Failures of Fossil Fuel

Boilers and Related

Equipment
Forum Group Discussion - PT. INDONESIA POWER
Centennial Tower Jakarta - 29 Oct 2019

Dr. ir. Slameto WIRYOLUKITO

Faculty Member of
Material Engineering Department
INSTITUT TEKNOLOGI BANDUNG, ITB
slameto@material.itb.ac.id
swmetallurgist@yahoo.com
metallurgistslameto@gmail.com

Cell-Ph: 0815-70-55525 & 0812-218-97230

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Analyze only to turn
Results into Decisions
“Perform an analysis only to reach a decision. Do not
perform an analysis if that decision can be reached
without it. It is not effective to do so. It is a waste of
resources.”

Dr. V.L. Grose

George Washington University

2
 How component Fail ?

Load Uncertainty Materials Degradation

Failure:
How ?
Why ?
When ?

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 Failure Definition

CAPACITY
• Materials
• Structures Config.

SAFE FAIL

• Mechanical
LOAD

• Electrochemical
•Thermal

TIME
4
 Analysis Approaches
➢ Deterministic --˃ FA; FFS; RLA
APPROACH vs
➢ Probabilistic --˃ RBI
CAPACITY
LOAD

TIME
LOAD CAPACITY
 Probability of Failure (PoF)
➢ Materials/Structures
➢ Loads Uncertainty Degradation

PROBABILITY
of FAILURE [PoF]
Probable Cause of Failures
can generally be classified as

◼ Design flaws

◼ Wrong material & Fabrication defects: material defects &

poor workmanship (13%)

◼ Improper operation: Upset conditions, Unplaned shutdown;

over heating (48%), Fatigue & Corrosion Fatigue (21%),
Corrosion & SCC & Hydrogen Embrittlement (16%)

◼ Improper maintenance: inadequate water treatment

◼ Routine normal operation: too frequent soot blowing

◼ Miscellaneous causes

Note: Data 413 failure events within 12 years survey 7

Boiler Tube Mode of Failures
1. Overheating
2. Ruptures Caused by Embrittlement
3. Stress-Rupture & Creep
4. Failures Caused by Corrosion or Scaling
a. Water side corrosion
b. Scaling
c. Fire side corrosion
d. SCC
5. Erosion
6. Thermal Fatigue
7. Dissimilar Metal Welds
8. Multi Mode of Failures
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Overheating
Common occur on Superheater and Reheater Tube

◼ Two type fracture surface due to Overheating

1. Thick Lip of Fracture: Prolonged over
heating
2. Thin Lip Rupture: Rapid Overheating
◼ can occur within a few minutes, or can take
several years to develop
◼ generally involves a longitudinal fracture,
typically with some detectable plastic
deformation, “a fish mouth appearance”. May
or may not be accompanied by secondary
circumferential fracture

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Thick-Lip Rupture appearance
Prolonged Overheating at T < Ac1

◼ occur mainly by stress rupture as a result of

prolonged overheating at a Tactual > Tdesign
◼ thick-edged fracture lips, little ductility or tube
swelling, excessive internal scale, and other evidence
of oxidation or corrosion
◼ The microstructure exhibits evidence of creep
damage, creep voids or cavitation, grain-boundary
separation, intergranular cracking or oxide
penetration of the grain boundaries at OD or ID
surfaces, carbide phase is fully spheroidized

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Thick-Lip Rupture (cont’d)
Tactual ≥ Tdesign why ..?
◼ Increases in heat flux
◼ partial blockage of the convection pass by fly
ash will increase the flue-gas flow. Higher
velocity increase the steam-side heat-transfer
coefficient, h0, and will increase metal
temperature.
◼ Flame impingement on a furnace wall tube
◼ Internal scale buildup
◼ acts as a barrier to heat transfer. The net effect
is an increase in Ttube
◼ Reduced steam flow
◼ exfoliated internal oxide scale partially pluged
the tube and reduce steam flow. Lower steam
flow means a smaller steam-side heat-transfer
coefficient and high metal temperatures. 11
Thick-Lip Rupture (cont’d)
Tactual ≥ Tdesign why ..?

