CHAPTER 4

STEAM
1
GENERATORS
(BOILERS)
 STEAM GENERATORS (BOILERS)
 Introduction

 A closed vessel in which the heat produced by the combustion of

fuel is transferred to water for its conversion into steam at the
desired temperature and pressure.
 The steam produced may be supplied
i. At high pressure to steam engine or turbines for power
generation.
ii. At low pressure for industrial process work in sugar
factories, breweries, textiles etc…
 Example:- in the textiles for sizing and bleaching.
iii. For producing hot water which can be used for heating a
building in cold weather and for hot water supply
2
 The primary requirements of steam generators or boilers are:
i. The water must be contained safely,
ii. The steam must be safely delivered in desired condition.
As regards its
 Pressure
 Temperature
 Quality
 Required rate
Classification of boiler
Boilers are classified according to:
1. Contents of the tubes
 Fire tube or smoke-tube boiler
 Water-tube boilers
In the fire-tube boilers,
 The flame and hot gasses produced by combustion of fuel pass through the
tubes which are surrounded by water. 3
 Fig:-Fire tube boiler

Heat is conducted through the walls of the

tubes from the hot gasses to the surrounded
water.
Examples: simple vertical boiler, Cochran
boiler, Lancashire boilers, Cornish boiler,
Scotch marine boiler, Locomotive boiler…
4
In the water-tube boilers:
The water is contained inside the tubes which are
surrounded by the flames and hot gasses from the outside.
Example: Babcock and Wilcox boiler, Sterling boiler , Yarrow
boiler, La-Mont boiler…

5
CONT…

2. Position of the furnace

 Internally fired boiler
 Externally fired boiler
 In internally fired steam boilers:
 The furnace is located inside the boiler shell. Most
fire-tube boilers are internally fired.
 In externally fire steam boilers:
 The furnace is arranged underneath in a brickwork
setting.
 The furnace is located outside the boiler shell. 6
7
3. Axis of the shell:
 Vertical shell boiler
 Horizontal shell boiler
 Inclined shell boiler
 If the axis of the boiler is horizontal, the boiler is called as horizontal,
if the axis is vertical, it is called vertical boiler and if the axis is
inclined it is known as incline boilers.
 The parts of a horizontal boiler can be inspected and repaired easily
but it occupies more space. The vertical boiler occupies less floor area.
4. Number of tubes:
 Single tube boiler
 Multi-tubular boiler
 In the single tube steam boilers, there is only one fire tube or water
tube.
 In the multi-tubular steam boilers, on the other hand, there are two or
more fire tubes or water tubes. 8
5. Method of Circulation of water and steam:
 Natural circulation
 Forced circulation
In natural circulation steam boilers:
 The circulation of water is by natural convection currents, which are
set up during the heating of water.
 Circulation of water in the boiler takes due to natural convection
currents produced by the application of heat.
 Most steam boilers operate under natural circulation of water.
In forced circulation steam boilers:
 The circulation of water is done by a forced pump.
 There is a forced circulation of water by centrifugal pumps.
 Forced circulation is used in high-pressure boilers.

9
6. Use of boiler:
 Stationary (fixed)
 Mobile(portable)

Primarily, the boilers are classified as either stationary(land) and mobile

(marine and locomotive)

Stationary boilers
 are used for power plant-steam, for central station utility power plants,
for plant process steam etc..
 Are used in power plant and industrial process work.

