International Journal of Scientific Research in Engineering (IJSRE) Vol.

1 (3), March, 2017

TO IMPROVE THE STEAM OUTPUT OF AN INDUSTRIAL BOILER

Bariya Ankit U1, Nayak Utsav R2, Patel Alpesh K3, Patel Pragnesh S4
Student, Mechanical department, Laxmi institute of Technology, Sarigam-Valsad. Gujarat

Corresponding Author Detail: Internal Guide Detail:

Patel Alpesh K Mr. Parth Rathod
Student, Mechanical department, Assistant Professor, Mechanical department,
Laxmi institute of Technology, Laxmi institute of Technology,
Sarigam-Valsad, Gujarat. Sarigam-Valsad. Gujarat.

ABSTRACT
In any industry, the boiler is an essential component for generation of steam for producing
power and lot more. Boiler efficiency is a great concern in all process industries. To improve
thermal efficiency of boiler, heat loss of the boiler needs to be monitored continuously. The
main problem regarding the boiler is its low steam output. Due to lack of modern
technologies like air pre-heater, super heater, soot blower, etc. the main loss of energy occurs
through the flue gases. The low calorific value fuel raises the cost of producing the steam. In
our paper, the aim is to minimize the loss of energy occurring through the flue gases. After
the collection of the data of steam output and fuel usage, further analysis to be done for the
design of the new set up of the plant. By adding the modern accessories, the steam output per
kg of fuel can be increased. And also by using the fuel with the high calorific value, further
loss of energy can be minimized. After the analysis and research, the new design is likely to
be made. The parameters like, capacity, dimensions, duct design, inventory of the material
will be decided.

KEYWORD: Industrial boiler, Low steam output, Improvement in steam output, Equipment

INTRODUCTION
In any industry, the boiler is an essential component for generation of steam for producing
power and lot more. Boiler efficiency is a great concern in all process industries. To improve
thermal efficiency of boiler, heat loss of the boiler needs to be monitored continuously.
Boilers are considered to be as the key part in any generation station. In our project the steam
output per unit weight of fuel was too a concern. The output of steam was not fulfilling the
requirement and not cost effective. Biomass co-firing has been successfully demonstrated in
over 150 installations worldwide for most combinations of fuels and boiler types. About a
hundred of these have been in Europe. In the United States there have been over 40
commercial demonstrations. There are various technical issues on co-firing biomass with
coal. The major ones being fuel feed, boiler chemistry, and ash deposition and disposal. Some
of the issues has been addressed by pre treating the biomass and are reaching to a solution.
Losses in boiler efficiency are mostly due to high moisture content in the biomass fuels. The
maximum co firing ratios achieved using these techniques thus far have been in the range 10–

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International Journal of Scientific Research in Engineering (IJSRE) Vol. 1 (3), March, 2017

15%. The main constraints limiting increasing the co firing ratio have been the availability of
biomass supplies, the limitation on fuel storage and handling concerns regarding negative
impacts on boiler performance and integrity at elevated ratios. However, in a number of
cases, generally to a single small number of mill groups, it has been possible to increase the
co firing ratio to about 50% [5][6].

Figure-1 Boiler
COAL AND BIOMASS CLASSIFICATION AND COMPOSITION
COAL
Coal is formed from ancient plant material accumulated in subsurface environments which
prevents the complete decay of the organic matter. Plants that died in a swampy area if
covered quickly by water, silt, sand, and other sediments further decompose to carbon
dioxide and water under normal circumstances. Instead under anaerobic conditions with the
help of anaerobic bacteria, (bacteria that do not require oxygen to live) the plant debris
reduces to simpler forms: primarily pure carbon and simple compounds of carbon and
hydrogen (hydrocarbons) the process by which coal is formed. The initial stage of decay of
dead plants is a soft, woody material known as peat. In some parts of the world, peat is still
collected from boggy areas and used as a fuel [5].

BIOMASS
Biomass, a renewable energy source, is biological material derived from living, or recently
living organisms, such as wood and herbaceous material. Historically, biomass is used to
generate electricity or produce heat through direct incineration. Forest residues for example
(such as dead trees, branches and tree stumps), yard clippings, wood chips and municipal

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International Journal of Scientific Research in Engineering (IJSRE) Vol. 1 (3), March, 2017

solid waste are often used for this purpose. However, biomass also includes plant or animal
matter used for production of fibres or chemicals. Biomass may also include biodegradable
wastes that can be burnt as fuel [5].

