It is fitted with a safety valve so as to avoid overheating of the superheater
tubes.
Working
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The steam generated in the boiler enters the superheater tube through the steam entrance valve and
saturated steam header. In the superheater the steam gains heat from the flue gases flowing over the
superheater tubes and get superheated. The superheated steam comes out through the discharge header

Figure 12: Super-heater

and is regulated by superheated steam valve control valve.1he wet steam of the boiler can be mixed to
this superheated steam, if desired, by regulating the wet steam control valve.
The amount of hot gases passed over the superheater tubes should be in proportion to the amount of
superheated steam passing through the tubes. Otherwise, the tubes will be overheated. To avoid overheating, a
damper is provided. When the damper is horizontal, the hot gases pass over the superheater
tubes and when it is vertical, the Hue gases directly pass to the bottom flue.

Other Accessories
Accessories other than the economizer, air preheater and superheater include feed pump or injector,
steam separator or steam driver and steam trap. These are out of scope of the present text lecture material and
students are encouraged to document the description of the three other accessories on their own from other
sources of information.

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