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Encyclopedia > Boiler

A boiler is a closed vessel in which water or other fluid is heated. The heated or vaporized fluid exits the boiler for use in various processes or heating applications.[1][2] Steel Pressure Vessel A pressure vessel is a closed, rigid container designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure different from the ambient pressure. ... Impact from a water drop causes an upward rebound jet surrounded by circular capillary waves. ... A fluid is defined as a substance that continually deforms (flows) under an applied shear stress regardless of the magnitude of the applied stress. ...

Contents

Overview

Diagram of a fire-tube boiler
Diagram of a fire-tube boiler

Construction of boilers is mainly limited to carbon steel, stainless steel, and cast iron. In live steam toys, brass is often used. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Carbon steel,is very fun 2 play with also called plain carbon steel, is a metal alloy, a combination of two elements, iron and carbon, where other elements are present in quantities too small to affect the properties. ... The 630 foot high, stainless-clad (type 304L) Gateway Arch defines St. ... Cast iron usually refers to grey cast iron, but can mean any of a group of iron-based alloys containing more than 2% carbon (alloys with less carbon are carbon steel by definition). ... A Live Steam Festival displaying equipment ranging from small stationary engines to full-size locomotives. ... “Brazen” redirects here. ...


The source of heat for a boiler is combustion of any of several fuels, such as wood, coal, oil, or natural gas. Electric boilers use resistance or immersion type heating elements. Nuclear fission is also used as a heat source for generating steam. Heat recovery steam generators (HRSGs) use the heat rejected from other processes such as gas turbines. This article is about the chemical reaction combustion. ... For other uses, see Fuel (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Wood (disambiguation). ... Coal Coal (IPA: ) is a fossil fuel formed in swamp ecosystems where plant remains were saved by water and mud from oxidization and biodegradation. ... Pumpjack pumping an oil well near Lubbock, Texas Ignacy Łukasiewicz - inventor of the refining of kerosene from crude oil. ... This article is about the fossil fuel. ... Electrical resistance is a measure of the degree to which an electrical component opposes the passage of current. ... An induced nuclear fission event. ... For other uses, see Steam (disambiguation). ... A heat recovery steam generator or HRSG is a heat exchanger that recovers heat from a hot gas stream. ... This machine has a single-stage centrifugal compressor and turbine, a recuperator, and foil bearings. ...


Boilers can also be classified into:

  • Fire-tube boilers. Here, the heat source is inside the tubes and the water to be heated is outside.
  • Water-tube boilers. Here the heat source is outside the tubes and the water to be heated is inside.
  • A primitive, inefficient type where there are no tubes and the fire heats one side of the water container.

The goal is to make the heat flow as completely as possible from the heat source to the water. For example, steam locomotives have fire-tube boilers, where the fire is inside the tube and the water on the outside. These usually take the form of a set of straight tubes passing through the boiler through which hot combustion gases flow. A fire-tube boiler is a type of boiler in which hot gases from the fire pass through one or more tubes within the boiler. ... Schematic diagram of a marine-type water tube boiler A water-tube boiler is a type of boiler in which water circulates in tubes which are heated externally by the fire. ... Great Western Railway No. ... A fire-tube boiler is a type of boiler in which hot gases from the fire pass through one or more tubes within the boiler. ...

Diagram of a water-tube boiler.
Diagram of a water-tube boiler.

In water-tube boilers the water flows through tubes around a fire. The tubes frequently have a large number of bends and sometimes fins to maximize the surface area. This type of boiler is generally preferred in high pressure applications since the high pressure water/steam is contained within narrow pipes which can contain the pressure with a thinner wall. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 400 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (450 × 675 pixel, file size: 64 KB, MIME type: image/png) This is a modification by User:Moonraker88 to an original Image:Steam Boiler 3. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 400 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (450 × 675 pixel, file size: 64 KB, MIME type: image/png) This is a modification by User:Moonraker88 to an original Image:Steam Boiler 3. ... Schematic diagram of a marine-type water tube boiler A water-tube boiler is a type of boiler in which water circulates in tubes which are heated externally by the fire. ...


In a cast iron sectional boiler, sometimes called a "pork chop boiler" the water is contained inside cast iron sections. These sections are mechanically assembled on site to create the finished boiler.

Diagram of a Cornish Boiler.
Diagram of a Cornish Boiler.

