ROLE OF MAINTENANCE IN ENERGY CONSERVATION

OF BOILER AND ITS AUXILIARIES

K.Kannan
Executive Engineer
Mettur TPS
 HEAT RATE
Power generation is transitioning from a protected &
unquestioned environment. Now the focus is shifted from “only
Generation” to “economical generation”, “energy efficiency
index” and “Eco friendly generation”.

The concept of HEAT RATE is used for various purposes

such as:
– Condition monitoring
– Energy audit
– Meeting Performance standards fixed by Regulatory Authorities
 What is HEAT RATE?
HR is the transfer function relating to the coal consumption to the
electric generation OR heat consumed per unit of power
generation (1 kwhr = 860 kcal)

• Heat required in Kcal for the Turbine to produce a power of 1 kwhr

is called HEAT RATE.
– Higher the Heat rate - Lower the efficiency
– Lower the Heat rate - Higher the efficiency

Gross unit Heat Rate is = Qin / Egross kcal / kwhr

= mcoal CVcoal / Egross

Where

Qin - is the heat input over a pre-determined period of time

Egross – is the energy generated at the generator terminal
 Why we need more heat energy than required for
power generation?
To get 1 kwhr (860 kcal) power - 2400 kcal
The actual input will be much higher because of the losses in the
following:
• Staking & storage of coal at the coal yard.
• Conversion of chemical energy in fuel to thermal energy of
flames / flue gases in the furnace of the Boiler.
• Conversion of thermal energy produced in the furnace into
thermal energy imparted to water/steam.
• Conversion of thermal energy in SH steam into mechanical
work output of the turbine.
• Conversion of rotary work output of turbine into electricity
energy.
 PLANT EFFICIENCY & HEAT RATE

482.8 Mkcal/hr 420 Mkcal/hr 180.6 Mkcal/hr 172 Mkcal/hr

boiler 210
T
MW 200 MW
120.7 t/h auxpower 10 MW
4000 kcal/kg

87.0 % 2000 kcal/kwhr 43.0 %

2299 kcal/kwhr 37.4%

2414 kcal/kwhr 35.6 %

 Operating HR deviates from the design
• Loss in Boiler:
– High flue gas temp, excess air flow, higher level of unburnt /
partially burnt fuel, etc.,
• Loss in Turbine:
– Deviation in main / RH steam pressure & temp from design
conditions
– Deviation in exhaust steam vacuum
– Internal leakage of steam
– Deterioration in turbine due to enlargement / deposits /
roughness, deformation, etc.,
• Loss in Generator:
 Classification of losses
The above loss can be classified as:
1. The losses, which are controllable by the TPS through
operational optimisation and simple / low cost / immediate
measures
2. The losses which are not in the control of the TPS or
which can be corrected with high financial investment /
major replacement of components
a) Problems in technology supplied by manufacturer
b) Coal quality effects
c) Degradation and aging of machines
d) Operational problems and constraints like part load
operation
e) Ambient parameter variations
 (a) Problems in technology supplied by OEM
Sl. Problems Old design problems New design available
No
Small units (60MW) are made of Membrane type WW
refractory furnace enclosure for 200 & above capacity units
Furnace in
1 • where furnace ingress / buffing is • ingress is present through
filtration
more openings in the main pass & return
pass area
- leakage of air from tube to flue •Expensive & time consuming for
gas retrofitting
APH - Leakage is around 25% instead
2. in –leakage 5% as per design
- Even the seals are replaced
during the AOH, the leaks re-occur
with in 2-3 weeks.
Problems in technology supplied by OEM
Sl. Problems Old design problems New design available
No
Leaks in major valves like HP/LP Zero passing valves are
heater bypass, HP/LP turbine available but extremely
bypass, MS/RH spray valves, BFP expensive.
Passing of R/C,
3
valves
Passing when fully closed.
- Even after AOH, the passing re-
occur with in 2-3 weeks.
• Designed for higher CV
• high ash coal alter the heat • MS spray is more LP / HP
absorption by the heaters heating effect is
MS / RH radiant/convective zone reduced
4 STEAM
• Flue gas volume increases • spray take off before HP
spray
• Gas velocity increases heaters are available
• Excess heat absorbed need to be • RH spray by-passes the
attembered by spray HPT, it efficiency is lost.
 (b) Coal Quality effects
Quality refers to CV, ash content, VM and Moisture

