BOILERS

BOILERS (STEAM GENERATORS)

A steam boiler is a closed vessel in which water is
heated and converted into steam.

Steam is used for

1. power generation: These boilers are called as
power generation boilers
2. Industries: Chemical & textile industries (called
as Industrial boilers)
3. Heating buildings
CLASSIFICATION OF BOILERS
BASIC COMPONENTS OF A BOILER

BOILER

Heat transfer surface Space for steam formation and

FURNACE
(Where heat is transferred from collection
(Where Fuel is burnt)
hot combustion gas to water) (steam drum)
FIRE TUBE AND WATER TUBE BOILERS
Fire tube boilers
- The hot gas produced in boiler furnace pass
through tubes.
- Water circulates around the fire tubes.

Examples
• Cochran boiler
• Lancashire boiler
• locomotive boiler
FIRE TUBE BOILER
• In the Fig, we can see
several tubes through
which hot gas pass
(arrows indicate the
flowof gas)
 ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF
FIRE TUBE BOILERS
Advantages of Fire-tube boilers

• Relatively inexpensive
• Easy to clean
• Compact in size
• Easy to replace tubes
• Well suited for space heating and industrial process applications

Disadvantages of fire-tube boilers

• limited generally to produce steam at 25 tons/hr and 17.5 kg/cm2
pressure.
• Not suitable for high pressure applications like power plants
 WATER TUBE BOILERS
Water tube boilers
• water pass through the tubes and the hot gas pass
outside the tubes
• can be built to any steam capacities and pressures
• have higher efficiencies than fire tube boilers
Examples
• Babcock and Wilcox boiler
• Stirling boiler
WATER TUBE BOILERS
Babcock and Wilcox Water Tube boiler
 ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES
OF WATER TUBE BOILER
Advantages

• available in sizes far greater than a fire-tube design ,

up to several million pounds-per-hour of steam
• Can handle higher pressures up to 160 bar
• Have the ability to reach very high temperatures

Disadvantages
• High initial capital cost
• Cleaning is more difficult due to the design
PARTICULARS FIRE TUBE BOILERS WATER TUBE BOILERS

Position of water Hot gases flow inside tubes and Water flow inside tubes
and hot gases water outside tubes and hot gases outside
Mode of firing internal external
Operating pressure Upper limit 20 bar As high as 160 bar
Rate of steam Lower higher
production (kg/hr)
application Small power plants Large power plants
Risk of bursting Lesser risk due to low pressure More risk due to high
pressure
Shell diameter Large for same power Small for same power

Floor area Occupies more floor for a given Occupies Lesser floor area
steam power output for a given power
Construction and Difficult simple
transportation
Water treatment Not necessary necessary
 HIGH PRESSURE BOILERS
• Produce steam at
Pressure : 160 bar (even more)
Temperature : 540°C and more
Flow rate : 30-650 tonnes/hr & more
FEATURES OF HIGH PRESSURE BOILERS
1. Method of water circulation
Forced circulation of water –
Forced circulation of water is maintained with the help of
pumps. This increases the evaporation capacity of water.
2. Type of Tubing
If flow takes place through a single tube large pressure drop
takes place due to friction. So,
Several sets of large number of smaller diameter tubes are
used
• surface area-to-volume-ratio is high
• Increases rate of heat transfer to water flowing inside the
tubes.
 FEATURES OF
HIGH PRESSURE BOILERS (Contd….)
3. Improved method of heating
• High boiler pressure : reduces heat supply
• Heating water by mixing with superheated
steam : gives high heat transfer coefficient
• increasing water velocity inside tubes and
increasing gas velocity above sonic velocity :
Increase heat transfer coefficient
High pressure boilers
 High pressure boilers
• If the feed-water pressure increases, the
saturation temperature of water rises and the
latent heat of vaporization decreases.
• The feed water can be heated to saturation
temperature in the economizer with the help of
waste heat.
• Then the boiler supplies only latent heat of
vaporization and superheat.
• Thus, boiler operation at high pressure will
require less heat addition for steam generation
 FEATURES OF
HIGH PRESSURE BOILERS
4. Pressurized combustion
compressed air is used in the furnace to
increase the heat release rate of fuel
5. Intensive heating
furnace temperature in high-pressure boilers
is high and 70% of heat is transferred to water
by radiation. This is a faster way of heat
transfer.
 FEATURES OF
HIGH PRESSURE BOILERS
6. Once through construction
high-pressure boiler operating at and above
the critical pressure. The water directly flashes
into steam in the tube itself. It eliminates the
need of a boiler drum.
Examples of High Pressure boilers
• LAMONT BOILER
• LOEFFLER BOILER
• BENSON BOILER
• VELOX BOILER
LAMONT BOILER
LAMONT BOILER
 LAMONT BOILER
Features:
Steam capacity : 45-50 tonnes /hour
Pressure : 130 bar
Temperature : 550°C
 DIADVANTAGES OF LAMONT BOILER
1. Deposition of salt and sediments on the inner
surface of the water tubes.
▪ Reduces the heat transfer and steam generation
capacity
▪ Increases the chances of overheating of tube as it has
high thermal resistance
2. Formation and attachment of vapour bubbles on
the inner surfaces of the water tubes. This
reduces the heat flow and steam generation as
vapour bubbles offer higher thermal resistance
than water film.
 LOEFFLER BOILER
• A high pressure feed pump
draws water through the
economizer and deliver it to
the evaporating drum.
Evaporation of feed water is
done by circulating super
heated steam
• The steam circulating pump
draws steam from evaporating
drum and passes it to radiant
and convective superheaters
• From the superheater, about
2/3rd of superheated steam is
drawn to the evaporating
drum and used to evaporate
Evaporating drum
feed water
 LOEFFLER BOILER

