OPTIMISATION OF BOILER AND TURBINE OPERATION

I. BOILER PERFORMANCE

A) Optimizing Total air supplies: -

Supplying correct air quantity for combustion is vital for optimization of boiler operation. Too
little air will cause unburnt losses and too much air will increase the dry flue gas losses.
Carbon mono-oxide monitor can be effectively used for enabling supply of correct air
quantity of air for combustion. Flue gasses in a pulverized fuel boiler will normally have a
residual quantity of carbon mono-oxide in the vicinity of 100 ppm.
If the amount of excess air supplied to the furnace is greater than the design excess air value,
then the flue gas flow rate and the amount of heat lost to the atmosphere will increase,
causing a decrease in energy efficiency. This situation can occur if the plant control system is
defective or there is incorrect plant operation.

B) Combustible materials in ash: -

The amount of unburnt in ash is a measure of effectiveness of combustion process and
milling plant. Normally about 1.5% carbon in dust is regarded as optimum. Values higher than
this are indicative of the following.
1. Poor grinding.
2. Incorrect combustion air supplies.
3. In correct p.f. classifier setting or mills in need of adjustments.
Apart from the milling plant the actual combustion process can lead to high carbon in
ash. If the air supplies are badly adjusted, even though grinding is proper, unburnt losses can
occur. For the best control of flame all mills should ideally produce the same size of product,
and also all mills should be equally loaded as this spreads the fire evenly. Unequal grading
produce flames, which have different characteristic and so are insensitive to secondary air
adjustments. The air temperature is also important because of influence of the rate of ignition
and flame length. The primary air to secondary air ratio is also an important norm, which should
not be allowed to deviate to much from the recommended value.

C) Air heater gas outlet temperature: -

Optimum air heater gas outlet temperature recommended by manufacturer should be
adhered to.
The temperature of the flue gas leaving the air heater (which is the final heat exchange
element in the boiler) has a direct influence on the station efficiency. For example, a 22°C
increase in this temperature above optimum could result in a 1% decrease in station efficiency.
There are many causes of an increase in this temperature, all to do with reductions in energy
absorbed from the hot gas in or after the furnace. The most usual problems are:
1. Ineffective air heater soot blowers
2. Holed & torn elements, a particular problem at the cold end plates because of corrosion.
3. Fouling, corrosion/erosion and blocking of air heater elements.
4. Deposits on the external heat transfer surfaces of the furnace, super heaters, re-
heaters and economisers - many of these surfaces have to be regularly cleaned using “soot
blowing” for increase in efficiency resulting from cleaner heat transfer surfaces.

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5. Fouling of the internal heat transfer surfaces of the furnace, super heaters, re-heaters
and economisers caused mainly by incorrect chemistry of the water and steam in these tubes;
or by incorrect material selection of the tubes; or by the tube material overheating; or
combinations of these
6. Defective or non-availability of Soot Blowers.
7. High Excess Air (This will increase the gas weight and also elevate the temperature,
however if excess air is very high, dilution effect may predominate and the flue gas temperature
will fall).
8. Low feed water inlet temperature at Economiser inlet.
9. Defective baffles in gas paths.
10. Poor milling and poor combustion resulting in long burn off times and result in higher
outlet gas temperature in addition to fouling.
11. Use of higher rows of burners at lower loads.
12. Air leakage before combustion chamber.

II. TURBINE PERFORMANCE

A) Internal Losses.
Nozzle Friction, Blade friction, disc friction, diaphragm gland and blade tip leakage,
partial admission, wetness and exhaust.
B) External Losses.:- Shaft gland leakages.
The common cause of cylinder efficiency deterioration include,
1. Damage to blades caused by debris getting past the steam strainers.
2. Damage to tip seals and inter stage glands.
3. Deposition on blades, normally start at last few I.P. stages and carry on to the first few
L.P. stages.
4. Increased roughness of blade surface.

III. FEED WATER HEATER PERFORMANCE

Deterioration of feed water heater performance occurs for the following causes.
1. Air accumulation
2. Steam side fouling
3. Water side fouling.
4. Drainage defects.
Once air accumulation occurs it is manifested in the following.
a) Reduced heater drain water temperature
b) Increased T.T.D.
c) Possible elevation of steam to Heater temperature.
d) Reduced temperature rise of feed water or condensate.

Steam side fouling: -

The effect of steam side fouling can be observed by the following
a) Progressive increase of T.T.D.
b) Drain Temp unaffected
c) Reduced feed water temperature rise.

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Water side fouling: -
Common cause of waterside fouling is oil.
Thermal magnification of the trouble are similar to steam side fouling except that the on-set of
increasing T.T.D. is usually sudden and rate of deterioration is rapid.

Drainage defects: -
Apart from passing of valves, the usual troubles are,
a) Damaged flash box internals.
b) Reduced orifice openings.
c) Enlarged orifice openings.
d) Drip pumps defective.