Mobile boilers or portable boilers

 include locomotive type, and other small units for temporary use at
sites ( just as in small coalfield pits).
10
 Are those which can be moved from one place to another.
7. High pressure and low pressure boilers:
 The boilers which produce steam at pressure of 80 bar and above are called
high pressure boilers.
Example:- Babcock and Wilcox, Velox, Lamont, Benson boilers
 The boilers which produce steam at pressure below 80 bar are called low
pressure boilers.
Example:- Cochran, Cornish, Lancashire and Locomotive boilers.
Selection of a boilers
 While selecting a boiler the following factors should be considered:
I. The working pressure and quality of steam required ( i.e., whether
wet or dry or superheated).
II. Steam generation rate.
III. Floor area available.
IV. Accessibility for repair and inspection.
V. Comparative initial cost.
VI. Erection facilities.
VII. The probable load available. 11
VIII. The fuel and water available.
IX. Operating and maintenance cost
Essentials of a good steam boiler:
A good boiler should possess the following features:
• The boiler should produce the maximum weight of steam
of the required quality at minimum expenses.
• Steam production rate should be as per requirements.
• It should be absolutely reliable.
• It should occupy small space.
• It should be light in weight.
• It should be capable of quick starting.
• There should be an essay access to the various parts of the
boiler for repairs and inspection.
• The boiler components should be transportable without
difficulty.
12
• The installation of the boiler must be simple.
 Boiler accessories
 There are the devices which are integral parts of a boiler and which help
in the efficient running of a boiler.
 The working principles and theory behind the most important boiler
accessories such as the feed pump, the economizer, the air pre-heater and
the superheater.
 A huge quantity of fuel is used in thermal power plant and vary large
quantity of heat is carried by the exhaust gases.
 In the present age of costly fuel, it has become necessary to conserve the
fuel by utilizing the heat that otherwise would be wasted to the
atmosphere.
 This is done in all modern power plants, by incorporating economizers
and air pre-heaters.
 By increasing the temperature of feed water passing through the
economizer, using waste heat of flue gases, the quantity of heat required
per kg of steam generated in the boiler is reduced.
 The temperature of the combustion air is increased by passing it through
13
an air pre-heater where the remaining waste heat of the exhaust gases is
utilized.
14
 The preheated air increases the combustion efficiency in the furnace
and reduces the fuel loss.
 In both equipments, the quantity of fuel required is reduced by
extracting the heat from the exhaust gases.
1. Feed pump:
 As water is continuously converted to steam, steam boilers should
be supplied with continuous flow of feed water. This work is
accomplished by feed pump.
 Feed water pressures are, generally set 20% more than the boiler
pressure.
2. Economizer:
 An economizer is a feed water heater which raises the temperature
of feed water to about the saturated liquid temperature at the boiler
pressure using the flue gases discharged from the boiler.
 The justifiable cost for an economizer depends on the total gain in
efficiency. In turn, this depends on the gas temperature out of the 15
boiler and feed water temperature to the boiler.
A typical return bend type economizer is shown below. The figure shows
one coil of the economizer consisting of nt numbers of turns in one coil.
There are n such coils arranged in parallel.
 Economizer tubes are commonly 45-70 mm in outside diameter.
 Economizer coils are installed at 45-50 mm spacing between them.
The rate of heat transfer from flue gases to feed water is given by:

Q eco

  

 m g C pg t g1  t g 2  m fw C pfw t sat  t fw 
 U o Ao F c T lm
ti  t e
T lm

 t i 
ln 
 t  
 e 

Where:- 16

ti  t g1  t sat t e  t g 2  t fw
and
 Fc = log-mean temperature difference correction factor
 The overall heat transfer coefficient U o is:
1

1
 x w

1
U o h i k w h
o

Where:
hi=inside heat transfer coefficient.
xw= tube wall thickness.
kw= thermal conductivity of tube material.
ho= outside heat coefficient.
 Feed-water flowing through tubes at exit from the economizer ( assumed
saturated water)   d i2  C fw
m fw  
n 

 4 V f

C fw= mean velocity of cooling water through tubes.

17
di= inner diameter of tubes.
Vf= specific volume of the cooling water.
 If the clearance C is given on two sides of the gas duct of width B, then
the number of turns nt of one coil can be estimated from:
1
n t

B  2C
 If the pitch or center to center distance p of consecutive horizontal
tubes is known, then the height of the duct occupied by the economizer is:

H Eco  nt p
The film-coefficient from water to the tube surface hi is much larger than
the outside film-coefficient ho for the flue gas to the tube surface.
 Economizers are, therefore, built with fins on their outer surface to
enhance ho.
3. Air pre-heater:
 The heat carried with the flue gases coming out of economizer is further
utilized for pre heating the air before it is supplied to the combustion
chamber.
18
 An increase of 20 c in the air temperature increases the boiler efficiency
0

