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FM Global Property Loss Prevention Data Sheets
FM Global Property Loss Prevention Data Sheets
Table of Contents
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12-14 Waste Heat Boilers
Page 2 FM Global Property Loss Prevention Data Sheets
List of Figures
Fig. 1. Effects of thermal expansion. ............................................................................................................. 4
Fig. 2. Waste heat boiler unit, suitable for high temperature gases carrying sticky or semimoltenparticles. . 9
Fig. 3. Positive circulation LaMont waste heat boiler. ................................................................................. 10
Fig. 4. Vertical water tube waste heat boiler with external downcomers. .................................................. 11
Fig. 5. Finned tubes used on watertube boilers. ......................................................................................... 12
Fig. 6. Open hearth horizontal gas tube waste heat boiler. ........................................................................ 12
Fig. 7. Controlled circulation boiler for recovery of heat from open hearth furnace. .................................. 14
Fig. 8. Fume hood for waste heat recovery in the oxygen process for steel making. ................................ 15
Fig. 9. Smelting and refining waste heat boiler. .......................................................................................... 15
Fig. 10. Heat recovery equipment at a gas turbine installation. .................................................................. 16
Fig. 11. Diesel engine waste-heat steam generator. ................................................................................... 17
Fig. 12. Copper reverberatory furnace waste heat boiler. ........................................................................... 18
Fig. 13. Copper reverberatory furnace waste heat boiler. ........................................................................... 19
Fig. 14. Watertube boiler for sulfur recovery plant witt cast iron extended surface tube elements. ........... 20
Fig. 15. Combination watertube/firetube waste heat boiler. ........................................................................ 20
List of Tables
Table 1. Temperature of Waste Heat Gases ................................................................................................. 8
1.0 SCOPE
This data sheet covers waste heat boilers. Waste heat boilers are units that recover sensible heat from
industrial processes and combustion products.
Firetube boilers are covered in Data Sheet 12-16. Watertube boilers are covered in Data Sheet 12-17.
1.1 Changes
June 1999. This revision of the document has been reorganized to provide a consistent format.
2.1.1 Operation
1. Provide full time operator attendance (see Data Sheet 12-37).
2. Operators should be properly trained in the operation of the boiler and well versed in shutdown proce-
dures. They should also have an understanding of the overall process so as to recognize the effect of boiler
operation on the process.
3. Emergency shutdown procedures should be posted in the boiler control room.
4. Plant management should establish a training program designed to review boiler operational and emer-
gency procedures. This training program should be conducted periodically at the discretion of plant man-
agement.
5. Proper feedwater treatment should be provided at all times. Water treatment specialists and/or the boiler
manufacturer should be consulted to establish a proper feedwater treatment program. Boiler manufactur-
ers should also be consulted to aid in the establishment of proper blowdown and chemical cleaning proce-
dures.
6. Control dust loading by maintaining low velocities, and provide proper maintenance to minimize buildup
of dust and minimize erosion. Large quantities of dust in waste gases can be controlled by recommending
installation of dust collectors, pockets and hoppers, or conveyors.
7. To minimize corrosion from low temperatures, operate boilers above a dew point of 300°F (149°C) or
450°F (232°C) if gases contain sulfur.
8. Maximum rate of firing should be established in any furnace to prevent excessive heat from entering the
waste heat unit.
9. To prevent fatigue problems, firetube waste heat boiler should not be cycle loaded.
2.1.2 Inspection
Tube erosion should be monitored at installations that operate with high dust loadings. Tube metal thick-
ness readings should be taken at least once a year. Where applicable, readings should be taken more fre-
quently to provide a clearer picture of potential problem areas.
The information provided below is intended to supply the user with some additional inspection material. This
information should be used in conjunction with information supplied in the data sheets on firetube and water-
tube boilers.
3. Remove deposits on welded seams and staybolt ends. Deposits can take on the shape of welds thereby
hiding severely wasted weld metal.
If allowance is not made for expansion or if the thermal differences between tube sheet and tube exceed the
tolerances, then the compressive forces will exceed the yield strength of the tube and cause a gap as shown
in Figure 1. When the unit cools, water as well as any solids will be trapped in the gap. When the unit is
reheated, the trapped water will vaporize creating a pressure that could lead to cracking.
Insulated ferrules may be used to protect tube ends from overheating. Ferrules could also be used to guard
against the condition shown in Figure 1 although the best way to protect the tube ends in this case would
be to use a full penetration weld or butt weld the tube to the back of the tube sheet.