There are other types of boilers, largely of historical interest. For example, the Cornish boiler developed around 1812 by Richard Trevithick for generating steam for steam engines. This was both stronger and more efficient than the simple boilers which preceded it. It was a cylindrical water tank around 27 feet long and 7 feet in diameter, and had a coal furnace placed in a single cylindrical tube about three feet wide which passed centrally along the long axis of the tank. The fire was tended from one end and the hot gases from it travelled along the tube and out of the other end, to be circulated back along flues running along the outside of the boiler before being expelled via the chimney. This was later improved upon in the Lancashire boiler which had a pair of furnaces in separate tubes side-by-side. This was an important improvement since each furnace could be stoked at different times, allowing one to be cleaned while the other was operating. These designs are really primitive fire tube boilers, and led on to the Scotch boiler which remains a popular fire tube design. Image File history File links Steam_Boiler_1_english. ... Image File history File links Steam_Boiler_1_english. ... For the overture by Tchaikovsky, see 1812 Overture; For the wars, see War of 1812 (USA - United Kingdom) or Patriotic War of 1812 (France - Russia) For the Siberia Airlines plane crashed over the Black Sea on October 4, 2001, see Siberia Airlines Flight 1812 1812 was a leap year starting... Richard Trevithick Richard Trevithick (April 13, 1771 – April 22, 1833) was a British inventor, engineer and builder of the first working railway steam locomotive. ... // The term steam engine may also refer to an entire railroad steam locomotive. ... Look up Chimney in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...


Superheated steam boilers

A superheated boiler on a steam locomotive.
A superheated boiler on a steam locomotive.

Most boilers heat water until it boils, and then the steam is used at saturation temperature (i.e., saturated steam). Superheated steam boilers boil the water and then further heat the steam in a superheater. This provides steam at much higher temperature, and can decrease the overall thermal efficiency of the steam plant due to the fact that the higher steam temperature requires a higher flue gas exhaust temperature. However, there are advantages to superheated steam. For example, useful heat can be extracted from the steam without causing condensation, which could damage piping and turbine blades. Download high resolution version (2300x1531, 376 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (2300x1531, 376 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Saturation Temperature (boiling point) - The temperature for a corresponding Saturation Pressure at which a liquid boils into its vapor phase. ...


Superheated steam presents unique safety concerns because, if there is a leak in the steam piping, steam at such high pressure/temperature can cause serious, instantaneous harm to anyone entering its flow. Since the escaping steam will initially be completely superheated vapor, it is not easy to see the leak, although the intense heat and sound from such a leak clearly indicates its presence.


The superheater works like coils on an air conditioning unit, however to a different end. The steam piping (with steam flowing through it) is directed through the flue gas path in the boiler furnace. This area typically is between 2500-3000 degrees Fahrenheit (1300-1600 degrees Celsius). Some superheaters are radiant type (absorb heat by radiation), others are convection type (absorb heat via a fluid i.e. gas) and some are a combination of the two. So whether by convection or radiation the extreme heat in the boiler furnace/flue gas path will also heat the superheater steam piping and the steam within as well. It is important to note that while the temperature of the steam in the superheater is raised, the pressure of the steam is not. The process of superheating steam is most importantly designed to remove all moisture content from the steam to prevent damage to the turbine blading and/or associated piping.


Supercritical steam generators

Supercritical steam generators (also known as Benson boilers) are frequently used for the production of electric power. They operate at "supercritical pressure". In contrast to a "subcritical boiler", a supercritical steam generator operates at such a high pressure (over 3200 PSI, 22 MPa, 220 bar) that actual boiling ceases to occur, and the boiler has no water - steam separation. There is no generation of steam bubbles within the water, because the pressure is above the "critical pressure" at which steam bubbles can form. It passes below the critical point as it does work in the high pressure turbine and enters the generator's condenser. This is more efficient, resulting in slightly less fuel use and therefore less greenhouse gas production. The term "boiler" should not be used for a supercritical pressure steam generator, as no "boiling" actually occurs in this device. A supercritical fluid is any substance at a temperature and pressure above its thermodynamic critical point. ... Top: Increasing atmospheric CO2 levels as measured in the atmosphere and ice cores. ...


History of supercritical steam generation

Contemporary supercritical steam generators are sometimes referred as Benson boilers. In 1922, Mark Benson was granted a patent for a boiler designed to convert water into steam at high pressure.


Safety was the main concern behind Benson’s concept. Earlier steam generators were designed for relatively low pressures of up to about 100 bar, corresponding to the state of the art in steam turbine development at the time. One of their distinguishing technical characteristics was the riveted drum. These drums were used to separate water and steam, and were often the source of boiler explosions, usually with catastrophic consequences. However, the drum can be completely eliminated if the evaporation process is avoided altogether. This happens when water is heated at a pressure above the critical pressure and then expanded to dry steam at subcritical pressure. A throttle valve located downstream of the evaporator can be used for this purpose.


