Water Tube Boiler

water tube boiler is a type of boiler in which water circulates in tubes heated externally by the fire. Water tube boilers are used for highpressure boilers. Fuel is burned inside the furnace, creating hot gas which heats water in the steam-generating tubes

Burner Combustion Control for Boilers

Burner combustion control generally includes one or a combination of the following methods Regulation of excess air Oxygen trim Burner modulation Air/fuel cross-limiting Total heat control

Excess air regulation

Figure 1 SHOWS THAT IN ORDER TO ENSURE COMPLETE COMBUSTION AND REDUCE HEAT LOSS, EXCESS AIR HAS TO BE KEPT WITHIN A SUITABLE RANGE. THE REGULATION OF EXCESS AIR PROVIDES:

A better boiler heat transfer rate An advance warning of flue gas problems (excess air coming out of the zone of maximum efficiency) Substantial savings on fuel

Oxygen trim
When a measurement of oxygen in the flue gas is available, the combustion control mechanism can be vastly improved
by adding an oxygen trim control module, allowing

Tighter control of excess air to oxygen setpoint for better efficiency Faster return to setpoint following disturbances Tighter control over flue emissions
Compliance with emissions standards

Easy incorporation of carbon monoxide or opacity override

Air/fuel cross-limiting
A cross-limiting combustion control strategy ensures that there can never be a dangerous ratio of air and fuel within a combustion process This is implemented by always raising the air flow before allowing the fuel flow to increase, as shown in Figure 2 Cross-limiting combustion control is highly effective and can easily provide the following Optimization of fuel consumption Safer operating conditions by reducing risk of explosion Fast adaptation to variations in fuel and air supplies

Satisfaction of the plant demand for steam

Boiler Drum Level Control

The purpose of the drum level controller is to bring the drum up to level at boiler start-up and maintain the level at constant steam load
The three main options available for drum level control are

The simplest but least effective form of drum level control. Single element drum level control
This consists of a proportional signal or process variable (PV) coming from the drum level transmitter. This signal is Figure 1 Single-element drum level control compared to a setpoint and the difference is a deviation value. The output is then passed to the boiler feedwater valve, which then adjusts the level of feedwater flow into the boiler drum. (notes)

Two element drum level control

The two elements are made up of the following Level Element: as singal element drum level Steam Flow Element: a mass flow rate signal (corrected for
density) is used to control the feedwater flow, giving immediate corrections to feedwater demand in response to load changes (This imbalance can arise from)
Figure 2 Two-element drum level control

Blowdown variations due to changes in dissolved solids Variations in feedwater supply pressure Leaks in the steam circuits {notes}

Three-element drum level control

The three-elements are made up of the following
Level Element & Steam Flow Element:
corrects for unmeasured disturbances within the system such as Boiler blowdown Figure 3 Three-element drum level control Boiler and superheater tube leaks

Feedwater Flow Element:

responds rapidly to variations in feedwater demand, either from the Steam flow rate feedforward signal Feedwater pressure or flow fluctuations
to achieve optimum control, both steam and feedwater flow values should be corrected for density {notes}.

Boiler banking
This Functionality Is Achieved By Keeping The Available Boilers In Hot Standby Mode Until Required To Fire. This Is Achieved By Intermittently Firing The Unused Boilers, Thus Maintaining A Required Pressure By Use Of Upper And Lower Banking Thresholds Or By Recirculation Of Return Water Through The Boilers To Keep Them Hot. The Main Advantage Of Boiler Banking Is That It Acts A 'Warm' Start Facility Improving The Plant Response To Sudden Load Changes.

Boiler Blowdown Control

boiler feedwater must be chemically treated to remove the corrosive elements that may be present and would ultimately corrode the boiler as well as affect the quality of steam required within a process.

the quantity of chemicals removed from the drum via blowdown must be equal to the quantity Automatically timed control of chemicals that enter through feedwater. Theres is many typesof automatic blow down With a float level control, a magnetic switch with a built-in hysteresis or dead-band will be used. With conductivity probes, two probes are necessary, 3.17.1 switching (pump on and pump off) which will giveFig. fixed levels. A capacitance probe can be used to give adjustable on / off switching levels. Figure 1. Boiler Blowdown control Figure 2 (above) shows a simple semi-automatic system where a timer is used to control blowdown for short periods. Again, with this system, daily testing of the boiler is necessary The system can be made fully automatic by installing a TDS monitoring facility as pictured in Figure 3. This will override the timer in the event of variation from the desired TDS level. Figure 2. Automatically timed blowdown control Disadvantage: Standard fully open/closed valve provides coarse control

Boiler Blowdown Control

At all level control Advantages:

1. Simple 2. Inexpensive 3. Good for boilers on stand-by

Disadvantages: 1. each boiler requires its own feedpump 2. more wear and tear on the feedpump and control gear 3. variable steam pressure and flowrate 4. more boiler water carryover 5. higher chance of daily operating problems under large load swings

Boiler Blowdown Control

Instantaneous manual system
is operated once per shift to reduce the boiler total dissolved solids (TDS) to a sufficient level well below the boiler specified maximum limit. The TDS are then allowed to build up during the next shift until they reach the maximum level again. A TDS test should be carried out prior to blowdown so that Figure 3. Automatic blowdown the time can be adjusted to reflect changes in average control with TDS monitoring boiler load conditions which may occur on a day-to-day basis.

Advantage:

Easily implemented with relatively low sensor outlay. Disadvantage Wear on the burner controls Temperature cycling of the boiler Reduced efficiency A 'saw-tooth' type steam flowrate Load fluctuations are not taken into account. Heat recovery from blowdown i expensive and difficult

Boiler Blowdown Control

Continuous control
Continuous blowdown are preferable In its simplest form,. The valve position is determined from the boiler pressure, TDS levels and the blowdown rate required.

As shown in Figure 4, A Control Module Is Used To Modulate The Blowdown Valve Using Inputs From A Tds Detector Located In The Cooled Blowdown Sidestream.
Figure 4. Boiler Blowdown Control

Advantage:
Smaller and cheaper heat recovery plant Possibility of recovering up to 50% of the heat in the blowdown