MAPÚA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

Muralla St. Intramuros, Manila

School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering

EXPERIMENT NO. 1
MEASUREMENT OF HEATING SURFACE OF A
FIRETUBE BOILER

NAME: Mahmud, Ali R. DATE OF PERFORMANCE: 10 Aug, 2018

STUDENT NO.: 2015151413 DATE OF SUBMISSION: 17 Aug, 2018

COURSE/SECTION: ME144L/A1

GROUP NO.: 1

SEAT NO.: 12

GRADE

____Engr. Teodulo Valle_____

INSTRUCTOR
Heating Surface

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Objectives

Theories and Principles

List of Apparatus

Procedure

Set-up of Apparatus

Final Data Sheet

Sample Computations

Test Data Analysis

Questions and Answers

Conclusion

Recommendation

References

Preliminary Data Sheet

Heating Surface

OBJECTIVES

1. To be able to determine the heating surface area of the MIT Fire Tube Boiler.
2. To understand the importance of heating surface area in boiler performance.

THEORY AND PRINCIPLE

Boiler (Steam Generator) converts liquid into vapor. In

a steam power plant, a boiler consists of a furnace in which fuel is
burned. Boilers were built during 1st century AD by Hero of
Alexandria but were used only as toys. During the 17th century, it’s
potential was taken into consideration for practical work of steam power.
The first boiler with a safety valve was designed by Denis Papin of
France in 1679; boilers were made and used in England by the turn of
the 18th century. Early boilers were made of wrought iron; as the
advantages of high pressure and temperature were realized,
manufacturers turned to steel. Modern boilers are made of alloy steel to Denis Papin
withstand high pressures and extremely high temperatures.

In Great Britain, steam generators were built for British Railways diesel locomotives by
three firms – Spanner, Clayton, and Stone. All types were notoriously unreliable, and failures were
very common.

Nowadays, steam heated or cooled rail cars have been replaced or converted to fully
electric systems. Wisps of steam issuing from cars are now history in the USA, Canada, and much
of the rest of the world.

Most conventional steam boilers are classed as either fire-tube or water-tube types. In the
fire-tube type, the water surrounds the steel tubes through which hot gases from the furnace flow.
The steam generated collects above the water level in a cylindrically shaped drum. A safety
valve is set to allow escape of steam at pressures above normal operating pressure; this device is
necessary on all boilers because continued addition of heat to water in a closed vessel without
means of steam escape results in a rise in pressure and in explosion of the boiler. Fire-tube
boilers have the advantage of being easy to install and operate. They are widely used in small
installations to heat buildings and to provide power for factory processes. Fire-tube boilers are
also used in steam locomotives.
Heating Surface

Fire-tube boiler

In the water-tube boiler, the water is inside tubes with the hot furnace gases circulating
outside the tubes. When the steam turbo-generator was developed early in the 20th century,
modern water-tube boilers were developed in response to the demand for large quantities of
steam at pressures and temperatures far exceeding those possible with fire-tube boilers. The
tubes are outside the steam drum, which has no heating surface and is much smaller than in the
fire-tube boiler. For this reason, the drum of the water-tube boiler is better able to withstand
higher pressures and temperatures. A wide variety of sizes and designs of water-tube boilers are
used in ships and factories.

Water-tube boiler
In the MIT Fire Tube Boiler, each set of tubes that hot combustion flue gas travels through
before making a turn within the boiler, is considered a "pass." A 3-pass firetube boiler design
consists of three sets of horizontal tubes, with the stack outlet located on the rear of the boiler. A
downdraft design keeps the cooler water from influencing the hot surfaces within the boiler.

4
Heating Surface

A boiler with more passes provides more opportunities for hot gasses to transfer heat to the
water in a boiler and operate more efficiently, however, boiler efficiency is highly affected by tube
design, and not simply the number of passes. It is possible for a 3-pass boiler with a tube design
(such as XID boiler tubes) that allows more heat transfer time to deliver the same or higher
efficiency rating than a 4-pass boiler with standard tubes.

Fuel

The source of heat for a boiler is combustion of any of several fuels, such as wood, coal, oil, or
natural gas. Electric steam 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.

Types of Boilers:

1. Power Boiler is a closed vessel in which steam or other vapor (to be used externally to itself)
is generated at a pressure of more than 1.055kg/cm2 gage by the direct application of heat.