◼ Uneven steam attemperation of Superheater bundle

◼ Uneven steam temp inlet to the superheater tube bundle, may
reach up to 55 °C (100 °F) difference, will lead to differences in
tube metal temperature.
◼ Uneven burner adjustments
◼ Uneven flue-gas or oxygen distribution due to maladjusted or worn
fuel burners
◼ Nonuniform steam flow
◼ imbalance of steam flow is factored into uneven tube metal-
temperature. Lower steam flow means a smaller steam-side heat-
transfer coefficient and high metal temperatures.

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Thick Lip [1]

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Thin-Lip Rupture appearance
Rapid Overheating
◼ Ruptures caused by rapid overheating

◼ Exhibit swelling, obvious reduction in WT caused by yielding,

often to form a knife-edge at the fracture surface.

◼ Metallographycally: usually transgranular tensile fractures

occurring at metal temperatures from 650 to 870 °C.

◼ Lateral bending: steam escaping at high velocity through the

rupture will sometimes impose a reaction force on the tube that
is sufficient to bend it laterally. The higher and more uniform
the degree of overheating, the greater the lateral bending

◼ Cause steam jet impingement/erosion to neighboring tubes 14

Thin Lip [1]

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Rupture caused by Embrittlement

◼ Hydrogen Damage

◼ Graphitisation

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Hydrogen damage
◼ At low to moderate temperatures hydrogen damage, T= 350 –
550 oC, exhibit cracks with little or no crack branching
◼ At high temp hydrogen damage, T > 550oC
◼ exhibit discontinuous intergranular cracking, often accompanied by
decarburization due to CH4 formation (4H + Fe3C = 3Fe + CH4) along grain
boundaries.
◼ can be confirmed by macro-etching with a hot 50% solution of hydrochloric
acid; regions of hydrogen damage appear black and porous

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 Source of Hydrogen
◼ Hydrogen atoms is one products of corrosion reaction between iron
and water, typically occur under thick water side deposits
◼ If all internal deposits are not removed during chemical cleaning, the
porous deposits will retain the cleaning acid
◼ Between the tube metal and the deposit, the steel is actively being
corroded either in acidic or basic conditions:
◼ 2H+ + Fe = Fe2+ + 2H (acidic conditions)
◼ 2OH- + Fe = O2 -2 + 2H (basic conditions)
◼ The formed atomic hydrogen (H) diffuses within steel and form H2.
◼ Hydrogen damage is usually associated with thick internal deposits

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Graphitization
◼ Carbon or low-alloy steels subjected to moderate
temp for prolong exposure, T = 425 – 550 oC
exhibit Graphitization
◼ Graphitization results from decomposition of
pearlite into ferrite and carbon (graphite), Fe3C →
Fe + C (graphite)
◼ Cause embrittle to steel parts, especially when the
graphite particles form along a continuous zone at
high stress area or at HAZ. Often occur at
Economizer tubing, steam piping
◼ Remedy: material selection
◼ plain carbon steels, ASME SA-210, grade A-1, experienced
graphitization
◼ Add more than 0.5% Cr stabilizes the iron carbide and
prevents decomposition to graphite. Regardless of
operating temperatures
◼ ASME SA-213, grades T-11 and T-22, do not show
graphitized structures. 19
Graphitization vs Spheroidization

◼ Graphitization and carbide

Spheroidization are competing
mechanisms of pearlite
decomposition, which the
mechanisms have different
activation energies.
◼ Graphitization is pearlite
decomposition for prolonged
exposure (several thousand hours)
at moderate temp 400 - 550 °C.
Seldom occurs in boiling-surface
tubing.
◼ Spheroidal carbides can be expected
at higher temperatures, T = 550 –
650 oC. Boiling-surface tubing to be
weakened by spheroidization.
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Spheroidization

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Fatigue Failures
◼ Fatigue: equipment exposed in a vibration mechanical stress
and/or a thermal cyclic

◼ Classification of Fatigue phenomena

◼ Mechanical Fatigue
◼ Thermal Fatigue
◼ Corrosion Fatigue

◼ Mechanical/Thermal Loads vs Time

◼ Low Cycle Fatigue: strain induced fatigue failure resulting from mechanical
and/or thermal cyclic
◼ High Cycle Fatigue: stress induce fatigue failure resulting from mechanical
and/or thermal cyclic
◼ Impact Load: high speed mechanical rate of loading (for mechanical fatigue
case)
◼ Thermal Shock: high rate of termal loading (for thermal fatigue case)
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 High Cycle Mechanical FATIGUE (N>104),