by an about 1%.
 In modern power plants, the air pre-heaters are not only considered
with respect to the boiler efficiency, but also as a necessary equipment
for supply of hot air for drying the coal in pulverized fuel system to
facilitate grinding and satisfactory combustion of fuel in the furnace.
 Air heaters are usually installed on steam generators that burn solid
fuels but rarely on gas or oil fired units.
 Economizers are specified for most boilers burning liquid or gas or
coal whether or not an air heater is provided.
 The principal benefits of preheating the air are:
 Improve combustion,
 Successful use of low grade fuel (high ash content),
 Increase thermal efficiency,
 Saving in fuel consumption, and
 Increased steam generation capacity of the boiler.
 The air-heaters are not essential for the operation of steam-generator
but they are used where a study of the costs indicates that some money19
can be saved or efficient combustion can be obtained by their use.
 The decision for its adoption can be made only after the financial
advantage is weighed against the capital and maintenance cost of the
heater which include the size of the boiler, the efficiency of combustion,
maintenance of furnaces and saving in heat discharged to the chimney.
 Tubular air –heater and plate type air heater are the two recuperative
types of heat exchangers commonly used for air heating.
 The working principle of a typical tubular air heater:
The flue gases flow through the tubes and air is passed over the
outer surface of the tubes.
The horizontal baffles are provided as shown in the figure to
increase time of contact which will help for higher heat transfer.
In some design, tube-row staggering is used to improve the air-
distribution
Steel tubes 3 to 10 m in height and 6 to 8 cm in diameter are
commonly used.
The hopper is provided below the tubes to collect soot is
deposited on the inside surface of the tube. 20
4. Superheater:
 The function of superheater in the thermal power plant is to remove the
last traces moisture (1 to 2%) from the saturated steam coming out of
the boiler and to increase its temperature sufficiently above saturation
temperature.
 The superheating raises overall cycle efficiency as well as avoids too
much condensation in the last stage of the turbine ( below 12%) to
prevent the blade erosion.
 The heat of combustion gases from furnace is utilized for the removal of
moisture from steam and to superheat the steam.
 Superheaters usually have several tube circuits in parallel with one or
more return bends connected b/n headers.
 Heat from the hot gases to the vapor in the superheater is transferred at
high temperature. Therefore primary section of superheater is arranged
in counter flow and secondary section in parallel flow to reduce the
temperature stressing of the tube wall.
21
 Thermal analysis of a superheater is made based on the simple
schematic diagram shown below.

 Energy balance of the superheater:


QSH  mg c pg t  t   m h  h 
g1 g2

s
2 1

 U o Ao F c tlm

Where: ti  t e
Tlm 
 ti 
ln 
 t 
 e 

ti  t g1  t st 2 and te  t g 2  t st1

Fc = log-mean temperature difference correction factor
 The overall heat transfer coefficient Uo is:
 x 
22
1 11 w

U h k h
o i w o
Where:
hi= inside heat transfer coefficient
Xw= tube wall thickness
Kw= thermal conductivity of tube material
cs ho = outside heat transfer coefficient
With taken as the average velocity of steam in the superheater, the rate of
flow of vapor is estimated
 from:
  2 c
di s
ms   nt 
 4 v
  g

 Steam velocity is superheater and re-heater tubes may vary

between 10 m/s and 12 m/s.
 Diameters of superheater and re-heater tubes may vary b/n 50
mm and 75 mm OD.
 Modern superheaters, operating at about 600 0C, are usually made of
special high strength alloy steels to resist high pressure and corrosion.
 Design considerations for reheaters are similar to those for superheaters,23
except that, the overall temperatures are lower and the steam pressures are
about 20 to 25% of those in the superheaters.
 Performance of boiler:
 The quantity of water evaporated into steam per hour is known as
evaporation rate(evaporative capacity).
 Evaporation rate may be expressed in terms of:
kg of steam per hour,
 kg of steam per hour per m2 of heating surface,
kg of steam per hour per m3 of furnace volume.
It may also be expressed in kg of steam per kg of fuel
fired.
 Comparison of various boiler requires information such as:
Temperature of feed water,
Quality of steam produced ( wet, dry or superheated),
The pressure of the steam,
The type of fuel,
The firing method, etc..
 In order to compare the performance (capacity) of different boilers, the
24

Equivalent Evaporation is used.