2. Portable Boiler is an internally fired boiler which is self-contained and primarily intended for
temporary location and the construction and usage is obviously portable.

3. Locomotive Boiler is a boiler mounted on a self-propelled track locomotive and used to furnish
motivating power travelling on rails. It does not include locomotive cranes, tractors, or other self-
propelled apparatus. Locomotive boilers however if dismantled from locomotive and reinstalled
for stationary use are not included.

4. Miniature Boiler is any boiler which does not exceed any of the following units: 405 mm
inside diameter, 1065 mm overall length of outside to outside of heads at center 1.85 mm of water
heating surface, 7.03 kg/cm2 maximum allowable working pressure.

5. Low Pressure Heating Boiler is a boiler operated at pressure not exceeding 1.055kg/cm2 gage
steam, or water temperature not exceeding 121 degrees Centigrade.

6. Hot Water Supply Boiler is a boiler furnishing hot water to be used externally to itself.

7. Unfired Pressure Vessel is a vessel in which pressure is obtained from an external source or
from an indirect application of heat.

8. Reinstalled Boiler is a boiler removed from its original setting and re-erected at the same
location or erected at location without changing of ownership.

9. Second Hand Boiler is a boiler of which both the location and ownership have been changed
after primary use.

5
Heating Surface

10. Condemned Boiler is a boiler that has been inspected and declared unsafe to operate or
disqualified stamped and marked indicating its rejection by qualified inspection authority.

Boilers and Its Accessories:

1. Safety valve: It is used to relieve pressure and prevent possible explosion of a boiler
2. Water level indicators: They show the operator the level of fluid in the boiler, also known
as a sight glass, water gauge or water column is provided.
3. Bottom blowdown valves: They provide a means for removing solid particulates that
condense and lie on the bottom of a boiler. As the name implies, this valve is usually located
directly on the bottom of the boiler and is occasionally opened to use the pressure in the boiler
to push these particulates out.
4. Continuous blowdown valve: This allows a small quantity of water to escape continuously.
Its purpose is to prevent the water in the boiler becoming saturated with dissolved salts.
Saturation would lead to foaming and cause water droplets to be carried over with the steam
– a condition known as priming. Blowdown is also often used to monitor the chemistry of the
boiler water.
5. Flash Tank: High pressure blowdown enters this vessel where the steam can ‘flash’ safely
and be used in a low-pressure system or be vented to atmosphere while the ambient pressure
blowdown flows to drain.
6. Automatic Blowdown/Continuous Heat Recovery System: This system allows the boiler
to blowdown only when makeup water is flowing to the boiler, thereby transferring the
maximum amount of heat possible from the blowdown to the makeup water. No flash tank is
generally needed as the blowdown discharged is close to the temperature of the makeup water.
7. Hand holes: They are steel plates installed in openings in “header” to allow for inspections
and installation of tubes and inspection of internal surfaces.
8. Steam drum internals: A series of screen, scrubber and cans (cyclone separators).
9. Low-water cutoff: It is a mechanical means (usually a float switch) that is used to turn off
the burner or shut off fuel to the boiler to prevent it from running once the water goes below
a certain point. If a boiler is “dry-fired” (burned without water in it) it can cause rupture or
catastrophic failure.
10. Surface blowdown line: It provides a means for removing foam or other lightweight non-
condensable substances that tend to float on top of the water inside the boiler.
11. Circulating pump: It is designed to circulate water back to the boiler after it has expelled
some of its heat.
12. Feedwater check valve or clack valve: A non-return stop valve in the feedwater line. This
may be fitted to the side of the boiler, just below the water level, or to the top of the boiler.
13. Top feed: A check valve (clack valve) in the feedwater line, mounted on top of the boiler. It
is intended to reduce the nuisance of limescale. It does not prevent limescale formation but
causes the limescale to be precipitated in a powdery form which is easily washed out of the
boiler.

6
Heating Surface

14. De-superheater tubes or bundles: A series of tubes or bundles of tubes in the water drum or
the steam drum designed to cool superheated steam. This is to supply auxiliary equipment
that does not need, or may be damaged by, dry steam.
15. Chemical injection line: A connection to add chemicals for controlling feedwater pH.