◼ Charcateristics of Dynamic Mech stress

S = S max − S min S
R = min
S max
S max + S min
Sm = S min
2 A=
S max
S − S min
S a = max
2

◼ Material failures if
◼ sservice > sE
◼ Material propoerties: kurva S – N,
◼ Fatigue limit
◼ Endurance limit: fatigue limit pada R=-1
◼ Fatigue strength: a given stress for material survive up to 108 load cycle, for
Al-alloys
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Fatigue Limit – Notches - UTS [1, 4]

◼ Notches; Radius Fillet, Scratch reduces significantly the Fatigue Limit

◼ High Strength mat’l is becoming more snsitiv to Notch
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Source of Cyclic Loadings
Mechanical Loadings
◼ Cyclic stress is more important than cyclic strain in Mech fatigue, because of,
◼ Imbalance in rotating equipment, rapidly fluctuating fluid pressures (water
hammer), vibration transmitted through settings or mountings, or turbulent fluid
flow, especially at high flow rates
◼ Pressure and Thermal cycling during start-up and shutdown.

Thermal Loadings
◼ Cyclic strain is more important than cyclic stress in thermal fatigue, because
nonuniform or differential thermal expansion
◼ Transient thermal gradients during operation, especially during changes in
power output. Thermal stresses can lead to fracture in relatively few cycles
◼ Thermal cycling during start-up and shutdown

Worsenes
◼ Less Flexible structure
◼ Metallurgical changes due to long exposure at high temp
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Mechanical Fatigue (Fracture Surface) [2]

Crack Initiation

Crack
Propagation
Area

Crack Initiation

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Striation [1]

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Fracture Surface Appearance vs Mech
Loading type [1]

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Thermal Fatigue
Thermal fatigue: low-cycle or high-cycle failure
◼ Low-cycle thermal fatigue:
◼ associated with large plastic strains
◼ most often caused by large changes in temp or large differences in thermal expansion
◼ High-cycle thermal fatigue:
◼ frequently results from intermittent wetting of a hot surface by liquid having a lower
temperature. In such instances, the wetted surface contracts rapidly, whereas the
metal below the surface does not; this produces large biaxial tensile stresses in the
wetted surface. As the water absorbs heat and evaporates,
◼ temperature of the surface returns to its previous value, and surface stresses are
relaxed. After a sufficient number of cycle the tube developed thermal fatigue crack
◼ Thermal Shock:
◼ a change in temp is severe and occurs rapidly
◼ cracks due to thermal shock are initiated in ten thermal cycles or less—sometimes in
only one

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30
 Outer

Thermal Fatigue 2
B
Microstructures Inner

◼ Little crack branching, Transgranular

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32
33
Corrosion Fatigue
◼ Few service failures occur by pure fatigue. Most fatigue failures actually
occur by corrosion fatigue because most parts are exposed
simultaneously to cyclic stress and to a aggressive medium
◼ The combined action of corrosion and cyclic loading results in more
rapid crack initiation and/or propagation.
◼ Corroded surface acts as crack initiator to Fatigue failure

◼ Counter measure
◼ (1) use of corrosion inhibitors,
◼ (2) cathodic protection,
◼ (3) shielding of the surface of a part from contact with the environment by seals, by paint, plastic or
other nonmetallic coatings, or by plating with corrosion-resistant metals, and
◼ (4) use of a more corrosion-resistant material. The last method should be used with care, however,
because some of the

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Failure by Erosion
◼ Abrasive wear: Erosion involves impact of large numbers of small solid,
e.g. screen tubes or superheater tubes impact by particles of fly ash
entrained in the flue gases
◼ Liquidimpingement erosion: involves liquid particles against a surface,
as caused by the water droplets in wet steam
◼ Cavitating liquid is caused by the collapse of gas-filled bubbles in a
flowing liquid stream. E.g. pump casings, and pump impellers
◼ Erosion is enhanced by high flow velocities; angle of impact, hardness
and sharpness of solid particles
◼ Counter Measure:
◼ coating tube surfaces with refractory cements or other hard wear-resistant materials,
although this reduces the heat-transfer capability of the surface
◼ An alternative method is the channeling of gas flow away from critical areas with
baffles.

