Understanding Boiler Efficiencies - Archives - Process Heating

Page 1

Advertisement:

Logged
In

Logout

Welcome back,

Search in:

Editorial

Products

Process Heating

Tin-Lok

Want to use this article? Click here for options!

Not you? Click here.

Home

Companies

Email this Article

Print View

Understanding Boiler Efficiencies

by Jim Albright
January 31, 2006

Subscribe
Updates
Ad Index
Calendar of
Events
Columns
Features

The efficiency of a boiler should

be an important part of a
purchase evaluation because the
annual cost of fuel can easily be
two to three times the installed
cost of the equipment.
Therefore, a difference in
efficiency and the resulting
difference in fuel cost can easily
offset a difference in installed
cost.

Sign Up

Having a good
understanding of the key
terms to evaluate when
selecting a boiler can help
you make apples-to-apples
evaluations.

Industry News
Products
Product Info

Click the button

below to sign up for
the Process Heating
eNews.

While it is important to consider efficiency in an equipment

purchase, it is equally important to understand efficiency to
the point that the purchaser can be assured that values are

Click here to view

the Process
Heating Energy
Efficiency Guide

being compared on an apples-to-apples basis. The subject of

Resources
Archives
E-Products Guide

efficiency for a boiler is rather complex when all of the

elements that affect efficiency are considered and a complete
thermodynamic analysis is performed. Fortunately, it is not
necessary to understand the process in detail, but a basic
understanding of the terms can help ensure a good apples-to-

Books

apples efficiency evaluation.

Buyers Guide
Corporate Profiles
Equipment
Overview
Market Research

Efficiency Terms
Several terms are used to qualify efficiency when used in the
context of a boiler. These include simply efficiency, boiler
efficiency, thermal efficiency, combustion efficiency and fuel-

Click here to view

the Process
Heating
ElectroTechnologi
es Digital Edition

to-steam efficiency. The terms efficiency and boiler

How To Guide
List Rental
PH Info
About Us

efficiency by themselves are, essentially, meaningless since

they must be qualified in order to understand their
significance.
In general, the term thermal efficiency refers to the
efficiency of a thermal process. This is as opposed to
mechanical efficiency -- the efficiency of a mechanical

http://www.process-heating.com/CDA/Archives/2781d1f1cc129010VgnVCM100000f932...

08/08/2007 08:50:01 AM

Understanding Boiler Efficiencies - Archives - Process Heating

Contact Us

process. When used in conjunction with boilers, thermal

efficiency sometimes refers to the efficiency of the heat

Media Kit
Reprints
Special
Collections
Drying Files

exchanger. In any event, this term is not significant for

Page 2

Click here to view

the Process
Heating How To
Guide

purposes of comparing one boiler or steam generator to

another. While the thermal efficiency of the heat exchanger is
an important factor, its importance lies in its contribution to
the fuel-to-steam efficiency.
While the terms efficiency and thermal efficiency are not
meaningful for comparing one boiler to another, the terms

Energy Notes
Heating
Highlights

combustion efficiency and fuel-to-steam efficiency are. Of

these, fuel-to-steam efficiency is the most significant, but it is
difficult to measure or calculate in real-world situations.
Therefore, combustion efficiency, which can be easily

HelpLine Q and A
Safety Zone
Related
Publications

computed using a combustion gas analyzer, is, frequently,

Click here to view

the Process
Heating Problem
Solver
Supplement

used for performance comparison purposes.

Combustion efficiency equals the total heat released in
combustion, minus the heat lost in the stack gases, divided by
the total heat released. For example, if 1,000 BTU/hr are

Process Cooling &

Equipment

released in combustion and 180 BTU/hr are lost in the stack,

then the combustion efficiency is 82 percent: (1,000 180)/
1,000 = 0.82 or 82 percent.
Fuel-to-steam efficiency is the most important because it is a
measure of the energy that is converted to steam and that is,
after all, the reason a user installs a steam boiler -- to produce
steam. Fuel-to-steam efficiency is equal to combustion
efficiency less the percent of heat losses through radiation and
convection. To continue the example above, suppose 20 BTU/
hr are lost to convection and radiation. Then the convection
and radiation losses are 2 percent: 20/1,000 = 0.02, or 2
percent. Because we know that in this example, combustion
efficiency is 82 percent, we can calculate the fuel-to-steam
efficiency by subtracting the heat losses due to convection and
radiation from the combustion efficiency. Numerically, it is 82
percent - 2 percent, which equals 80 percent fuel-to-steam
efficiency.
A word of caution: when comparing efficiencies, it is important
to know if the efficiency is based on the high heat value (HHV)
or low heat value (LHV) of the fuel. Both are essentially
correct, but comparing an efficiency based on HHV to one
based on LHV would not be correct. In the United States,
boiler efficiencies are typically based on the HHV. In Europe,
they are typically based on the LHV and result in a higher
value than when based on HHV. The general relationship is:
Efficiency based on LHV = Efficiency based on HHV multiplied
by 1.11 for natural gas and multiplied by 1.06 for diesel fuel
oil.