2. Check refractory for breakdown which could lead to overheating.
2.1.2.4 General
1. Check for sagging tubes in a firetube boiler and bulged or distorted tubes in a watertube boiler indicat-
ing overheating.
2. Pitting of tube surfaces is an indication of corrosion and can occur on both water and gas sides of the
boiler. Waterside corrosion is an indication of an inadequate water treatment program. Gas-side corrosion may
occur from operating at too low a dew point for the composition of the waste heat gas. Dew point is espe-
cially critical in installations that are recovering heat from processes of high sulfur content.
2.1.2.5 Repairs
1. The method of repairing tubes or any pressure part of the boiler affected by erosion depends upon the
extent of the damage and, to a certain extent, on the location. Tube sections with 50% of the wall thick-
ness eroded should be replaced. Small eroded tube areas may be overlayed and reinforced by either gas
or arc welding. Welding should not be done on sections of tube where enough of the wall thickness has been
eroded to allow burn-through when applying weld overlay. With larger tube defects, it may be necessary
to remove a section of tube or, in some cases, the entire tube.
2.3 Occupancy
Inadequate supports include broken or collapsed supports and columns, loosened nuts on suspension bolts,
loose or broken pipe hangers, inadequate room for expansion of pipes, misalignment, and excessive exter-
nal loading on piping.
4.0 REFERENCES
Data Sheet 6-17/13-20, Rotary Kilns and Dryers
Data Sheet, 7-72/12-10, Catalytic Steam-Hydrocarbon Reformers
Data Sheet 12-16, Firetube Boilers
Data Sheet 12-17, Watertube Boilers
Data Sheet 12-37, Low-Water Protection
C.1 Introduction
Rising fuel costs have made the recovery of heat from a given process economically feasible. Heat recov-
ery can also be important from a pollution standpoint. Most waste gases are characterized by a high inert gas
content and by a solid carryover content. The degree to which the inerts are present and the quality, size
and character of the solids strongly influence the boiler design for a given application. With proper design,
all or part of the plant’s steam requirements may be supplied by a waste heat boiler.
Heat recovery is economically practical wherever a process waste product or gas is continuously dis-
charged at a temperature of 1,000°F (538°C) or higher (Table 1). In addition to producing useful steam, the
lowering of the flue gas temperature may reduce maintenance of flues, fans and stacks. Process material
may often be more completely recovered from the cooled gases.
The heat transfer from the process waste gases is accomplished primarily through convection. There is very
little radiative heat in process waste gases. As a result, gas velocities in waste heat boilers tend to be high.
In gases that carry a substantial amount of particulate matter, the velocities cannot be too high or erosion
of heating surfaces will become a problem.
There are basically two types of waste heat boilers: firetube and watertube. When heat must be removed
or recovered from a process gas, firetube units are usually the choice. Watertube waste heat boilers are use-
ful when heat must be removed from flue gases at near atmospheric pressure.
Fig. 2. Waste heat boiler unit, suitable for high temperature gases carrying sticky or semimolten particles.
Fig. 4. Vertical water tube waste heat boiler with external downcomers. Steam generated at 50 psi (345 kPa) recovering
heat from sulphur-bearing gases. The top channel serves as steam disengaging drum.
The boiler is inherently tight under pressure and may be used with pulsating gases such as diesel engine
exhaust where no refractory lining or setting is used, but where the exterior is insulated.
The tubes are of smaller diameter and more closely spaced than in direct-fired applications. They are kept
clear of deposits by a rotating-arm soot blower, with the nozzles directed toward the tube ends. For heavier
incrustations, hand lances are inserted through lance doors in the wall of the connecting flue (there is less ten-
dency for flue dust to clog the vertical tubes). The firetube boiler should be used only with waste heat streams
having light dust loadings.
The firetube boiler is usually of the horizontal type (Fig. 6). Practically the entire space within the shell of
the horizontal boiler is filled with tubes; steam space is minimized and a steam drum used instead. All tubes
are submerged to minimize the stresses that occur when dry tubes are used. The manhole provided near
the bottom for inspection and cleaning purposes limits the number of tubes installed in the lower part of the
drum. The access may be in the shell or in the head at the gas outlet end.
The boiler is usually set at a 15° angle to (1) improve circulation, (2) collect steam at the high point, and
(3) permit suspended matter to gravitate to the lowest point.
Figure 7 shows a controlled circulation boiler for the recovery of heat from open hearth furnace gas. Tube
spacing at the inlet section near the bottom of the unit is comparatively wide to prevent slag adherence and
to minimize abrasion. As the gas is cooled in passing through the boiler, the tube spacing is decreased. The
boiler circulating pumps not only permit flexibility in the choice of tube size and spacing but also assure posi-
tive and stable circulation under steady and variable load conditions.