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Excessive Erosion
on Duplex St.St.
Pump Desander

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Erosion on Carbon Steel
◼ Excessive corrosion erosion on U-turn elbow at 10 to 1 o’clock
position although it was not leaking yet
◼ Scale at 1-6-9 o’clock position on inner surface of U-turn elbow

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Failure by SCC (Stress Corrosion Cracking)

◼ SCC is a type of failure under the combined effects of static tensile

stress that exceeds the threshold for SCC and a corrosive environment
◼ if either the tensile stress or the corrosive environment were absent,
fracture would not occur.
◼ Failure Cases:
◼ Superheater tubes, piping, valves, turbine casings, especially where feedwater or
condensate can collect
◼ Concentration of caustic in systems that use conventional phosphate methods of
feedwater treatment
◼ Aqueous solutions containing chloride ions can cause SCC of austenitic SS
◼ Solutions containing ammonia can cause SCC of copper alloys.
◼ SCC cracks: transgranular or intergranular, depending on the alloy and
the environment, usually extensively branched, becoming more
branched as high level of stress involved.
◼ Residual stress: from uneven heating or cooling in weldments. Hot- or
cold-forming processes. Assembly processes such as press fitting,
bolting, or riveting
◼ Metallurgical change: phase change to brittle phase; grain growth
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SSC – HIC Lab Test
0.2 mm

HIC

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Corrosion
◼ Water side corrosion
◼ Water side scale
◼ Fire side corrosion

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Kinetics of Aqueous Corrosion
◼ Aqueous corrosion on steel involves simultiniuous reactions of Anodic
and Cathodic reactions
◼ Anodic Reaction (metal being oxidizes): M ―˃ M+n + ne
◼ Katodic Reaction (Reduction of the metal)
1. Hydrogen Evolution : 2H+ + 2e ―˃ H2
2. Oxygen Reduction (in an acidic solution)
▪ O2 + 4H+ + 4e ―˃ 2H2O
3. Oxygen Reduction (in a neutral or basic environment)
▪ O2 + 2H2O + 4e ―˃ 4OH-
4. Reduction of Metal Ion : M3+ + e ―˃ M2+
5. Metal deposition : M2+ + e ―˃ M

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Water-side Corrosion
◼ Common occur in economizers and in boiling-surface
components
◼ Type of corrosion: Pitting and Crevice corrosions
◼ Oxygen is most common corrodent
◼ Source of oxygen:
◼ During operation: come in regions where the internal pressure is less than
atmospheric pressure, that is, in between the outlet of the low-pressure
turbine and the boiler feed pump
◼ When the close circuit system is opened for repair or cleaning
◼ Free oxygen is released as a product of the dissociation of water molecules

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Dissolve Oxygen & Contaminants

◼ Raw water used for initial filling and for make-up feed may contain:
dissolved organic substances; suspended organic and inorganic
substances; dissolved inorganic solids (silica and inorganic
compounds); and dissolved oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide.
◼ The organic and inorganic contaminants in raw water or condensate
can form scale or varnish on heated boiler tubes
◼ Contaminants also cause foaming in vapor-generating regions.
Foaming causes entrainment of water droplets in the steam and may
result in heavy deposition of solids from the feedwater on superheater
and reheater heat-transfer surfaces, in piping, and in turbines.
◼ Dissolved oxygen, carbon dioxide, chloride ions, and hydroxide ions,
can cause corrosion or stress-corrosion failures.

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◼ Components Exposed to Steam: superheaters,
reheaters, steam piping, and turbines usually do
not corrode.
◼ However, during start-up, shutdown, and idle
periods may cause corrosion when dry steam is
moisture.
◼ Enhanced by high concentration of oxygen, as a
system has been opened for repair, during start-
up, shutdown, and idle periods
◼ Remedy:
◼ use of a steam-bypass system: to balance the flow of
working fluid that is required to prevent overheating of
superheater and reheater tubes with the minimum flow
required to maintain proper boiler circulation at low firing
rates during start-up and shutdown.
◼ completely filling the system with condensate or with
treated boiler water
◼ maintained pH of 9.0, by adding 200 ppm of sodium
sulfite to water
◼ Purging w/ dry N2 during maintenance

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Corrosion of Condensers &
Feedwater Heaters
◼ mainly by the presence of CO2 in the condensate, when carbonates in
the feedwater dissociate in the boiler.
◼ CO2 + H2O → HCO3 that corrode the steel and Cu components
◼ Carried over Cu atoms is plated on the economizer & tubing to cause
Galvanic Corrosion and develop pitting