Change from Result Effect on Performance

Design Fuel
If Ash content & alpha •Less radiant heat •High SH / RH spray
quarts are high transfer and more •Erosion in pressure parts,
convective HT due toducts, coal burners, ID fan,
dirtiness of furnace.
APH elements
• design margins of fan &
• coal, air, flue gas & ash flow
mills are exhausted at
through the system are higher
90% MCR by 20 – 30%.
Moisture less than design Less convective heat SH / RH steam temperature
transfer less than design
Moisture content higher Higher convective HT High SH / RH spray
than design
Excessive slag on furnace Less radiant heat transfer High SH / RH spray
and more convective HT
 (c) Degradation and aging effects of machines:
1. Degradation which can be corrected during overhauls:
• burner tips
• erosion at ducts
• deposits on gas side / steam side of the tube
surface
• damage of APH baskets and seals etc.,
2. Degradation which can not be corrected during
overhauls and need R & M:
• metallurgical de-gradation of SH coils, Eco coils
• Insulation of high energy piping and hot air ducts.
 (d) Operational problems and constraints
1. Partial loading of the machines due to poor quality of
coal
2. Backing down of machines due to no demand.
3. Use of fuel oil for start-up and load support
4. Use of make-up water to replenish blow down, etc.
5. Delay in start-up and loading of machine

These factors have a detrimental effect on the HR of

the machine and these effects are not normally
provided in the manufacturer's margins
 (e) Ambient parameters

• Design HR is guaranteed by the manufacturer at

the time of commissioning based on certain
assumption regarding the ambient parameters such
as CW temp, ambient temp etc.,
• The performance of equipment deteriorates
because of the deviation in the ambient parameters
and this is not accounted in the margin in HR
provided by the manufacturer.
 The major parameters which affect boiler efficiency
Parameters Controllable / Non- controllable

Air-Pre-heater gas outlet temperature.

Air ingress in APH
% of excess Oxygen
Un-burnt carbon in fly ash and bottom
ash
Controllable parameters
Mill rejects
MS Temperature
HRH temperature and
feed water temperature

Insultions condition in boiler

Moisture and hydrogen in fuel
Non- controllable parameters
Humidity of ambient air
Parameters attributable to the condition of
following equipments:
1. Furnace
2. Coal burners
3. Soot blowers
4. Air preheater
5. Flue gas ducts
6. Milling system
7. Condition of insulation
 BOILER OVERHAUL
Factors which decides the overhaul maintenance
• Degradation due to operation
• Aging effects of machines
– Can be corrected during overhaul
– Need total replacement as a R & M activity
Degradation which can be corrected during overhauls:
• Erosion at burner tips
• Cleaning of pressure parts
• deposits on gas side / steam side of the tube surface
• Erosion pressure parts
• damage of APH baskets and seals
• erosion at ducts
• Damage of ESP equipments
 Energy conservation measures adopted in
Mettur TPS-I
• Reconditioning of coal burner
• Penthouse air ingress arresting
• Boiler drum inspection
• Chemical cleaning of boiler
• Fireside cleaning of boiler
• R & M of APH – enhancement of dia / height / thereby heating
surface area.
• Double sealing arrgt
• CFD analysis of ducts
• Installation of fabric expansion bellows.
• Optimisation mill parameters on daily basis & overhaul period
Erosion / distortion of tip
 Coal nozzle design
Decreasing nozzle cross sectional area:
• As the coal stream enters the nozzle, its velocity
begins to increase due to continuously decreasing
cross sectional area which is greatest at the choke
area.
Rip along the length of the nozzle:
• to split the rope like flow in the coal pipe.
Divider plate to improve load capability :
• To create an independent fuel rich (above) and fuel
lean (below) streams.
• This fuel rich mixture particularly at low load
creating a condition closely approx at higher mill
loading.
Splitter plate in the nozzle tip:
• The splitting of the nozzle tip, forms a bluff body
creating a low pressure zone, into which coal, air and
gases are drawn establishing stable ignition.
• This creates turbulence in addition to, rich & lean
mixture and the bluff body formation.
 Problem with coal nozzle tips