Effect of heater fouling: -

Fouling always causes increase in T.T.D. resulting from lower feed water outlet
temperature. Therefore when feed enters the next heater it will be colder than normal and so
increases the steam consumption at that heater. Increased steam flow will cause increased
velocity and mass flow, which may cause mechanical damage.
As a general guide, the turbine generator heat rate will be affected by 0.07% for 1°C
change in T.T.D. of HP Heaters.
It is recommended that feed heater TTD be monitored every day.

IV. CONDENSER PERFORMANCE: -

It is an accepted fact that less than half the heat in fuel is converted into electrical
energy and losses in condenser account for more heat than does the electrical output. In other
words, at any time in the operation of the unit, more MW is going out through the condenser
than which is coming through the generator.
Even very small worsening of backpressure is very expensive in terms of extra heat required for
a given output. In fact condenser performance is the most important operating parameter on a
unit. In fact the condenser performance is the most important operating parameter on a unit,
so the factors which worsen condenser back pressure must be clearly recognized so that
effective remedial measures can be taken.
The factors affecting performance of condenser are: -
1. Variation of C.W inlet temperature.
2. Variation of CW Quality
3. Interference with heat transfer.
Condenser T.T.D is a measure of interference with heat transfer. A high TTD means a
worsened condition.
The temperature gradient, which is the main driving force for the heat transfer, is
expressed as log mean temp. difference. (LMTD).
The main factors affecting the heat transfer in a condenser are
1. Effect of air blanketing on steam side of tubes. The effect of air ingress is the main
factor causing poor performance of condensers. Air ingress can be measured by use of orifice
plates provided at the ejector outlets.
2. Deposition of oil or oxides of copper or iron on the steam side (Copper Oxide etc.)
surface affecting the heat transfer adversely.
Deposition on the insides of the tubes due to scale, slime, mud or dirt.

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OPTIMISATION OF UNIT PERFORMANCE
Monitoring just a few parameters, it is possible to get a good idea whether or not the
plant is working in optimized condition or not.
These parameters are: -
1. Condenser Vacuum.
2. Main steam pressure at turbine inlet.
3. Main steam Temperature inlet at turbine inlet.
4. Reheat temperature at turbine inlet.
5. Final feed water temperature after heater block.
6. Boiler excess air.
7. Unburnt / combustible material in ash.
8. Air heater gas outlet temperature.
9. Make up water consumption.

If each of these conditions is at optimum value there is a good chance that the unit is
being operated at or near the optimum performance limits. Therefore it is a good practice to
record the above parameters regularly, say once per shift and take action on any deviations
that are significant.
The significance of each of these parameters in optimization of unit is discussed here as
under.

1. CONDENSER VACUUM:
This is the most important parameter that is required to be monitored. The significance
of it can be understood from the fact that a vacuum drop equivalent to 10 mm of Hg would
cause a loss of approx. Rs. 415/- hour in terms of fuel cost when running the unit at full load.
(The figures are based on performance calculations done at Chandrapur in 1996.)
It is therefore necessary that in every shift back pressure should be analysed for
deviations from optimum. One of the reasons for the drop in back pressure is the air ingress in
the condenser. Checks should be carried out to see if air ingress is excessive.
For checking the air ingress, help of Helium leak detector may be taken to identify and /
or quantify the air ingress points. The best way to do this is to note the air suction depression.
This is a method by which presence of air is determined by measuring temperature of contents
of air suction pipe to air ejectors / vacuum pumps. When there is only a little air present, the
temperature is very little below the saturated steam temperature say within 4.50C. as more
and more air is present the temperature falls - the more air the greater depression of air suction
compared to saturated steam temperature. Preferable the thermometers are to in direct contact
with the contents of air suction pipe.
Alternately at regular intervals, say once a week confirm how long it takes for the back
pressure to detoriate by a set amount when the air pump suction valves are shut. Comparison
with the time taken when condenser was known to be in good condition will indicate the degree
of air leakage.

2. MAIN STEAM PRESSURE AT TURBINE INLET:

A change in turbine stop valve pressure will result in corresponding change in output.
Hence it is the most important that when the unit is on full load, the turbine stop valve pressure
is kept at correct value. In general the effects of change in Turbine Stop Valve pressure are: -

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a) Steam flow will change.
b) Changed flow will cause the pressure through the turbine to change, including bleed
steam pressure.
c) Because of (b) the feed heater outlet water temperature will change.
d) Total Heat of TSV steam, R/H steam and final feed water flow will change.
e) Boiler feed pump output will change to cope-up with changed flow.
f) Because the flow through turbine has altered so the volumetric flow to condenser will
change.

Thus it is seen that a simple change in TSV pressure reflects throughout the cycle.
It can be seen from the calculation that 5 Kg/cm2 pressure drop at turbine inlet would result in
a loss of Rs 185/- per hour approximately. Based on calculations done in 1996.

3. MAIN STEAM TEMPERATURE AT TURBINE INLET:

Variations in the TSV steam temperature result in variations in the specific volume of
the steam and this results in a change of steam flow.
Other results are:
a) Change of total heat to TSV Steam.
b) Change of total heat to HP cylinder exhaust steam.
c) The change of flow will alter the pressure throughout the turbine and this will change
the bleed steam flow to heaters.