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Protection from Corrosion & Scalling
During Operation
◼ Control of corrosion and scaling generally involves three processes:
◼ 1. Removal of dissolved solids. 2. oxygen scavenging and 3. control of pH
◼ Solids removal by chemical treatment or demineralization of make-up
feedwater
◼ Oxygen scavenging and pH control are mainly accomplished by:
◼ chemical treatment used for pH control: use Phosphate & Volitile treatments
◼ conventional phosphate, coordinated phosphate, chelant. Phosphate treatment is the
least sensitive to upsets resulting from leakage of contaminants into the system.
◼ volatile treatments by reacting with the dissolved solids to form substances that can be
removed by blowdown. A volatile amine, such as ammonia; total solids are maintained
below 15 ppm for drum boilers, or below 50 ppb for once-through boilers, by
demineralization. Volatile treatment cannot remove hardness constituents and is
therefore extremely sensitive to upsets
◼ Oxygen and other dissolved gases are removed primarily through the
use of deaerating heaters.
◼ Typical dissolved-oxygen concentrations at the deaerator outlet < 7 ppb
◼ Chemical scavenging of accomplished by addition of sodium sulfite or hydrazine in
drum boilers that operate below 12.5 MPa (1.8 ksi) or by hydrazine above 12.5 MPa
(1.8 ksi)
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 ◼ The heat input from the combustion of fuel is
balanced by the formation of steam in the

Scalling furnace and the heating of steam in a

superheater or reheater
◼ On a clean boiler, Heat-flow path :
◼ First, fire-side heat transfer from the flame by both
radiation and convection
◼ Radiation predominates in the furnace, where the gas T
= 650 °C
◼ Convection by the time the flue gas has left the furnace,
T= 925 to 1095 °C
◼ Second, conduction through the steel boiler tubes
transfers to the internal fluid
◼ Third, convection mode at the fluid interface with the
inside-diameter surface
◼ The steam-side heat-transfer coefficient is a function of
fluid velocity, viscosity, density, and tube bore diameter
◼ On internal scaled tubes, the heat-flow through
internal scale or deposits
◼ Scale formation : Steam reacts with steel to form iron oxide
4H2O + 3Fe → 3Fe3O4 + 4H2
◼ Deposit
◼ Deposits and scale have a lower thermal conductivity
than the steel tube, the net effect is an increase in
tube metal temperatures 47
Scaling inside Boiling Tubes
(cont’d)

◼ The major source of water-side scale is dissolved solids in the

feedwater
◼ Compounds containing iron, Ca, Mg, and NH3- (water hardness
compounds) become less soluble in water as temperature is increased.
These hardness compounds separate from solution and precipitate as
tube-wall deposits, or hardness scale. It can cause rapid overheating of
tube material.
◼ In addition, hardness scale may be somewhat porous. Dissolved solids
in the boiler water can be concentrated in the pores, which may lead to
severe pitting corrosion of the tube surface beneath the hardness scale

48
Scaling inside Superheater
Tubes & Turbine (cont’d)
◼ Solid deposition of solids in superheater tubing occurs primarily as the result of
deposition of nonvolitile solids presents within carryover water droplets in wet
steam.
◼ Deposits may not be as likely to cause rapid overheating failures in superheater
tubing
◼ Because superheaters operate at higher metal temperatures, scaling may lead to
stress-rupture failure or to loss of ductility because of σ-phase formation or
spheroidization of carbides
◼ Deposition in Turbines resulting in a loss of power.
◼ Silica, which is present in most raw water, is not removed by the same
treatments used for control of water hardness

◼ Scaling removal
◼ Mechanical: limited area to be cleaned
◼ Chemical: always be followed by thorough flushing. Less downtime; lower
cost; ability to clean inaccessible areas, without dismantling the unit
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Fire Side Corrosion
1. Coal-Ash corrosion
2. Oil-Ash Corrosion
3. Low Temp Corrosion