METHOD AND MATERIALS

The solution in this project can be given as a mixed or co-firing of two different fuels in the
boiler instead of the single fuel i.e. biomass briquettes.
Here the two fuels include biomass briquettes and the conventional fuel like coal. The ratio of
fuels to be fired in the burner can be decided by comparing the calorific values of both fuels.
PARAMETER COAL BRIQUETTES

Density 0.8 – 1.1 ton/m3 1 – 1.2 ton/m3

Calorific value 24 - 27 MJ/kg 18 - 20 MJ/kg

Table-1 Coal Material

Three types of coal are used in industries; lignite, bituminous and anthracite.
Here we can use steam coal, which is of grade between lignite and bituminous and cost
efficient. Since the coal is having high energy content, the total energy released from both
fuel is increased.
If we burn the both fuels in the ratio of 1.4:1 to 1.5:1 [1], which means 60-40 amount of coal
and biomass burnt in the furnace, we can decrease the fuel consumption and increase the
temperature in the boiler thereby increasing the steam production. Also the burning rate of
the coal is very higher than biomass.

THERE ARE THREE METHODS OF CO FIRING; DIRECT, INDIRECT AND

PARALLEL

DIRECT CO FIRING
Direct co firing involves firing the coal and biomass in the same boiler. This is the simplest
and most widely applied technology for co firing biomass. Direct co firing has been
undertaken in stoker, cyclone, fluidised bed combustion (FBC) and pulverised coal
combustion (PCC) boilers [2]. Clearly, stoker and FBC boilers, which are designed to fully
fire biomass, are much more suited for co firing very high percentages of biomass than PCC
boilers.

INDIRECT CO FIRING
Indirect or hybrid co firing as it is sometimes called involves either pre-gasifying the bio fuel
in a separate unit or firing the bio fuel in a separate combustor and routing the steam
produced to the main turbine where it is upgraded to higher conditions[3]. This latter process
is also known as parallel firing. Indirect co firing is much less commonly found than direct co
firing. It has the major advantages that the coal ash is not contaminated by any constituent of
the bio fuel and that these constituents cannot cause corrosion or slagging in the main plant.

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International Journal of Scientific Research in Engineering (IJSRE) Vol. 1 (3), March, 2017

The major disadvantage of indirect co firing is that installation costs are very much higher
than for direct firing. Indirect co firing usually involves upstream gasification, upstream
pyrolysis or separate combustion with steam-side integration. Indirect co firing is most
suitable for bio fuels containing relatively difficult components or when it is particularly
important to prevent the coal ash being contaminated [4].

.
Figure-2 a = Direct, b = Indirect and c = Parallel
Here we can use the direct co firing method. It is the most economical and easy method to
use. In this method, the coal and briquettes are supplied in furnace together for burning [5].
In this method, both of fuels are blended and mixed and then supplied in the furnace. Since
the biomass is made of saw dust, husk and bio materials, its characteristic not very different
from the coal, so it burns with coal easily. The investment is lesser. This process doesn’t
require the separate burner and separate feeder for the application.

PROBLEM DEFINITION
The efficiency of the boiler is poorer mainly due to the non efficient fuel and the various
losses occur in the form of the flue gases. The problem was in the accessories such as air pre
heater, super heater, economizer were not present attached with boilers or were not equip
with modern technologies. The fuel which are using was wooden blocks made of wood
powder. This wooden block had very less calorific value due to which the efficiency of boiler
was poor. As the wood contains carbon in abundance amount which produces carbon
contained flue gases which also called as Soot. These soot are collected on the walls of boiler
which further decreases the efficiency. Further the cost of operating and maintaining is

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International Journal of Scientific Research in Engineering (IJSRE) Vol. 1 (3), March, 2017

increased due to all these drawbacks. The steam production cost per kg is more.