Calculations indicate that a 5°C drop in the main steam temperature could result in a
loss of around Rs. 100/- per hour at full load.

4. REHEAT OUTLET STEAM TEMPERATURE:

Variations in the Reheat Outlet Steam temperature will cause:
a) Change in total heat of the steam.
b) Change of steam flows to the condenser for a given loading.

5°C drop in the Reheat Outlet Steam temperature would result in a loss around Rs. 154/
- per hour at full load

5. FINAL FEED WATER TEMPERATURE AFTER HEATER BLOCK:

The final feed water temperature should be measured after the HP Heater block bypass
has joined the feed line and deviations from optimum should be investigated. Water flows
through the bypass will cause the final feed heater outlet temperature to be higher than final
feed. Variations of feed flow from optimum will cause changes of output and heat rate.
In addition there can be deviations from optimum at individual heaters. Whatever is the
trouble at a heater it must affect one or more of these parameters.
a) Heater Terminal Temperature Difference.
b) Drain outlet terminal temperature difference.
c) Bleed steam pipe pressure drop.
d) Steam temperature at heater inlet.

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6. BOILER EXCESS AIR:
Boiler combustion efficiency is largely dependent upon supplying correct quantity of
excess air at right place. Supplying too much of excess air will increase dry flue gas losses. This
is because the quantity of gas will increase and so will the heat content as excess air will
absorb heat more readily than the heat exchange surface, thus increasing the Air heater gas
outlet temperature.

7. COMBUSTIBLE MATERIALS IN ASH:

The permitted values for the carbon in ash are 0.8 % in fly ash and 4.8% in bottom ash
as per the design. Values greater than above are indicative of:
a) Poor grinding
b) Incorrect combustion air supplies.
c) Incorrect pulveriser fineness classifier settings.

It is calculated that 1.5% carbon in ash is equivalent of about 0.5% boiler losses
amounting to around Rs. 236/- per hour approximately at full load.

8. AIR HEATER GAS OUTLET TEMPERATURE:

The causes of high air heater gas outlet temperature are:
a) Ineffective A/H soot blowing.
b) Holed and torn elements.
c) Deposits on boiler heat transfer surface.
d) Defective soot blowers resulting in reduced heat transfer in discrete location and result
will be as in (c).
e) High excess air increases the gas weight and also elevates the temperature. However if
the excess air is very high dilution effect may predominate and the gas temperature will
fall.
f) Low final feed water temperature has to be remedied by extra firing in the boiler and this
will result in high exit gas temperature.
g) Poor milling and poor combustion results in long burn off times and result in high gas
temperature at furnace exit in addition to fouling.
h) Using upper rows of burners on low loads.

Generally speaking a final gas temperature of about 20°C above optimum will result in
boiler efficiency loss of about 1%, which amounts to a loss of Rs. 472/- per hour at full load.

9. MAKE UP WATER CONSUMPTION:

Makeup water is replacing water and steam, which has been lost from system and
contains considerable quantities of heat.
There are four usual sources of loss:
a) Passing of valves / leaks.
b) Boiler blow downs.
c) Drains going to waste
d) Soot blowing.
Of the above four sources of loss, the first three can be controlled by good house
keeping. As regards the soot blowing losses if it is carried out too often heat is wasted whereas
if it is not carried out often enough the heat transfer may become heavily coated and heat

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transfer will be reduced and thus the final gas temperature will rise. Hence there must be
optimum interval between soot blowing, but just that may be difficult to determine. The basic
problem is that soot blowing affects boiler efficiency and boiler availability.
An expression for heat loss due to carrying of soot blowing is:

Heat loss to soot blowing steam

Loss = ---------------------------------------------------
Heat given to TSV Steam + Heat given to RH steam

Qs (h1-h5)
Loss = 0.25Qs + --------------------------
(h2 - h5) + QR (h4 - h3)
Where
Qs = Soot blowing steam as a percent of TSV steam flow.
QR = Reheat steam flow as fraction of TSV steam flow.
h1 = Total heat of steam at A/H gas outlet temperature & pressure.
h2 = Total Heat of Steam at TSV conditions.
h3 = Total Heat of Steam before Re-heater.
h4 = Total Heat of Steam after air heater.
h5 = Heat in final feed water.

The term 0.25 Qs is the approximate loss due to raising the temperature of the cold
make up water to final feed water temperature.
For operational purposes it is convenient to determine some reference temperature (say
gas temperature leaving primary super heater) and commence soot blowing when it reaches a
certain value, allowance being made for boiler loading. The alternative of blowing out at preset
times (say once per shift) has little to commend except convenience. One of the main parameters
that determine the frequency of soot blowing is the ash content of coal.
The above explanations are given to bring home the importance of maintaining the few
vital parameters to their optimum values for bringing down the operating losses. If each of the
above conditions is maintained at the optimum it can be assured that the unit will be running at
minimum losses and maximum efficiency and consequently the coal rate per HWH generation will
also come down appreciably.

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