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Fire Side Corrosion
General Info
◼ Combustion of fossil fuels:
◼ Produces ash containing solid, liquid, and gaseous compounds that can be corrosive to
structural component
◼ The deposits alter the heat-transfer characteristics, severe effects on system
efficiency, and increase tube-wall temp
◼ Once a liquid phase forms in the ash, the protective oxide scale on the tube surface is
dissolved and rapid wastage follows.
◼ In Oils Fuel boilers:
◼ Relatively less trouble, ash contents oil-ash deposits < 0.2%
◼ The main contaminants are wide variety compounds of V, Na, S, many of which are
extremely corrosive.
◼ liquid phase is a mixture of vanadium pentoxide (V2O5), with either sodium oxide
(Na2O) or sodium sulfate (Na2SO4). Mixtures of these compounds have melting points
below 540 °C
◼ In Coal-fired boilers:
◼ the liquid phase is a mixture of sodium and potassium iron trisulfate—(Na3Fe(SO4)3
and K3Fe(SO4)3. Mixtures of these melt at as low as 555 °C

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Coal-Ash ◼ Occure at surfaces of superheater and reheater
Corrosion ◼
tubes
The burning coal generated,
◼ Volatile alkali compounds of Al, Fe, K, Na, S
◼ Sulfur oxides SO2, SO3
◼ Glassy particles known as fly ash.
◼ Coal-ash corrosion starts with the deposition of
fly ash on surfaces at T = 540 - 730 °C
◼ Over an extended period of time, volatile alkali
and sulfur compounds condense on the fly ash
and react with it to form complex alkali sulfates,
such as KAl(SO4)2 and Na3Fe(SO4)3, at the metal
to the deposit boundary
◼ The ash and corrosion products contain both
carbon and sulfides
◼ The tube surfaces are corroded most heavily
beneath the thickest portions of the deposit
forming shallow macropitting untill the tube
becomes thinned and can no longer withstand
the pressure within the tube, and the tube
ruptures 52
Coal-Ash Corrosion
Characteristics (cont’d)
◼ Rapid attack occurs at T= 540 - 730 °C; being highest
rate at T= 675 - 730 °C
◼ Corrosion is almost always associated with sintered or
glassy slag-type deposits
◼ The deposit consists of three distinct layers:
◼ The porous, outermost layer comprises the bulk of the deposit and is
composed essentially of the same compounds as those found in fly
ash.
◼ The middle layer, called the white layer, is whitish or yellowish in color,
is often fused, and is largely water-soluble, producing an acid solution.
◼ The innermost layer heavy black lines, is a thin, glassy substance
composed primarily of corrosion products of iron.
◼ The corrosion products contain sulfides when the coal
contains more than 3.5% S and 0.25% Cl
◼ Typical corrosion rate, for 2.25Cr-1Mo are 0.4 to 1 mmpy,
while the 304 SS are 0.08 to 0.1 mmpy
◼ The overall appearance of the wasted tube surface is
rough, with what is termed an alligator hide appearance
53
Coal-Ash Corrosion - Thermal
Fatigue (cont’d)
◼ Coal Ash Corr may develop Thermal
Fatigue when the ash has low Tm = 335 –
410 °C (635 and 770 °F)
◼ During soot-blower operation slag falls
◼ Such rapid temp excursions coupled with
liquid-ash constituents lead to a thermal
fatigue failures
◼ Characterized by circumferential grooves
spaced along the length of the tube

54
Oil-Ash Corrosion
◼ During combustion of fuel oils, organic compounds (those containing
vanadium or sulfur) decompose and react with oxygen. The resulting
volatile oxides are carried along in the flue gases
◼ Initially, vanadium pentoxide (V2O5) condenses as a semifluid slag on
furnace walls, boiler tubes, and superheater tubes
◼ Sodium oxide reacts with the vanadium pentoxide to form complex
compounds, especially vanadates (nNa2O·V2O5) and
vanadylvanadates (nNa2O·V2O4·mV2O5). These complex compounds,
low Tm = 249 °C, foul and actively corrode tube surfaces
◼ Sodium, which is usually present in the oil as a chloride, reacts with the
sulfur oxides to form sulfates

55
Oil-Ash Corrosion (cont’d)

◼ Slag of thickness 3.0 to 6.4 mm developed in furnaces insulates the

tubes, resulting in an increase in the slag temp, which in turn increases
the rate of corrosion and promotes further deposition of ash
◼ However, higher slag temperatures also make the slag more fluid so
that it will flow more readily on vertical surfaces
◼ Consequently, slag generally builds up in corners and on horizontal
surfaces, such as at the bases of water walls and around tube supports
in the superheater
◼ Oil-ash corrosion affects all the common structural alloys including
60Cr-40Ni and 50Cr-50Ni cast alloys, used for superheater-tube
supports
◼ In addition, nonmetallic refractory materials used for furnace linings
are attacked by vanadium slag; the mechanism of this attack appears
to be a dissolution attack rather than the direct chemical

