Alvin Aguilar
Rookie
- Aug 28, 2014
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Pour yourself a tall glass of cold water. Place it in front of you and read on.
The water you have just poured for yourself is much like the feedwater you may be sending directly into your boiler.
It contains among other things, dissolved gases such as oxygen and carbon dioxide that can be particularly destructive to feed lines, condensers and to your boiler.
The oxygen in this raw feedwater is released within the boiler as a result of heat and rises in the form of bubbles. These bubbles attach themselves to the boiler tubes, water legs and the sides of the boiler drum shell at the water line.
The oxygen along with the carbon dioxide attacks the iron and set up chemical musical chairs in which the steel in your system will always lose. This destructive game will continue until either all the oxygen is entirely removed from the water or the steel or iron is dissolved.
A deaerator will prevent the game from ever starting. This piece of equipment removes corrosive gases from boiler feedwater and preheats the water prior to entrance into the boiler.
A deaerator should be considered if any of the following situations occur:
- Your boiler plant operates at 75 psig or greater.
- Your boiler plant has limited standby capacity.
- Production depends on your continuous boiler operation.
- Your boiler plant uses 25% or more cold water makeup.
Now take a good look at that glass of water you poured earlier. Those little bubbles that have formed on the inside of the glass are just what we have been describing. Imagine the inside of your boiler system with high temperatures and high pressures. If you don't have a deaerator, maybe it is time to consider one.
COMMON WATER IMPURITIES
Impurity Source Effect
Algae organic growth fouling
Calcium mineral deposits scale
Carbon dioxide dissolved gases corrosion
Chloride mineral deposits corrosion
Free acids Indus. Wastes corrosion
Hardness mineral deposits scale
Magnesium mineral deposits scale
Oxygen dissolved gases corrosion
Silica mineral deposits scale
Suspended solids undissolved matter fouling/scale
The water you have just poured for yourself is much like the feedwater you may be sending directly into your boiler.
It contains among other things, dissolved gases such as oxygen and carbon dioxide that can be particularly destructive to feed lines, condensers and to your boiler.
The oxygen in this raw feedwater is released within the boiler as a result of heat and rises in the form of bubbles. These bubbles attach themselves to the boiler tubes, water legs and the sides of the boiler drum shell at the water line.
The oxygen along with the carbon dioxide attacks the iron and set up chemical musical chairs in which the steel in your system will always lose. This destructive game will continue until either all the oxygen is entirely removed from the water or the steel or iron is dissolved.
A deaerator will prevent the game from ever starting. This piece of equipment removes corrosive gases from boiler feedwater and preheats the water prior to entrance into the boiler.
A deaerator should be considered if any of the following situations occur:
- Your boiler plant operates at 75 psig or greater.
- Your boiler plant has limited standby capacity.
- Production depends on your continuous boiler operation.
- Your boiler plant uses 25% or more cold water makeup.
Now take a good look at that glass of water you poured earlier. Those little bubbles that have formed on the inside of the glass are just what we have been describing. Imagine the inside of your boiler system with high temperatures and high pressures. If you don't have a deaerator, maybe it is time to consider one.
COMMON WATER IMPURITIES
Impurity Source Effect
Algae organic growth fouling
Calcium mineral deposits scale
Carbon dioxide dissolved gases corrosion
Chloride mineral deposits corrosion
Free acids Indus. Wastes corrosion
Hardness mineral deposits scale
Magnesium mineral deposits scale
Oxygen dissolved gases corrosion
Silica mineral deposits scale
Suspended solids undissolved matter fouling/scale