As development of Benson technology continued, boiler design soon moved away from the original concept introduced by Mark Benson. In 1929, a test boiler that had been built in 1927 began operating in the thermal power plant at Gartenfeld in Berlin for the first time in subcritical mode with a fully open throttle valve. The second Benson boiler began operation in 1930 without a pressurizing valve at pressures between 40 and 180 bar at the Berlin cable factory. This application represented the birth of the modern variable-pressure Benson boiler. After that development, the original patent was no longer used. The Benson boiler name, however, was retained. This article is about the capital of Germany. ...


Two current innovations have a good chance of winning acceptance in the competitive market for once-through steam generators:

  • A new type of heat-recovery steam generator based on the Benson boiler, which has operated successfully at the Cottam combined-cycle power plant in the central part of England,
  • The vertical tubing in the combustion chamber walls of coal-fired steam generators which combines the operating advantages of the Benson system with the design advantages of the drum-type boiler. Construction of a first reference plant, the Yaomeng power plant in China, commenced in 2001.

For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ...

Hydronic boilers

Hydronic boilers are used in generating heat typically for residential uses. They are the typical power plant for central heating systems fitted to houses in northern Europe (where they are commonly combined with domestic water heating), as opposed to the forced-air furnaces or wood burning stoves more common in North America. The hydronic boiler operates by way of heating water/fluid to a preset temperature (or sometimes in the case of single pipe systems, until it boils and turns to steam) and circulating that fluid throughout the home typically by way of radiators, baseboard heaters or through the floors. The fluid can be heated by any means....gas, wood, fuel oil, etc, but in built-up areas where piped gas is available, natural gas is currently the most economical and therefore the usual choice. The fluid is in an enclosed system and circulated throughout by means of a motorized pump. Most new systems are fitted with condensing boilers for greater efficiency. The name can be a misnomer in that, except for systems using steam radiators, the water in a properly functioning hydronic boiler never actually boils. For the Grand Central Records albums, see Central Heating (Grand Central album) and Central Heating 2. ... For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ... A Forced-air or Warm air heating system is one which uses air as its heat transfer medium. ... North America North America is a continent[1] in the Earths northern hemisphere and (chiefly) western hemisphere. ... Radiators and convectors are types of heat exchangers designed to transfer thermal energy from one medium to another for the purpose of cooling and heating. ... Radiators and convectors are types of heat exchangers designed to transfer thermal energy from one medium to another for the purpose of cooling and heating. ... This article is about the fossil fuel. ... This article is about a mechanical device. ... A condensing boiler is a kind of hydronic boiler which achieves enhanced efficiency by incorporating an additional heat exchanger. ...


Hydronic systems are being used more and more in new construction in North America for several reasons. Among the reasons are:

  • They are more efficient and more economical than forced-air systems (although initial installation can be more expensive, because of the cost of the copper and aluminum).
  • The baseboard copper pipes and aluminum fins take up less room and use less metal than the bulky steel ductwork required for forced-air systems.
  • They provide more even, less fluctuating temperatures than forced-air systems. The copper baseboard pipes hold and release heat over a longer period of time than air does, so the furnace does not have to switch off and on as much. (Copper heats mostly through conduction and radiation, whereas forced-air heats mostly through forced convection. Air has much lower thermal conductivity and higher specific heat than copper; however, convection results in faster heat loss of air compared to copper. See also thermal mass.)
  • They do not dry out the interior air as much.
  • They do not introduce any dust, allergens, mold, or (in the case of a faulty heat exchanger) combustion byproducts into the living space.

Forced-air heating does have some advantages, however. See forced-air heating. A Forced-air or Warm air heating system is one which uses air as its heat transfer medium. ... Convection in the most general terms refers to the internal movement of currents within fluids (i. ... K value redirects here. ... The specific heat capacity (symbol c or s, also called specific heat) of a substance is defined as heat capacity per unit mass. ... Thermal mass, in the most general sense, is any mass that absorbs and holds heat. ... A Forced-air or Warm air heating system is one which uses air as its heat transfer medium. ...


Accessories

Boiler fittings

  • Safety valve: used to relieve pressure and prevent possible explosion of a boiler
  • Water level indicators: to show the operator the level of fluid in the boiler, a water gauge or water column is provided
  • Bottom blowdown valves
  • Surface blowdown line
  • Circulating pump
  • Feedwater check valve or clack valve: a nonreturn stop valve in the feedwater line

Relief Valve A relief valve opens to release excess pressure when the pressure is too high to protect the vessel or other equipment from overpressurization. ... Boiler explosions are catastrophic failures of boilers. ... This page is a candidate to be copied to Wiktionary. ... this siamese clappered inlet allows one or two inputs into a deluge gun A check valve is a mechanical device, a valve, that normally allows fluid or gas to flow through it in only one direction. ...

Steam accessories

  • Main steam stop valve
  • Steam traps
  • Main steam stop/Check valve used on multiple boiler installations

The duty of a steam trap is to discharge condensate while not permitting the escape of live steam. ...