The inner and outer housings are exposed to different

temperatures that cause the two to distort and in some cases
rip apart
ERODED BURNER TIP
These show the extensive wear and deformation
 Furnace side

Furnace side

HARDFACING OF COAL BURNER TIP

Coal Nozzle side

Ignition at Burner face

Early Ignition
Heavy fuel concentration
Large particle Ash
 Slag build-up on tubes

Slag build-up on nose

Inspection of Roof top at
penthouse
Roof sealing damage at high temp zone
Roof sealing damage at high temp zone
Sealing boiler cracks once and for all

Casing repairs using the Iso-membrane seal

 DRUM INSPECTION

• Physical inspection of drum.

• Sample collection .
• Inspection of separators for cleanliness.
• DPT of weld joints of steam chest.
• Cleaning of CBD & Phosphate dozing line.
• Inspect drum for Cleanliness before box up.
• Replacement of gaskets of drum manhole.
• Checking vortex breaker bolts
 Drum condition assessment
 Steam drum must inspect Annually .
 Drum inspection reveals the effect of water chemistry

Left side Right side

 This shows the effect of  This shows the effect of improper water Chemistry
proper water Chemistry  The suspended iron / iron oxide has reached up to the drier assy.
  This appends due to forming effect by the high concentration of
suspended corrosion products.
 Cause of generation /transportation of corrosion products should
be found out
Drum internals
 Vortex Eliminator
• The water entry from drum to down comers
connected at the bottom leads to the
formation of vortex at the inlet. This may
cause drawl of steam into down comers and
water hammering.
• To prevent this vortex formation anti-vortex
spider in the form of cruciform are located at
the down comers inlet.

40
 Vortex Eliminator

Vortex eliminator reduces the swirling motion of water as it

enters the down comers.
Vortex eliminator
 Preventive Maintenance Activities to
be followed
• The vortex breakers of DC pipes are to be checked during
every AOH & the bolts are to be fully fixed with proper
tightening .
• On every cold light up, on attaining rated temperature in
the drum, the expansion in all the four sides at ring
header level should match the designed value. If not the
expansion reading on entire boiler should be checked &
cause should be analysed.
• The cold & hot readings, displacement of connected pipe
of all the hangers (VLH & CLH) should be noted and
matched with design values.
• The hangers should be free from accumulation of ash
inside the hangers casing / cover
Preventive Maintenance Activities to
be followed
• The supports are to be monitored as a regular O&M
check.
• Periodicity of the OH of the hangers & supports should be
increased for all the old units in operation
• All the site weld joints of down comers are to be inspected
on a regular basis during shutdowns through UT /
Radiography.
• The periodical inspection & health survey of boiler
components are to be carried out.
• The inspection are to be more stringent.
• RLA study of boiler pressure parts are to be entrusted with
organisation having thorough boiler equipment
knowledge apart from NDT and lab facilities.
 CASE STUDY

POST OPERATIONAL CHEMICAL CLEANING OF

BOILER TO IMPROVE THE HEAT TRANSFER RATE
 How deposits formed in boilers
1.Under different chemical regimes and a No. of starts &
shutdowns there is a chance of boiler getting deposits on the
inside surface of tubes.
2.Loss of silica control in boiler feed water and leakages through
surface condenser result into deposits of salts and silica on
the inside surface of the tubes.
3.Metallic oxides generated by pre boiler corrosion are
transported into the boiler and get selectively deposited at
high heat transfer areas.
4. Atmospheric corrosion caused due to inadequate preservation
during idle period.
 EFFECT OF WATER SIDE DEPOSITS