Operating Efficiency

http://www.process-heating.com/CDA/Archives/2781d1f1cc129010VgnVCM100000f932...

08/08/2007 08:50:01 AM

Understanding Boiler Efficiencies - Archives - Process Heating

Page 3

Each of the terms discussed above refers to the efficiency of a

boiler when operating at a fixed condition such as at 100
percent load, with specified air and feedwater temperatures,
etc. These efficiencies are, unquestionably, important, but
there are operational factors that affect the annual fuel bill and
can have an affect that may be greater than the difference of a
point or two in the efficiency of the equipment when, for
instance, operating at 100 percent. Operational factors include
boiler design, time required to startup, steam quality and level
of blowdown required.

Steaming Rate
The steaming rate, or the rate at which a boiler produces
steam, normally is expressed in terms of pounds per hour or
kilograms per hour. It is frequently misunderstood, and such a
misunderstanding can lead to the purchase of the wrong size
boiler. It is, therefore, essential that the steaming rate be
qualified when selecting a boiler size. The three common
steaming rate terms are:
From and at 212F (100C) Steaming Rate.
Gross Steaming Rate.
Net Steaming Rate.
From and at 212F is the steaming rate for a boiler producing
steam, at the outlet flange, at 212F, and 0 psig, with
feedwater at the inlet flange at 212F and 0 psig. This is the
most common steaming rate term and is used most often
when steaming rate information is provided. And, by definition,
one boiler horsepower (BHP) is equivalent to 34.5 lb of steam
per hour, from and at 212F.
Gross Steaming Rate is the rate at which a boiler produces
steam, at the outlet flange, based on application specific
feedwater conditions at the inlet flange and application specific
steam conditions. The gross steaming rate typically differs
from the From and at 212F steaming rate because both the
feedwater inlet and the steam conditions are different than
212F and 0 psig. A typical application may, for instance, have
feedwater at 190F (88C) and produce saturated steam at
100 psig (338F). Because the inlet temperature is less than
212F and the outlet temperature is greater than 212F, the
amount of heat needed to produce a pound of steam, at these
conditions, is greater than the amount needed to produce a
pound of steam with inlet and outlet temperatures of 212F.
The gross steaming rate is, therefore, frequently less than the
From and at 212F steaming rate. It may, however, actually be
greater if the feedwater receiver is a pressurized deaerator
that heats the feedwater to a temperature above 212F.
Net Steaming Rate is the steaming rate at which a boiler
produces steam to your plant or process and, thus, is the most

http://www.process-heating.com/CDA/Archives/2781d1f1cc129010VgnVCM100000f932...

08/08/2007 08:50:01 AM

Understanding Boiler Efficiencies - Archives - Process Heating

Page 4

important steaming rate to consider. Net steaming rate differs

from gross steaming rate in that it takes into account the
amount of steam needed to heat the feedwater in the
feedwater receiver (deaerator or hotwell): Specifically, the net
steaming rate equals the gross steaming rate minus the
steaming rate to the feedwater receiver. Except for some very
unusual applications, the net steaming rate is less than the
gross steaming rate or the From and at 212F steaming rate.
Take, for example, a 100 BHP boiler operating with 100
percent makeup water at 60F (16C) and producing steam at
125 psig. In this case, the From and at 212F (100C)
Steaming rate is 3,450 lb/hr, but the net steaming rate is only
2,874 lb/hr -- 17 percent less than the From and at 212F
steaming rate.
The effect of feedwater heating is applicable in all applications
and thus should always be considered. There is another factor
that has an effect and can be significant in some applications:
blowdown, which is required for the boiler to operate
effectively. In this case, blowdown refers to the amount of
water that must be removed from the boiler system, on a
regular basis, in order to control the level of total dissolved
solids (TDS) in the boiler. Water that is removed to control
TDS has been heated, and the amount of energy needed to
heat this water reduces the amount of energy that is available
to produce steam.
In summary, users should be certain to qualify steaming rates
when using them to define the size of a boiler. Boiler
horsepower is a specific term and no further information is
needed to select the size of a boiler. However, if a steaming
rate is used to specify boiler size, then which steaming rate is
being used must be qualified.PH
Want to learn more? Visit www.process-heating.com and
search for Boilers using our Google-powered Linx search
engine.

Jim Albright
sales@claytonindustries.com
Jim Albright is national sales manager for Clayton Industries,
City of Industry, Calif., a manufacturer of industrial process
boilers and steam generators. For more information, call (800)
423-4585; e-mail sales@claytonindustries.com or visit
www.claytonindustries.com.
Links
Clayton Industries >>

Did you enjoy this article? Click here to subscribe to the

magazine.

http://www.process-heating.com/CDA/Archives/2781d1f1cc129010VgnVCM100000f932...

08/08/2007 08:50:01 AM

Understanding Boiler Efficiencies - Archives - Process Heating

Page 5

Advertisement:

2007 BNP Media. All rights reserved. | Privacy Policy

http://www.process-heating.com/CDA/Archives/2781d1f1cc129010VgnVCM100000f932...

08/08/2007 08:50:01 AM