Fig. 7. Controlled circulation boiler for recovery of heat from open hearth furnace.
Fig. 8. Fume hood for waste heat recovery in the oxygen process for steel making.
The addition of either a fired or unfired steam generator to an existing gas turbine installation frequently has
economic justification. Many combined gas turbine-steam turbine power plants have been conceived and
designed as such on the basis of higher thermal efficiency than a conventional steam power plant with the
same steam conditions. The heat rate improvement can be as high as five percent, depending on the steam
temperature and pressure and the regenerator cycle chosen.
Gas turbines employ air-cooled stainless-steel combustion chambers operating at about 1500°F (815°C)
on a continuous basis. To obtain this relatively low combustion temperature, excess air in quantities higher
than 300 percent must be employed. With some gas turbines in which lower combustion chamber tempera-
tures are used because of the nature of the fuel, the excess air may be as high as 500 percent. The exhaust
gas temperature is about 600°F (315°C) below the combustion chamber temperature.
There are three effects of the large quantities of excess air and the 700° to 900°F (371° to 482°C) turbine
exhaust gas temperatures on the design of steam generating equipment: (1) straight waste-heat recovery
of sensible heat in the turbine exhaust must be accomplished at lower thermal heads than is the case with
waste gas from reverberatory furnaces and the like; (2) as gas turbine combustion chamber temperatures
are lowered, the exhaust stream becomes larger in quantity for a given gas turbine output at such a low tem-
perature level that the recovery of waste heat may become uneconomical; (3) the use of gas turbine exhaust
as highly preheated combustion air for a steam generating unit fired with any fuel, and without restriction
as to steam conditions, becomes attractive. Many of the combined gas-steam turbine applications in opera-
tion involve both straight waste heat recovery by boilers or economizers and the use of turbine exhaust as
the source of oxygen for fuel burning.
Waste heat boilers for the recovery of sensible heat from gas turbine exhaust can be either of the natural
or controlled circulation design. Such boilers can be built inside of what amounts to a continuation of the tur-
bine exhaust duct. Gas velocities through these units are limited to about 100 feet/second (30 m/s) by rea-
son of excessive backpressure on the gas turbine.
Fig. 11. Diesel engine waste-heat steam generator. (U.S. Maritime Commission Liberty ship ‘‘Thomas Nelson’’)
cooling the gases prior to their entry into the superheater and convection zones. Figures 12 and 13 show
a typical waste heat boiler designed for use with a copper reverberatory furnace.
Where elemental sulphur is burned with air inside a combustion chamber, the heat resulting from the chemi-
cal reaction is used for steam generation. The exhaust gases containing SO2 are cooled to a controlled tem-
perature and combined with oxygen in a catalyst bed to produce SO3 for further process in the manufacture
of acid (Fig. 14).
In the ammonia process the waste recovery system normally may be used to accomplish two or more objec-
tives. Steam is produced for processing, but the main use of the waste heat recovery system is to cool the
gas in process so that it can then be passed over a catalyst bed in the conversion process to obtain ammo-
nia. A special type of boiler, the bayonet type, is used in the ammonia process. For information about this spe-
cial application, refer to Data Sheet 7-72/12-10, Catalytic Steam-Hydrocarbon Reformers.
In chemical plants today the conversion of waste heat in process systems is a custom job and needs care-
ful study and evaluation for the process involved. When sulfur is burned under a boiler, as in the commer-
cial production of sulfuric acid, the temperature of all metal surfaces should exceed the dew point temperature
of 450°F (232°C) if they are to have a reasonably long life. The quantity of acid present is small, about 0.005
percent by volume in dry gas. Figure 15 is a sketch of a combination watertube/firetube waste heat boiler
for use in a chemical plant.
Gases in contact with tubes and plates reach the dew point sooner than gases in the main stream. The gases
leaving the boiler proper are not all the same temperature. Corrosion usually is most noticeable at the cold
end of the economizer or air heater.
A minor amount of sulfuric acid corrosion takes place at elevated temperatures to 620°F (326°C). The major
difficulties occur, however, at temperatures below the acid dew point which may vary from 280° to 320°F
(139° to 160°C) under normal operating conditions. The dew point temperature of 450°F (232°C) should be
maintained where sulphur is being processed.
Fig. 14. Watertube boiler for sulfur recovery plant witt cast iron extended surface tube elements.