The boiler heating surface is the total area in m2 through which the heated water and hot
gases exchange heat. The heating surface area is the area on the water side exposed to heat. Below
are the formulas for determining the heating surface areas:

Surface Area of the 1st Pass

A1 = πDm L1 N1

The number of tube in the first pass is only one so N1 is equal to 1. Hence, the formula will be

A1 = πDm L1

Surface Area of the 2nd Pass

A2 = πD2 L2 N2

Surface Area of the 3rd Pass

A3 = πD3 L3 N3

Surface Area of the Crown Sheet

π
ACS = (DCS 2 − Dm 2 − D2 2 N2 − D3 2 N3 )
2

Total Heating Surface

HS = AF + A2 + A3 + ACS

7
Heating Surface

LIST OF APPARATUS

1. Digital Caliper

2. Steel Tape

3. Specimen

4. Steam Generator

8
Heating Surface

PROCEDURES

1. Open the back cover of the MIT fire tube type boiler.

2. Count the number of tubes for each pass.

3. Using a long wooden rod, mark the length of the tube for each pass by inserting inside
the tube.
4. With the use of steel tapes, measure the length of the tube marked on the wooden rod.
5. Using a caliper, measure the inside and outside diameter of the tube.

6. Calculate the total heating surface area of the boiler.

Compare the experiment value with the true value and determine the percent difference.

9
Heating Surface

SET-UP OF APPARATUS

Measurement of the tube diameter Counting the number of 2nd pass

and 3rd pass tubes

FINAL DATA SHEET

Pass Number of Outside Inside Length Heating Surface

tubes Diameter Diameter
cm cm2

1st 1 620 560 273 50601.63

2nd 38 63.6 57.6 298.5 226639.14

3rd 30 63.6 57.6 304 182222.427

Crown 26027.1954
Sheet

True Value = 503 Experimental Value = 522.58

Percent Difference = 3.82%

10
Heating Surface

SAMPLE COMPUTATIONS

Surface Area of the 1st Pass:

A1 = πDmL1 = π (59 cm) (273 cm) = 50,601.63 cm2

Surface Area of the 2nd Pass:

A2 = πD2L2N2 = π (6.36 cm) (298.5 cm) (38) = 226,639.14 cm2

Surface Area of the 3rd Pass:

A3 = πD3L3N3 = π (6.36 cm) (304 cm) (30) = 182,222.427 cm2

Surface Area of the Crown Sheet:

Acs = (2) (π/4) (Dcs2 - Dm2 - D22N2- D32N3)

= (2) (π/4) ((151 cm)2 – (59 cm)2 – (6.36 cm)2(38)- (6.36 cm)2(30))

= 26,027.1954 cm2

Total Heating Surface:

HS = A1 + A2 + A3 + Acs

= 50,601.63 cm2 + 226,639.14 cm2 + 182,222.427 cm2 + 26,027.1954 cm2

= (485,049.9 cm2) ((1in/2.54 cm)2 (1 ft/12 in))2

= 522.58 ft2 (Experimental Value EV)

True Value (TV) = 503 ft2

Percent Difference:

|𝑇𝑉−𝐸𝑉| |503 𝑓𝑡 2 −522.58 𝑓𝑡 2 |

Percent Difference = 𝑇𝑉+𝐸𝑉 × 100% = 503 𝑓𝑡2 +522.58 𝑓𝑡2
× 100%
2 2

Percent Difference = 3.82%

11
Heating Surface

DISCUSSION OF RESULT

In the MIT three pass fire-tube boiler, in fire-tube boilers, the flue gas passes inside boiler
tubes, and heat is transferred to water on the shell side. An unobjectionable flame was developed
and resulted into complete burnout. The hot combustion products make the first pass in the
boiler, i.e. on the near-wall zone of the furnace, flowing in a circumferential direction of the fire
tube from the heel to the front. The decision whether plane or corrugated fire tubes are to be
used depends on the diameter and the working pressure. However, the first pass of the MIT fire-
tube boiler is a corrugated tube because there is a turbulent flow so that the heat transferred to
water is not fast. Laminar flows happened on the second and the third pass. The calculated value
of the total heating surface is 522.10 ft2 was compared to the actual value of the total heating
surface which is 503 ft2 and obtained a percent difference of 3.72%. The number of tubes as well
as the size of the diameters can affect the value of the total heating surface area. Increasing the
parameters above will increase the total heating surface while decreasing the parameters will
decrease the total heating surface area.