Inferior internal deposits Overheating

LEADS TO CAUSES
quality of of salts & of water
Feed Water Silica in the wall tubes
water wall tubes

WATERSID
E DEPOSIT

leading to
failure
Even if the make up water quality is excellent, there will be
deposits of Iron oxides & copper
 Sources of Deposition
 Sources :
 water borne materials
 treatment chemicals
 corrosion products
 contaminants
 Hardness salts { Ca & Mg salts , silica }
 Dosing chemicals { ‘PO4’ , NH3 , N2H4 esw..}

 Pitting & pre-boiler corrosion products

 Through condenser leak ; attemperation / spray
water
regeneration chemical slip & so on
How deposits are formed on inside surface of boiler tubes ?

Soluble salts will can regulated

remain in solution by blow down.

During normal
operation
numerous solid portions of
The in-soluble insoluble materials
constituents materials are expected to
partially be
may enter removed by
deposit on tube
inside surface
boiler with blow down

feed water.
Over a period of time with
continual operation, the
Magnetite layer Grows in
thickness due to slow
corrosion
 Effects of Deposits
Thermal resistance across the wall increases due to
• larger thickness of deposited layer,
• lower thermal conductivity of deposits
Deposits reduces the heat
absorption due to:
• slagging may occur due to
increase in tube surface temp
• this affect the further heat
transfer
• it increase the FOT due to less
heat absorption in furnace zone
• it will increase the SH & RH
steam temp.
• more spray water is required to
maintain the required steam
temp.
• it may required frequent soot
blower operation
• in extreme cases, it may
required to reduce the load.
Need for Post Operational Chemical Cleaning

To remove the existing internal oxide layer and

formation of protective magnetite layer on water
wall tubes, thereby:
– the heat transfer rate at water wall tubes can be increased
– FOT can be reduced
– SH spray can be reduced
– RH spray can be eliminated
– Improved heat transfer in economiser
 When should a Boiler be cleaned?
Frequency of Chemical cleaning?

• Not less than 4 years between chemical

cleaning.
• Even though the boiler have operated w/o any chemistry
deviation, chemical cleaning can be used as a proper
maintenance tool
• This frequency is necessary to assure long-term boiler
integrity
• Normally, it is being carried out based on the :
• Frequent tube failures in WW due to overheating
• Deposit analysis of water wall tube.
 Method of tube sampling
Boiler tube Samples collection as per IS:10391-1982
Procedure:
• Collection of at least four numbers of water wall tube from all
the four corners of boiler from high heat affected areas i.e.
above the burner zone.
• Three adjacent tubes should be removed for comparison
• length should be at least 600 mm
• Measurement of average internal tube deposit quantity in
mg/cm2
 RELATIONSHIP OF ANALYSED DEPOSIT
QUANTITY TO UNIT CLEANLINESS
• Principle criteria for determining the chemical
cleaning is specific deposit weight (mg/cm2).
The recommended limits are as below:

Deposit quantity Condition of the boiler

Less than 15 mg/cm2 Clean surface
Between 15 - 40 mg/cm2 Moderately dirty surfaces
More than 40 mg/cm2 Very dirty surfaces

* Chemical cleaning should be done whenever

deposits are more than 40 mg/cm2
 SCALE DENSITY Vs ACTION PLAN
Scale Density Ranges Recommended Action
(mg/cm2)
< 25 No action required

25 – 75 Chemically clean within one year

75 – 100 Chemically clean within 3

months
> 100 Chemically clean before further
operation
 RESULTS OF DEPOSIT ANALYSIS
Deposit
% by Water wall tube
Chemical Analysis Quantity
weight sample
(mg/cm2)
Silica SiO2 01.5
Iron Oxide Fe3O4 75.2 Corner No:1 27.0