ANALYSIS

FOR CURRENT OPERATION HEAT TRANSFER IN ECONOMISER

Given data from the data book: Q= kA (Th – Tc )/d where;
Calorific value of fuel = 18 MJ/kg k = thermal conductivity of material
Amount of fuel used = 625 kg /hr A = cross sectional area
Feed water inlet temperature = 360C Th = temp of outlet water
Operating Steam pressure = 8.20 bar Tc = temp of inlet water
Heat input = 11020 MJ/hr d= thickness of tube
Heat output = 5912 MJ/hr
Flue gas temperature = 3430C
Steam output = 2182.6 kg/hr
HEAT TRANSFER IN ECONOMISER FOR THE NEW FUEL
FOR THE CURRENT FUEL Q= kA (Th – Tc )/d where;
Q= kA (Th – Tc )/d where; k = thermal conductivity of material = 54
k = thermal conductivity of material W/mK
(SA104 gr B) = 54 W/mK A= cross sectional area= 0.00285 m2
A = cross sectional area= 0.00285 m2 Th = temp of outlet water = 73 0C
Th = temp of outlet water = 62 0C Tc = temp of inlet water = 36 0C
Tc = temp of inlet water = 36 0C d = thickness of tube = 0.00391 m
d = thickness of tube = 0.00391 m Q= kA (Th – Tc )/d
Q = kA (Th – Tc )/d = 54 * 0.00285* (73-36)/0.00391
= 54 * 0.00285* (62-36)/0.00391 = 1456 W
= 1023 W

RESULTS

If the co firing is done at same cost which is (625*6)=3750 Rs/kg of fuel, the energy input
would increase as well as output. With co firing ratio of 1.4:1 to 1.5:1 for coal and briquettes,
coal is 315 kg/hr and briquettes is at 205 kg/hr burn.
Heat input = (315*24)+(205*18) = 11250 MJ/hr
Which is more than current input of 11020 MJ/hr.
At same efficiency of 53.65 %, the output would be,
Heat output = 0.5365*input = 0.5365*11250 = 6035.6 MJ/hr
Which is higher than current output of 5912.2 MJ/hr.
Steam output per hour = heat output / heat content of 1 kg steam
= 6035.6 / 2.701 = 2235.4 Kg/hr
Which is more than the current steam output of 2182.2 Kg/hr.

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International Journal of Scientific Research in Engineering (IJSRE) Vol. 1 (3), March, 2017

FOR SAVING COST

For the same amount of heat input, the fuel required per hour for steam generation is less, at
510 kg of total fuel. Here the firing ratio of the fuels is 1.4:1 to 1.5:1, which indicates that
302 kg of coal and 210 kg of biomass briquette fuel would be used as compared to the current
625 kg/hr.
Cost calculation; Cost of fuel for current condition;
Cost of briquettes = 625 * 6 = 3750 rs/hr
For co firing;
Cost of coal = 302* 8 = 2416 rs/hr
Cost of briquettes = 210* 6 = 1260 rs/hr
Total cost = 2416+ 1260 = 3676 rs/hr
Heat input = (302*24) + (210*18) = 11028 MJ/hr
Heat input with this much amount of fuel, would be 11028 MJ/hr.
Heat output = 5912 MJ/hr when the efficiency is same as 53.65%.
When comparing the costs of both the conditions, we can see the cost saving.

CONCLUSION

With the application of the co-firing or mixed fuel firing method of two fuels, the energy
input as well as output can be significantly increased. Also cost of producing steam per unit
weight of fuel is decreased. So, we can keep the cost under check and also increase the
output. Here no new installations of any other expensive equipments or application of the
method of working, so this method is very economically easy and easy to implement also.
We can increase the steam production within same time and with same amount of fuel as well
as same cost, or otherwise we can save the cost of fuel if the production of the steam is kept
the same as before.

REFERENCE

1. Rohan Fernando (2012), “Co-firing high ratios of biomass with coal”.

2. Eisenstat L, Weinstien A, Wellner S (2009) “Biomass cofiring: another way to clean your
coal. Power”.
3. Baxter L, Koppejan J (2004) “Biomass-coal co-combustion; opportunity for affordable
renewable energy”.
4. Demirbas A (2005) “Biomass cofiring for boilers associated with environmental
impacts”.
5. Jayashankar Tamuluru, Shahab Sokhansanj, Christopher T. Wright, Richard D.
Boardman, Neal A. Yancey (2011) “A Review on Biomass Classification and
Composition, Co-Firing Issues and Pretreatment method”.
6. Eisenstat L, Weinstien A, Wellner S (2009) Biomass cofiring: another way to clean your
coal. Power , 68-71 (July 2009)

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