• Can use water with high salt concentration

than any other type of boiler
• More compact
Steam capacity : 100 tonnes /hour
Pressure : 140 bar
 BENSON BOILER
• The feed water after preheated in
economizer flows through the radiant
parallel tube section to evaporate
partly.
• The boiler pressure is raised to critical
pressure 225 atm by which steam and
water have same density and the
formation of bubble is thus
eliminated.
• The steam water mixture produced
then moves to the transit section
where this mixture is converted into
steam.
• The steam is now passed through the
convection superheater and finally
supplied to the prime mover.
• Does not use any steam drum
BENSON BOILER
 BENSON BOILER
Steam capacity : 150 tonnes/hr
Pressure : 500 atm
Temperature : 650°C
Advantages
no steam drum and hence,
• requires smaller floor area
• Less weight
• cheaper
• easy to transport
• less explosion hazard
 VELOX BOILER
• Uses pressurized combustion. Air compressor
is used to increase the pressure of
atmospheric air to furnace pressure.
• flue gas flows above sound velocity and heat
transfer from flue gas to water is high.
VELOX BOILER
 VELOX BOILERS
Steam capacity limited • Advantages
to 100 tonnes /hour 1. Very compact
• Power required to run 2. Very high combustion
the compressor is rates
high 3. Quickly started
4. Low excess air is used
for combustion
 SUPERCRITICAL BOILERS
• The boilers that generate steam above
critical pressure of 221.2 bar are called
supercritical boilers
• Example : BENSON BOILER
• pc=221.2 bar
• Tc=374.150C
• vf=vg=vc=0.00317 m3/kg
• sf=sg=sc= 4.4429 kJ/kg/K
• hf=hg=hc=2107.4 kJ/kg
• h =0
 SUPERCRITICAL SUBCRITICAL
VAPOUR POWER CYCLE VAPOUR POWER CYCLE
 SUPERCRITICAL BOILERS
• The condensate water from condenser is compressed
from condenser pressure to supercritical pressure
• Water is heated at supercritical pressure
• Water become vapour after its temperature is raised
from above critical temperature
• Thus steam boiler is an arrangement of continuous
tubes which is heated along its length with water
going at end and leave as superheated steam at the
other end
• Hence called once through forced circulation boiler
 SUPERCRITICAL BOILERS
SUB- CRITICAL BOILERS
• Operate below critical
pressure of water (< 221 bar
pressure)
• Consists of preheater
(economizer), evaporator,
superheater
• Used in power plants that
produce less than 300 MW
power
• Lower heat transfer rates
• Steam is a mixture of vapour
and water
• Prone to erosion and
corrosion
• Lower thermal efficiency
SUPERCRITICAL BOILERS
• operate above 221 bar
pressure
• Consists of only preheater and
superheater
• liquid water immediately
becomes steam.
• Used in power plants that
produce more than 300 MW
• Larger heat transfer rates
• Absence of two phase mixture
• Erosion and corrosion
problems are less
• Higher thermal efficiency
 ADVANTAGES OF
SUPERCRITICAL BOILERS
• No pressure limit
• No steam drum
• Circulating pump is absent
• Very light and can be commissioned for steam
generation in a short time

Steam rate = 30.6 tonnes/hr

Pressure at turbine throttle=
310 bar
Turbine output =120 MW
 Questions
1. Distinguish between high pressure and low pressure
boilers
2. What are the features of high pressure boilers? Give
some examples of high pressure boilers
3.What are supercritical boilers? Give some examples
4.What are the advantages and disadvantages of high
pressure boilers?
5. Differentiate between sub-critical and supercritical
boilers.
6. Describe the working of La-Mont, Velox and Benson
boilers with neat diagrams.