12
Heating Surface

QUESTION AND ANSWERS

1. Why does a higher number of passes for a fire-tube boilers attain higher thermal efficiency?

Flue gases contain huge amount of thermal energy which can be used of transferring heat
to the working fluid in order to generate steam. A higher thermal efficiency is expected to a boiler
that contains higher number of passes because the thermal energy of the flue gases were more
utilized until the flue gases pass to the outermost pass and released in the stack.

2. What are the three major components of a boiler system?

The three major components of a boiler system are:

• Feed water system: regulates the water intake to the boiler to meet the steam demand
• Steam system: collects and controls the steam produced in a boiler
• Fuel system: all equipment used to provide fuel in order to generate thermal energy
3. Given that the first pass has one tube and the length of the tube is 300 cm, determine the heating
surface if the mean diameter is 32 cm.

A = πDmL = π (32 cm) (300 cm) = 30,159.29 cm2

4. Why do we need to determine the mean diameter of the first pass?

The determination of mean diameter of the first pass is necessary since the pass itself has
no fixed diameter since the flow regime in that area is turbulent.

5. Why is it important to determine the heating surface of a fire-tube boiler?

For a fire tube boiler, it is important to determine the heating surface because it is a factor
on designing a steam generating unit so that the heating capacity of the equipment will be
maximized and it will be cost friendly.

6. What will happen to the heating surface area if the length of the tube was decreased?

Since length has a direct relationship with the heating surface area, the heating surface area
will decrease.

13
Heating Surface

CONCLUSION

The researcher was able to determine the heating surface area of the boiler owned by
Mapua University experimentally and the data was compared to the true value which is almost the
same since the researcher obtained a 3.82 percentage difference which is considered low. The
researcher was also able to understand the importance of heating surface area in boiler
performance. A higher amount of thermal energy is required to heat a working fluid that has a
higher heating surface area. In terms of designing the equipment/ the boiler itself, the heating
surface area is important since the cost of materials as well as the desired heating capacity must be
considered. Most reciprocating steam engines of the 19th century used saturated steam, however
modern steam power plants universally use superheated steam which allows higher steam cycle
efficiency.

14
Heating Surface

RECOMMENDATION

Historically, boilers were a source of many serious injuries and property destruction due to
poorly understood engineering principles. Thin and brittle metal sheets can rupture, while poorly
welded or riveted seams could open, leading to a violent eruption of the pressurized steam. When
water is converted to steam it expands in volume over 1000 times and travels down a steam pipes
at over 100 kilometers/hr. Because of this steam is a great way of moving energy and heat around
a site from a central boiler house to where it is needed, but without the right boiler feed water
treatment, a steam-raising plant will suffer from scale formation and corrosion. At best, this
increases energy costs and can lead to poor quality steam, reduced efficiency, shorter plant life and
an operation which is unreliable. At worst, it can lead to catastrophic failure and loss of life.
Collapsed or dislodged boiler tubes could also spray scalding-hot steam and smoke out of the air
intake and firing chute, injuring the firemen who loaded coal into the fire chamber. Extremely
large boilers providing hundreds of horsepower to operate factories could demolish entire
buildings.

A boiler that has a loss of feed water and is permitted to boil dry can be extremely
dangerous. If feed water is then sent into the empty boiler, the small cascade of incoming water
instantly boils on contact with the superheated metal shell and leads to a violent explosion that
cannot be controlled even by safety steam valves. Draining of the boiler could also occur if a leak
occurred in the steam supply lines that was larger than the make-up water supply could replace.
The Hartford Loop was invented in 1919 by the Hartford Steam Boiler and Insurance Company as
a method to help prevent this condition from occurring, and thereby reduce their insurance claims.

15
Heating Surface

REFERENCES

• Heating Surface Area. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.grundfos.com/service-

support/encyclopedia-search/heating-surface.html
• Types of Boilers. (2018). Retrieved from
https://www.forbesmarshall.com/fm_micro/news_room.aspx?Id=boilers&nid=178
• Boilers. (2018). Retrieved from http://www.mechanicalbooster.com/2016/07/what-is-a-
boiler-different-types-of-boiler.html
• Fire-tube boiler. (2018). Retrieved from https://me-mechanicalengineering.com/fire-tube-
boiler/
• Boiler Mountings and Accessories. (2018). Retrieved from
https://www.mecholic.com/2015/10/difference-between-boiler-mountings-and-
accessories.html
• Boiler Operation Engineering: Principles, Practices and Application. (2012) by Mann
Kaiser. Auris Reference Ltd., UK publications

16