 Hence to compare the evaporative capacity or performance of different
boilers working under different conditions it becomes imperative to provide
a common base so that water be supposed to be evaporated under standard
conditions.
 The standard conditions adopted are: temperature of feed water 100 0C and
converted into dry and saturated steam at 100 0C.
 As these standard conditions 1kg of water at 100 0C necessitates 2257kJ to
get converted to steam at 1000C.
 the equivalent evaporation may be define as the amount of water
evaporated from water at 1000C to dry and saturated steam at 100 0C.
 Consider a boiler generating ma kg of steam per hour at a pressure p and
temperature T.
Let, h1= Enthalpy of steam per kg under the generating conditions, and
 h1= hf + hfg …..dry saturated steam at a pressure p.
 h1= hf + xhfg ….wet steam with dryness fraction x at pressure p.
 h1=hf+hfg+cp (Tsup-Ts)…superheated steam at pressure p and temperature
25
Tsup.
 hfw = Specific enthalpy of water at a given feed temperature.
 the heat gained by the steam from the boiler per unit time:
m 
 a h1  h fw 
 The equivalent evaporation (me) from the definition is obtained as:

m h h 1   m h  h 
1
m 
a fw a fw
e
h fg ( atm)
2257

 The evaporation rate of the boiler is also sometimes given of kg of

steam/ kg of fuel. The presently accepted standard of expressing the
capacity of a boiler is in terms of the total heat added per hour.
Factor of Evaporation
 In a boiler, the feed water temperature may not be 1000C and the
pressure may also be different from 1atm. Therefore, the actual heat
required to evaporate 1 kg of water to form steam at specified pressure
from given conditions of feed water temperature is different from the
equivalent evaporation from and at 1000C.
 It is define as the ratio of heat received by 1 kg of water under working
conditions to that received by 1 kg of water evaporated from and at
1000C. It is denoted by Fe. 
h1  h fw 
26

F e  2257
Example-1
1. A boiler evaporates 7.5kg of water per kg of coal fired from feed water at
250C when working at 10 bar. Determine the equivalent evaporation from and
at 1000C per kg of coal burnt, if the steam produced is 0.95 dry.
Given Required
ma=7.5 kg of water/kg of fuel me
Feed water temperature=250C
Working pressure= 10 bar
T2= 1000C
Dryness fraction=0.95
Solution
First read a data from a table, @ 10 bar,
hf=762.81kJ/kg; hfg=2015.3kJ/kg; hg= 2778.1 kJ/kg.
Where : h1= hf + xhfg
=762.8 + .95*2015.3= 2577.33kJ/kg
hfw= 104.9kJ/kg @ 250C 27

m h h1   m h  h 
1
m 
a fw a fw
e
h fg
2257
 Boiler efficiency(performance)
 Expressed as the ratio of the heat output to heat input.
 Is the ratio of heat actually utilized in generation of steam to the heat
supplied by the fuel in the same period.
 If the heat input is expressed as the higher heating value HHV of the fuel
per kg of fuel, then the output heat is the heat absorbed by the water and
steam per kg of fuel burnt.
 The boiler efficiency, thus, depends upon the performance of the
superheater, economizer, air heaters and the furnace performance, that is

b 

m a
h  h 
on the combined efficiency of its component.
1 fw

HHV

Where, ma = Mass of water actually evaporated into steam per kg

of fuel at the working pressure, and
HHV= Calorific value of the fuel in kJ/kg. 28
 If the boiler, economizer, and superheater are considered as a single unit,
then the boiler efficiency is termed as overall efficiency of the boiler plant.
 Factors on which the boiler efficiency mainly depend are classified as fixed
factors and variable factors.
 Fixed factors:
A list of fixed factors that influence the performance of a boiler are given below.
 Boiler design: includes
I. The arrangement and effectiveness of the heating surfaces,
II. The shape and volume of the furnace,
III. The arrangement of the chimney,
IV. The arrangement of water and steam circulation.
 Built in losses: include
I. The heat transfer properties of construction materials ( heat
loss to the surrounding),
II. The flue gas and ash heat losses.
 Heat recovery equipment: includes
I. The economizer,
II. The superheater,
III. Air pre-heater, 29
IV. Feed water heater.
 Properties and characteristics of fuel burnt.
 Optimum rate of firing: the furnace volume and heating surfaces.
 Variable Factors:
 Fuel condition as it is fired.
 Excess air fluctuations.
 Actual firing rate.
 Humidity and temperature of air supplied.
o Only a portion of the heat contained within the fuel can be converted to
useful energy.
o Below are given some form of heat losses that may occur in boilers:
Heat carried away by dry products of combustion,
Heat carried away by steam produced by the combustion of
hydrogen present in fuel,
Heat loss due to incomplete combustion of carbon in flue gases
and ash,
Heat carried away by moisture, if any, in the fuel, 30

Heat loss due to radiation.