Combustion accessories

  • Fuel oil system
  • Gas system
  • Coal system
  • Automatic combustion systems

Other essential items

Many techniques have been developed for the measurement of pressure and vacuum. ... A modern fusible plug showing the core of low melting-point metal. ...

Controlling draft

Most boilers now depend on mechanical draft equipment rather than natural draft. This is because natural draft is subject to outside air conditions and temperature of flue gases leaving the furnace, as well as the chimney height. All these factors make proper draft hard to attain and therefore make mechanical draft equipment much more economical.


There are three types of mechanical draft:

  • Induced draft: This is obtained one of three ways, the first being the "stack effect" of a heated chimney, in which the flue gas is less dense than the ambient air surrounding the boiler. The more dense column of ambient air forces combustion air into and through the boiler. The second method is through use of a steam jet. The steam jet oriented in the direction of flue gas flow induces flue gasses into the stack and allows for a greater flue gas velocity increasing the overall draft in the furnace. This method was common on steam driven locomotives which could not have tall chimneys. The third method is by simply using an induced draft fan (ID fan) which sucks flue gases out of the furnace and up the stack. Almost all induced draft furnaces have a negative pressure.
  • Forced draft: Draft is obtained by forcing air into the furnace by means of a fan (FD fan) and ductwork. Air is often passed through an air heater; which, as the name suggests, heats the air going into the furnace in order to increase the overall efficiency of the boiler. Dampers are used to control the quantity of air admitted to the furnace. Forced draft furnaces usually have a positive pressure.
  • Balanced draft: Balanced draft is obtained through use of both induced and forced draft. This is more common with larger boilers where the flue gases have to travel a long distance through many boiler passes. The induced draft fan works in conjunction with the forced draft fan allowing the furnace pressure to be maintained slightly below atmospheric.

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
Boiler
Look up Boiler in
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Image File history File links Commons-logo. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wiktionary (a portmanteau of wiki and dictionary) is a multilingual, Web-based project to create a free content dictionary, available in over 150 languages. ... A Deaerator is a device for air removal and is used to remove dissolved gases (an alternate would be the use of water treatment chemicals) from boiler feedwater to make it non-corrosive. ... An electric water boiler, electric water heater, or electric water urn is a consumer electronics small appliance used for boiling water and maintaining it at a constant temperature. ... An external combustion engine is an engine which burns its fuel to heat a separate working fluid which then in turn performs work. ... Section of typical British boiler and firebox. ... Mohave Generating Station, a 1,580 MW coal power plant near Laughlin, Nevada A fossil fuel power plant is an energy conversion center that burns fossil fuels to produce electricity, designed on a large scale for continuous operation. ... A furnace is a device for heating air or any other fluid. ... Geothermal power plant in the Philippines Geothermal power is the use of geothermal heat to generate electricity. ... HVAC may also stand for High-voltage alternating current HVAC is an initialism that stands for heating, ventilation and air-conditioning. This is sometimes referred to as climate control. ... A heat-only boiler station generates thermal energy in the form of hot water for use in district heating applications. ... A heat recovery steam generator or HRSG is a heat exchanger that recovers heat from a hot gas stream. ... Hot Water Reset Hot Water Reset is a digital control specification for hot water boilers that are typically fired with fuel oil or methane. ... Hydronics is the name for the use of water as the heat-transfer medium in heating and cooling systems. ... A power station (also power plant) is a facility for the generation of electric power. ... For other uses, see Power station (disambiguation). ... A pulverized coal-fired boiler is an industrial or utility boiler that generates thermal energy by burning pulverized coal (also known as powdered coal or coal dust). ... Radiators and convectors are types of heat exchangers designed to transfer thermal energy from one medium to another for the purpose of cooling and heating. ... Steam generators are systems used to to convert water into steam from heat produced in a nuclear reactor core. ... A thermal power station near Sofia, Bulgaria A thermal power station comprises all of the equipment and systems required to produce electricity by using a steam generating boiler fired with fossil fuels or biofuels to drive an electrical generator. ... Thermoelectricity is the conversion from heat differentials to electricity or vice versa. ... Bi-metallic thermostat for buildings A thermostat is a device for regulating the temperature of a system so that the systems temperature is maintained near a desired setpoint temperature. ... A trio of propane hot water heaters. ...

External links

References

  1. ^ Frederick M. Steingress (2001). Low Pressure Boilers, 4th Edition, American Technical Publishers. ISBN 0-8269-4417-5. 
  2. ^ Frederick M. Steingress, Harold J. Frost and Darryl R. Walker (2003). High Pressure Boilers, 3rd Edition, American Technical Publishers. ISBN 0-8269-4300-4. 

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