Copper Cu 17.8 Corner No:2 56.6

Calcium Oxide CaO 03.1
Magnesium Oxide MgO 01.1
Sodium Oxide Na2O 00.2 Corner No:3 52.3
Phosphate P2O5 00.9
Gain on Ignition at 00.7
600C Corner No:4 27.0
 CHEMICAL CLEANING PROCESS

Post operational chemical cleaning of boiler

consists of:
• Removing the internal oxide layer such as
oxides of iron, copper and silica from the
existing tubes
• After cleaning, the internal surfaces of tubes
are passivated by means of forming protective
magnetite layer to prevent further rusting and
corrosion
CHEMICAL CLEANING CIRCUIT
 CHEMICAL CLEANING CIRCUIT

Chemical cleaning circuit consists of the following

equipments of the boiler:
1. Economiser
2. Steam drum
3. Down comers
4. Water wall tubes
5. WW ring header
6. Riser tubes

Note: SH is not to be chemically cleaned – instead, it is filled with

Ammoniated Hydrazine and kept under pressure during operation
at around 5 ksc.
65 – 70ºC

65 – 70ºC
 E2 valve

Chemical water
entry to Boiler

E2 valve bonnet was removed and connected with chemical water line
from the Tank for circulation. A wooden dummy has been provided at
feed water side to prevent the chemical water entry towards LLCV /
FLCV
Ring Header hand hole
plate connection

Main Drain Header

 RC line from
boiler to Tank

Feeding line to
Boiler

Drain to neutralizing
pit
Drum air vents are connected with Nitrogen filling line
QUANTITY OF DEPOSITS REMOVED FROM THE SYSTEM

The total quantity of deposits removed from the

system:
• Iron as Fe2O3 - 2238 kgs and
• Copper as CuO - 204 kgs.
 RESULTS OF POST OPERATIONAL CHEMICAL CLEANING
OF UNIT-I METTUR TPS
Sl. Parameters Unit Before After
No Overhaul Overhaul
1 Unit load MW 210 210
2 Coal flow T/hr 142 131
3 Main steam Temp ºC 540 540
4 HRH steam Temp ºC 535 540
5 Burner tilt Deg -27 -12
6 SH spray T/hr 17/22 4/9
7 RH spray T/hr 8/7 0/0
8 APR outlet temp ºC 158 143
9 Eco inlet FW temp ºC 247 249
10 Eco outlet FW temp ºC 287 297
 CLEANING OF EXTERNAL DEPOSIT ON
COMBUSTION CHAMBER TUBES WITH HIGH
PRESSURE WATER JET
TO
IMPROVE THE HEAT TRANSFER RATE
 How deposits are formed on fire side surface of boiler tubes ?

• In boiler furnace where the fuel is burnt, impurities

present in the fuel particularly ASH in the coal, cause
deposits on boiler water wall tubes.
• This results in reduction of furnace heat absorption
Root cause:
• Inferior quality of coal and inefficient combustion
• Sulphur with ash combined to form soot
• Ash in fuel oil deposits on tube surface
ENCOUNTERED PROBLEM(Before the high pressure cleaning)

Accumulation of boiler fireside deposits shall lead to the following

problems:
• hunting in furnace draft condition, combustion etc… (It is
essential to remove or prevent the fire side deposition in boiler.)
• reduced heat absorption in first pass/combustion chamber –
This shall lead to deduction in boiler efficiency.
• increase in flue gas temperature after first pass / combustion
chamber
• More quantity of spray to control super-heater & re-heater
steam temperatures
 Fire side deposits

During the slag gets it obstructs

combustion deposited on the heat
Tubes & transfer
Oxidation of metal CAUSES

Overheating
leading to of water
failure wall tubes
Fireside DEPOSIT
 BOILER CLEANING TECHNOLOGIES
1. On load cleaning:
– Wall blowers
– LRSB,s
– Smart wall blowing system
– Adding chemical additives
2. Off-load cleaning:
– Water washing
– Mechanical cleaning
 Various methods tried to overcome these
encountered problems, :