Example-2
The following observations were made a boiler during one-hour test.
Steam temperature 2600C
Steam pressure 20 bar
Steam generated 37500kg
Temperature of water entering economizer 15 0C
Temperature of water leaving economizer 90 0C
Quantity of fuel used 4400kg
HHV of fuel 30000kJ/kg
Calculate:
a. The equivalent evaporation per kg of fuel,
b. The thermal efficiency of the boiler and,
c. The percentage of the total energy utilized by the economizer.
Solution
From steam table:
Economizer: input at 150C = 62.99kJ/kg
Economizer: output at 900C=376.2kJ/kg
@ 20 bar, Ts=212.40C, and therefore, steam is superheated at 260 0C. 31

hf = 908.79kJ/kg; hfg=1890.7kJ/kg; h1 = 2926.45kJ/kg

a) Equivalent Evaporation per kg of fuel:
Mass of water actually evaporated:
ms
a 
m 57500
m f = 4400 = 8.52kg/kg fuel.
Equivalent Evaporation:
e 
h 1  h fw 
a
m m
h fg ( atm)


2926.45  62.99  8.52  10.81kg / kgoffuelfi red
2257
b) Thermal efficiency of the boiler:
 a h1  h fw 
m 8.52  2926.45  62.99 
b    81.3%
HHV 30000
c) Percentage of energy utilized by economizer:
Heat utilized by the economizer= m  a *(376.2-62.99)=2668.5kJ/kg
Percentage of heat utilized by the economizer
2668.5
  8.9% 32
30000
Example-3
 The steam used by the turbine is 5.4 kg/kWh at a pressure of 50 bar and a
temperature of 3500C. The efficiency of boiler is 82 percent with water at
1500C.
I. How many kg of 28100kJ coal are required/kWh?
Given
Mass of steam used, ms = 5.4 kg/kWh
Pressure of steam, P = 50 bar
Temperature of steam, T = 3500C
Boiler efficiency = 82%
Feed water temperature = 1500C
Calorific value of coal HHV = 28100kJ
Solution
Boiler efficiency is given by = m s h1  h fw 
 boiler 
m f  HHV
I-@50bar and 3500C. From steam tables
hsup = 3068.4 kJ/kg = h1 33

hfw (1500C) = 1x4.18x(150-0) = 627 kJ/kg

 5.43068.4  627 
 boiler   .82 m f  0.572 kg / kWh
m f  28100
Example -4
 the following data refer to a boiler plant consists of an economizer, a boiler and a
superheater.
Given
Mass of water evaporated = 5940 kg/h
Mass of coal burnt = 675 kg/h
Lower calorific value of coal = 31600kJ/kg
Pressure of steam at boiler stop valve = 14 bar
Temperature of feed water entering the economizer = 320 0C
Temperature of feed water leaving the economizer = 115 0C
Dryness fraction of steam entering superheater = 0.96
Temperature of steam leaving the superheater T sup= 2600C
Specific heat of superheated steam c ps= 2.3kJ/kg k
Required
I. Percentage of heat in coal utilized in economizer, boiler and superheater 34
II. Overall efficiency of boiler plant.
Solution
 Heat utilized by 1 kg of feed water in economizer:
h fw  m  c fw t e 2  t e1   1  4.18  115  32   346.9 kJ / kg
 Heat utilized in boiler per kg of feed water: hboiler  h1  h fw
hboiler  h f  xh fg   h fw
At 14 bar pressure : from steam tables:
Ts = 1950C, hf=830.1 kJ/kg, hfg = 1957.7 kJ/kg
hboiler  830.1  0.96  1957.7   346.9  2362.6 kJ / kg

Heat utilized in superheater by 1 kg feed water:

hsup erheater  1  x h fg  c ps Tsup  Ts   1  0.96 1957.7  2.3260  195  227.8kJ / kg
m s 5940
m a    8.8 kg
mf 675
346.9
i. Percentage of heat utilized in economizer:   8.8  100  9.66%
31600

