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Functionality of Marine Boilers

If a ship, for instance, is steam powered, two or more boilers will be provided to produce high temperature, high pressure steam. On the other hand, if a ship is powered by a diesel engine as the main propulsion system, then one or two small boilers are used for running various ship’s machinery and services. It is essential to keep boilers running to their full potential to make all the difference to a maritime operation, for a number of different reasons.

Always remember, the smoother the boiler’s operation, the more effective it will be in its performance.

How Boilers Work?

The main job of a boiler is to produce high pressure steam. The feed water supplied to the boiler drum utilizes the heat of the energy released by burning the fuel. This energy of the burning fuel is stored in the form of steam with high temperature and pressure. Inside the boiler, the fuel is burnt in a combustion chamber. Air is supplied to this combustion chamber through a separate arrangement to attain high efficiency and complete combustion. Through a large surface area, the heat generated in this combustion chamber is transferred to the water from the boiler drum, which enables the highest rate of energy transfer.

What Process Does Boilers Generate?

Steam is generated in the boilers. The process of steam generation starts when the feed water enters the steam drum through both internal tubes and the tubes that surround the furnace. The system of tubes that surround the furnace are known as Waterwall or Floor Tubes. When passed through these tubes, the feed water gets heated. In addition, there are large-bore downcomer tubes that passes outside of the furnace and are used to circulate water between the drums, to which the tubes are attached from outside of the furnace.

Saturated or Wet steam is produced in the steam drum. As this generated steam contains high amounts of moisture, it cannot be used directly. With the help of a superheater that is located within the boiler, the steam is first dried and heated to make it usable. The superheated steam can be supplied to other systems once all the moisture content is removed from the steam. To monitor and control the temperature of the superheated steam is extremely important, otherwise it can cause damage to the systems to which it is supplied. That’s why an implement known as an ‘attemperator’ is used.

What Does an Attemperator Do?

The attemperator is a kind of cooler which is used to cool down the superheated steam to the right temperature. All the steam used in various systems is, thus, taken out from the main steam drum of the boiler. The energy from the fuel burning are used for various other purposes, the two main reasons are:

For superheating the steam from the boiler drum
For heating feedwater to produce steam
The feed water that enters the boiler is pre-heated with the help of an economizer to increase the efficiency of the boiler, through which the feed water passes before entering the boiler. All the boilers are fitted with various safety fittings and control systems to monitor and control various aspects such as fuel oil flow rate, flow of combustion air, and feed water supply. All these systems should work in coordination to supply the amount of steam required by various systems. The boiler is also provided with various mountings to ensure safe operation of the boiler. To know more about marine boilers and their utilities, get in touch with our professionals at Kainon Boilers, as we are one of the largest marine boiler manufacturers from across the globe.

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