• On-line soot blowing system over furnace wall,

while the boiler is in-service
• Cleaning soot deposition with fire hydrant water at 4
to 5 kg/cm2 pressure during annual maintenance of
boilers
• Manual cleaning using wire brushes & other
mechanical tools using cup lock scaffolding
arrangement
GNENERAL ARRANGEMENT OF HIGH-PRESSURE WATER CLEANING
 FEASIBLE TECHNICAL SOLUTION

• High-pressure water jet cleaning of boiler combustion

chamber was proposed as a feasible technical
solution
Pump SPECIFICATION:
Make : TEXMO, Coimbatore Model : MRS 40/20
Discharge : 2 m3/hr Head : 180 m
Power : 10 HP No. of Stages : 20
Speed : 2880 rpm Suction : 50 mm
Discharge : 50 mm
External deposits

Combustion Chamber Tubes

(Before & After cleaning)
External deposits

Burner Corner Tubes (Before & After)

 High pressure Jet cleaning

Before cleaning During cleaning

Platen Super- heater Assembly (Before & After)
Cold Re-heat Assembly (Before & After)
Hot Re-heat Assembly (Before & After)
 COMPARISON OF KEY PARAMETERS BEFORE & AFTER CLEANING

Recorded Readings
Sl No Key Parameters Unit
Before After
1. Generation MW 210 210
2. Total steam flow T/hr 684 657
3. Feed water flow T/hr 723 663
4. Coal flow T/hr 137 127
5. Main steam pressure kg/cm2 132 132
6. Burner tilt % Full negative Zero

7. Furnace Temperature at °C 1235 1126

Elevation AB °C 1240 1100
Elevation CD
8. Super-heater Attemperation T/hr 8/9 0/3
9. Re-heater Attemperation T/hr 9/9 0/0
 Air-Preheater
• Air-preheater is the main auxiliaries responsible for
dry flue gas losses. Every 10ºC raise in APH gas out
let temperature would reduce boiler efficiency by
0.5%
• Over a period of time the heating elements had
worn out, the seals get damaged and affecting the
effectiveness of APH.
• Due to wear & tear, the APH elements losses
weight, also the elements get chocked due to ash
laden flue gases passing through it.
 Gas Side Efficiency Of APH

GSE= Tg - Tgnl X 100

Tg - Tae
Tae - Temp of Air Entering APH

Tg - Temp of Gas entering APH

Tgnl - Gas outlet temp corrected for NO LEAKAGE

 Lower Gas Side Efficiency Of APH
The reasoned for low gas side efficiency of
APH : -
1. The Hot Intermediate baskets have been
badly chocked due to deposition of fly ash
which could not be cleaned with the
conventional cleaning method.

2. The basket elements get eroded and lost the

weight resulting in inefficient heat transfer
and high flue gas outlet temp.
Fouled APH cold end passages
 An insight into Cold end deposits
• Precipitation fouling: precipitation of dissolved substances
on lowering of temperature.
• Chemical reaction fouling: deposits formed due to chemical
reaction
• Particulate fouling: deposition of impurities from gas
stream & reduction of heat transfer, increase in pressure
drop.
• Corrosion fouling: heat transfer surface reacts itself
• Deposition of Al2O3, Fe2O3, SiO2 particulates, sulfur, sodium,
vanadium, & chlorine from oil.
• Dew point condensation of Na2SO4, K2SO4, P2O5, Na2CO3,
NaCl
 Impact of APH FOULING
An increase in DP across the APH can cause:
• Increase in fan current/ Aux. power
• Decrease in generation
• Reduced boiler efficiency
• Increased heat rate
• Increased CO2 emissions
Chemicals for CHEMICAL CLEANING OF one
no of fouled APH BASKET