2362.6
Percentage of heat utilized in boiler:   8.8  100  65.7%
31600 35
 Percentage of heat utilized in superheater: 227.8
  8.8  100  6.34%
31600

ii. Overall efficiency of boiler plant,  overall

Total heat absorbed in kg of water = h fw+ h boiler+ h superheater
= 346.9 + 2362.6+ 227.8=2937.3 kJ/kg
Overall efficiency
8.8  2937.3
 boiler   0.8179 or 81.79%
31600

Example -5
 A boiler produces 2000 kg of dry and saturated steam per hour at 10 bar and
feed water is heated by an economizer to a temperature of 110 0C. 225 kg of
coal of a calorific value of 30100 kJ/kg are fired per hour. If 10% of coal
remains un burnt, find the thermal efficiency of the boiler and boiler and
grate combined.
Given
Rate of production of steam = 2000 kg/h
Quality of steam =1 36

Steam pressure = 10 bar

 Rate of coal firing =225 kg/h
Calorific value of coal = 30100 kJ/kg
Percentage of coal un burnt = 10 %
Solution
From steam tables, corresponding to 10 bar, h1= hg=2776.2 kJ/kg
Heat contained in 1 kg of feed water before entering the boiler,
h fw  1  4.18  110  0   459.8 kJ / kg
Total steam given to produce 1 kg of steam in boiler,
 h1  h fw  2776.2  459.8  2316.4 kJ / kg
Mass of coal actually burnt,
90
 225   202.5 kg
100
ms 2000
Mass of steam produced per kg of coal ( actually burnt), ma 
mf

202.5
 9.87 kg

Thermal efficiency of the boiler

ma h1  h fw  9.87  2776.2  459.8
   0.759 or 75.9%
HHV 30100
Thermal efficiency of boiler and grate combined,
2000 37
2776.2  459.8
 225  0.684 or 68.4%
30100
Example-6
 a boiler generates 7.5 kg of steam per kg of coal burnt at a pressure of 11 bar,
from feed water having a temperature of 700C. The efficiency of boiler is 75%
and factor of evaporation 1.15, specific heat of steam at constant pressure is 2.3
kJ/kg K.
Calculate:
i. Degree of superheat and temperature of steam generated,
ii. Calorific value of coal in kJ/kg,
iii. Equivalent evaporation in kg of coal.
Solution
@11 bar, from steam tables,
hf=781.1 kJ/kg, hfg= 1998.5 kJ/kg, ts=184.10C(457.1K)

h1  h f  h fg  c ps Tsup  Ts   781.1  1998.5  2.3Tsup  457.1

Factor of evaporation,
h
1  h fw  h
1  h fw  38
Fe    1.15, Tsup  504.3 K
h fg atm 2257
 Boiler Trial:
 The main objective of a boiler trial are:
1. To determine the generating capacity of the boiler,
2. To determine the thermal efficiency of the boiler,
3. To prepare heat balance sheet for the boiler.
 The determination of the generating capacity as well as the thermal efficiency
of boilers has been discussed in the preceding sections. The method of
preparing the heat balance for a given boiler is discussed below.
 The heat loss in the boiler- ( the difference of heat librated in the furnace and
heat utilized in producing steam)-is divided into the various forms indicated
below.
A. Heat lost in dry flue gases: ( this is the greatest loss in a boiler)
Heat lost to dry flue gases per kg of fuel
 f c p T f  Tb 
m
Where:  f = mass of flue gases per kg of fuel,
m
cp = mean specific heat of dry flue gases
Tf= temperature of flue leaving chimney, Tb= mean
39
temperature of boiler room.
B. Heat lost in moisture present in the fuel:
The moisture in the fuel ( if present) is converted into steam. The heat lost in the
moisture present in the fuel is given by:
 w hsup  hb 
m
Where: mw= mass of moisture per kg of fuel,
hsup = specific enthalpy of steam at the flue gas temperature
and pressure,
hb = mean specific enthalpy of moisture at boiler room
temperature
C. Heat lost to steam formed by combustion of hydrogen in the fuel:
If H2 is the mass of hydrogen present per kg of fuel, then the mass of steam
produced is 9H2. The heat lost to steam per kg of fuel is:
 9 H 2 hsup  hb 
D. Heat lost to unburnt carbon in ash pit:
 m1  HHVc
The heat lost due to unburnt carbon per kg of fuel:
Where:
40
m1= mass of carbon in ash pit kg of fuel,
HHVC = higher heating value of carbon.
E. Heat lost to incomplete combustion of carbon:
Heat lost due to incomplete combustion:
 m 2  HHVC 2
Where:
m2 = mass of carbonmonoxide in flue gas per kg of fuel
HHVC2 = higher heating value of carbonmonoxide.