56
Low-Temperature Corrosion
◼ In low-temperature zones (flue-gas
passages, air heaters, precipitators, stack
coolers, flues and stacks, and near the
inlets of economizers) corrosion is caused
by condensed water vapor containing
dissolved SO3 and CO2.
◼ The dew point of sulfuric acid= 120 to 150
°C for SO3 concentrations of 15 to 30 ppm
◼ Factors that increase the likelihood of acid
condensation includes
◼ low flue-gas flow, such as occurs during start-up
and during periods of low-load operation,
◼ excessively low flue-gas exit temperatures during
normal operation
◼ Too great an amount of excess air of high
humidity, and very low atmospheric temp
◼ Minimum metal temp for avoiding external
corrosion in economizers and air heaters
57
Fire Side Corrosion Control
Fire-side corrosion can rarely be eliminated altogether. Reduction
of fire-side corrosion can be accomplished by one or more of the
following methods,
1. Fuel selection
2. Combustion control
3. Boiler design and construction
4. Periodic ash removal
5. Use of fuel additives

58
Fire Side Corrosion Control
(cont’d)
1. Fuel Selection
◼ Use clean fuel: ashless or sulfur-free fuel is the most important of
minimizing fire-side corrosion
◼ Boilers fitted with burners that can use more than one type of fuel;
others are fitted with auxiliary burners to permit firing of secondary
fuels (generally, main and auxiliary burners are not fired together).
◼ Most boilers are built to burn only one type of fuel; thus, selection of
low-ash or low-sulfur fuel involves selection of a specific type of boiler
◼ Unavoided use of a high-sulfur fuel. In such instances, close control of
operating conditions is mandatory by purging the boiler by burning a
low sulfur content fuel gas with for a sufficient length of time

59
2. Combustion Control
◼ controlling the amount and composition of ash deposits by adjustment
of firing rate, amount of excess air, air temperature, and amount of
recirculated flue gas
◼ burning high-vanadium high-sulfur residual oil, reducing the amount of
excess air from 7% down to 1 to 2% reduced the rate of corrosion of
18-8 stainless by as much as 75%.
◼ The low amount of excess air limits oxidation of vanadium and sulfur to
their highest states of oxidation and thus prevented formation of the
most corrosive oil-ash compounds
◼ Low-temperature corrosion was eliminated by maintaining excess air at
1 to 2%.

60
3. Boiler Design and Construction
◼ including tube size and spacing, furnace configuration, size and
direction of flue-gas passages, and size and location of baffles or
shields, can help control ash deposition
◼ Boiler design specifically for the purpose of corrosion control is limited
by the need to facilitate efficient generation of steam.

61
4. Periodic Ash Removal
◼ Ash removal prevents development scales that can lead to failure by
overheating.
◼ Soot blowers and Lances direct jets of air or steam against heat-
transfer surfaces to remove fire-side deposits
◼ The effectiveness of soot blowers depends on
◼ the design and location of the soot blowers
◼ the blowing medium and its temperature; the properties of the deposit, especially its
friability and adherence and the frequency and duration of soot-blower operation
◼ Important to coordinate combustion control with the soot-blowing
schedule to ensure that deposits are loosely adherent and powdery,
and that they are removed before they are transformed into sintered
masses.

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5. Additives
◼ To control both coal-ash and oil-ash corrosion
◼ Finely powdered magnesia, dolomite, and alumina are injected into
furnace gases or blown onto heat-transfer surfaces through soot
blowers.
◼ Additives are sometimes mixed with fuel oil before combustion
◼ Additives promote the formation of ash deposits that are easily
removed
◼ Additives also reduce low-temperature corrosion by reacting with SO3
to form innocuous sulfates. This reduces the SO3 content of the flue
gas, thus reducing the likelihood that acid will condense in low-
temperature regions.

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References
1. “Failure Analysis and Prevention”, ASM Hanbook, Vol. 11
2. “Failure Modes and Effects Analysis”, R.R. Mohr, February 2002,
8th Ed. Formerly at JACOBBS-SVERDRUP

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QUESTIONS