Composite chemical consist mixture of

(a ) 1 kg of Formic acid(85%Purity) Commercial
grade,
( b) 2 Kg Phosphoric acid ( 85% purity)
commercial grade,
( c) 500 ml Corrosion inhibitor and
(d) 3 Kg Wetting agent and Dispersant ‐
 Corrosion of APH cold end baskets

• Corrosion of APH heat transfer surfaces results in reduced heat

transfer and reduced basket life.
• The loss of heat transfer surface reduces performance of the APH
because of the higher temperature of flue gas at the APH exit.
Maintenance activities to be followed
for sustained gas side efficiency
1. Cleaning of Cold end/IM / cold end baskets and
with high pressure jet of 150 kg/cm2.
2. Inspection of diaphragm and repair.
3. Weighing of baskets in one sector. If weight is
<20% of original, planning for replacement of total
baskets of APH.
4. Evaluating gas side efficiency before at regular
interval and if gas side efficiency is less by 5% of
the original value it is planned for total
replacement of baskets.
High air in-leakage through APH
Seals
 Air heater leakages
• Due to thermal expansion and contraction, all rotary
regenerative air heaters have dynamic leakage gaps that widen
and narrow with load.
• It’s extremely difficult to seal these types of heaters because
their large diameter (up to 60 feet across) and the large
temperature difference between their hot and cold sides (about
200ºC) together produce dynamic thermal distortion of the rotor.
• It’s not uncommon for the outer edges of a large, hot air heater
to "droop" (or "turn down") by 2 inches or more, compared with
a cold condition.
• Accordingly, there is no existing technology that can seal an air
heater 100%.
The location of internal bypass through
clearances between APH baskets
Damaged Axial seal plate

Rubbed Axial seal plate Axial seal

Damaged Radial seal

Radial seals
Damaged By-Pass seal
By-Pass seal
DOUBLE SEAL ED ROTOR
FLUE GAS DUCTS
 Atmospheric air ingress into the flue gas duct
Source:
• Eroded & damaged expansion joint,
• worn out ducting

Remedial action:
• Timely replacement of expansion joints or
periodical replacement in the planned shutdown
like AOH.
• Re-engineering of duct flow pattern based on the
CFD
• Providing Wear resistance lining on inner wall
 Effect of air ingress into FG Duct
Problem:
a) Increase in unburnt carbon loss & CO loss due to incomplete
combustion.
b) Slagging / clinking tendency in boiler due to reducing
atmosphere.
Problem Identification:
The reasons for above problem have been identified as below: -
1. Heavy ingress of atmospheric air into the flue gas duct.
2. High air in-leakage through APH seals.
3. High system resistance of flue gas duct due to multilayered
patching.
 MILLING SYSTEM
The performance of milling system has a direct
impact over the efficiency of boiler.

• The fineness of pulverized fuel decides the

combustion as well as clinkering / slagging
tendency in the furnace.

• The mill rejects adversely affects the

performance as well as efficiency of the boiler.
 Effects of Mill internals on fineness
• Non uniform Air Gaps at
various points in coal air
path.
Air gap at throat – 80 mm
Air gap at inv cone: 85 mm
Air gap between center feed
pipe and inner cone: 75 mm
Classifier setting: 60%
• Non- optimized journal spring
pressure. (11 T- pressure)
• Erosion of inner cone. (due to
bigger size holes, coal particles by
passing the classifier & carryover
to pipes)
Air gap at Throat
 Installation of fabric expansion bellows
Process: During continuous operation, flue gas duct
expansion joints are subjected to expansion &
contraction. This results in the cracks in the metallic
expansion joint, also due to ash erosion, holes are formed
in the EJ from which the air ingress starts & IDF loading
increased.

Benefits & energy savings:

• Improved heat rate
• Minimise flue gas losses.
• Reduce ID loading
• Aux. power consumption
• Air ingress can be minimised.