F. Heat lost due to Radiation:

There is no direct method of finding the heat lost due to radiation. This loss is
calculated by subtracting the heat utilized in producing steam and heat loses
from the supplied.

41
Example-6
In a boiler trial the following data are obtained:
Coal consumption 500kg
Higher heating value of coal 33500kJ/kg
Moisture content of fuel 2% by mass
Temperature of flue gases 3000C
Mean specific heat of dry flue gases 1.05kJ/kg k
Mean specific heat of steam 2.09kJ/kg k
Boiler room temperature 150C
Feed-water temperature 800C
Dry steam produced per hour 4500kg
Steam pressure 10 bar
Atmospheric pressure 1 bar
The analysis of dry fuel by mass is :
C = 85%, H2 = 5%, Ash = 10%
The analysis of dry flue gases by volume is:
42
CO2 = 9.5%, O2 = 10%, and N2 = 80.5%
 Make a complete heat-balance sheet for the trial, based on the higher heating
value of 1 kg of dry coal.
Solution
Specific enthalpy of steam produced hg= 2778.1kJ/kg at a pressure of 10 bar and dry
Specific enthalpy of feed water hf= 334.91KJ/kg at a temperature of 800C

 a h1  h fw
Heat given out to the steam :  m 

2778.1  334.9 4500  22436.5kJ / kg dry coal
500  0.98

Product of Vol./100m3 Approx.mol Proportional Mass of carbon

combustion of flue gas weight weight
CO2 9.5 44 418 12
418 
O2 10.0 32 320 44
=114.0
N2 80.5 28 2254
100.0 2992

43
C + O2 = CO2
12 32 44
o Mass of dry flue gas:
2992  0.85
  22.31kg / kg dry coal
114 .0

o Mass of water vapor :  0.05  9  0.45kg / kg of dry coal

o Mass of moisture formed:  0.02  0.0204kg / kg dry coal

0.98
o Total mass of vapor in flue gases= 0.45+0.0204= 0.4704 kg/kg dry coal

o Heat carried away by vapor in flue gas:

= 0.4704*2.09*(300-15)=280.2kJ/kg dry coal

o Heat carried away by dry flue gases:

 m f  c p T f  Tb   22.31  1.05300  15  6676.27 KJ / kg dry coal

44
 Heat balance sheet per kg dry coal

Heat supplied[kJ/kg percentage Heat expenditure [kJ/kg of percentage

of coal] coal]

Heat heating value = 100 Heat utilized in steam 22436.5

33500 formation=22436.5   100  66.97
33500
Heat carried away by vapor = .83
280.2
Heat carried away by flue 19.93
gases = 6676.27
Heat unaccountable for= 12.26
4107.03
Total = 33500 100 Total =33500 100

45
Boiler Draught:

 The rate of steam generation in a boiler depends upon the rate at which the fuel
is burnt.

 The rate of fuel burning depends upon the supply of oxygen/ fresh air.

 Fresh air enters the fuel bed only when the gases of combustion are exhausted
from the combustion chamber of the boiler.

 This is possible only if a difference of pressure is maintained above and below

the fire grate. This difference of static pressure known as draught(draft).

The main objectives of producing draught in a boiler are:

1. To provide adequate supply of air for the combustion of the fuel.
2. To exhaust the products of combustion from the combustion
chamber.
3. To discharge the gases to the atmosphere through the chamber.

46
Classification of Draught:
 Boiler draught can be effected by any one of the methods indicated below

draught

Mechanical Natural Steam-jet

draught draught draught

Induced fan Forced fan

draught draught

47
Natural ( chimney) Draught:
 Since atmospheric air ( outside the chimney) is heaver than the hot gases
( inside the chimney), the outside air flows through the furnace into the
chimney pushing the hot flue gases out of the chimney.
 Natural draught varies with
1. Climatic conditions,
2. Temperature of furnace gases,
3. Height of chimney.
Steam-jet Draught:
 Is the simplest and cheapest method of producing artificial draught in which
exhaust from steam engines is used.
 It is mostly used in locomotive boilers where the exhaust steam from the
engines is discharge to a steam jet arrangement.
Mechanical Draught:
 Is a draught produced by means of a fan and blower.
 In the induced fan draught, the fan is placed in the path of the flue gas before
they enter the chimney which draws the flue gases from the furnace and forces48
them up through the chimney.
 In the forced fan draught, the fan is placed before the grate and air is forced
into the grate through the ash pit.
Height of chimney:
 Natural draught is produced by means of a chimney. Since the amount of
draught depends upon the height of the chimney, its height should be such that
it can produce sufficient draught.

V0= volume of outside air at STP, T0 = 298 K and P0=1atm = 1.01325x105 N/m2.
  287  298
m 3
V0  5
 0.884 
m m / kg fuel
1.01325  10
 Volume of outside air at T1 [K]:
T1 T1   T1 3
m
V1  V0  
 0.844m   m / kg fuel .
T0 298 353

 Density of outside air at T1 [K]:

mass m 
m 353
1     kg / m 3
volume V1   T1
m T1
353
49
 Therefore, pressure due to a column of height H of the outside cool air is
obtained from
353  H
P1  1  H  kg / m 2
T1

50
 From Avogadro's law, flue gases at STP occupy the same volume as air at STP.
Therefore, Volume of flue gases at 298 K is:
 0.884m m 3 / kg fuel
And, volume of flue gases at T2[K]:
T2 m   T2
V2  V0   m 3 / kg fuel
T0 353
 Density of flue gases at T2[K]:
2 
m
  1

353  m
  1
kg / m 3
  T2
m m  T2
353

 Therefore, pressure due to the column of height H of the hot gases at the base
of the chimney is:
353  m  1H
P2   2  H  kg / m 2
m  T2

 The draught, which is given as the pressure difference b/n a column of cold air
outside the chimney and a similar column of hot gases in the chimney, 51is,
therefore
  353  H   353  m  1H 
P  P1  P2    
  
 

 T1   m  T2 
 1 m  1 
 353  H     kg / m 2
  T2 
 T1 m
 In actual practice, draught pressure is expressed in mm of water height.
 1 m  1 
h  353  H     mm H 2 O
 T1 m  T2 
Note:
 the above equation gives the theoretical value of the draught whish is known as
static draught. The actual value of the draught is less than the theoretical value
b/s of the effect of friction offered by the passage of boiler/chimney to the flue
gases.
 The draught may also be expressed in terms of the column of hot gases. If H’ is
the column of hot gases in meter which would produce the draught pressure ∆P,
then:
P   2  H ' 
353  m  1H '
kg / m 2
m  T2
52
 Substituting this equation in the above equation
353  m
  1H '  1 m  1 
 353  H    
m  T2  T1 m  T2 

'  m   T2 
H  H   1
 m
  1T1 
 Neglecting friction, the velocity of flue gases through, the chimney under
draught H’ is:
C  2 gH ' [ m / s ]

 m   T2 
C 2 gH    1 [ m / sec]
 m
  1T1 

53
Example-7
 A boiler is equipped with a chimney of 25 m height. The flue gases, which pass
through the chimney, are at a temperature of 3000C whereas the atmospheric
temperature is 200C. If the airflow through the combustion chamber is 20 kg/kg
fuel burnt, determine:
a. The theoretical draught produced in mm H2O and the height of hot gases
column, and
b. The velocity of flue gases passing through the chimney, if 25% of the
theoretical draught is lost due to friction in the grate and chimney passages.
Solution
c. Theoretical draught produced in mm H2O.
 1 m  1 
h  353  H     mm H 2 O
T
 1 m  T 2 

 1
h  353  25   
20  1   13.95 mm H O
 2
 293 20  573 

The theoretical draught produced in height of the hot gases column:

 m   T2   20  573  54
H'  H   1  25    1  21.56m
 m
  1T1   20  1  293 
b. Velocity of flue gases passing through the chimney. since 25% of the
theoretical draught is lost by friction, the net draught available is.
H’ = 0.75* 21.56= 16.17 m
C  2 gH ' [ m / s ]
C  2  9.81  16.17  17.8m / s

55