In this article, I will share the factors to consider when choosing a fuel for a boiler.
What you need to know is that the efficiency of the boiler mainly depends on how effective the furnace will be.
There are so many things to talk about when I put a furnace used in a boiler in play, but for now, let us focus on the fuel that is fed in there.
For the steam to be generated sufficiently with the right conditions, enough heat should be produced by the furnace.
That won’t happen unless the fuel used in the boiler is effective.
And that is why it’s important to learn some of the things one should consider before choosing fuel to use in a boiler.
Without wasting time, let me share what you should know when it comes to choosing a fuel to be used in a boiler.
These are the factors to consider when choosing a fuel for a boiler;
1. The plant efficiency
This is the first thing one should consider when selecting fuel for a boiler.
Plant efficiency is the first measure that should be taken before choosing the type of fuel to be used in a boiler.
When we talk about plant efficiency, it’s mainly all about whether the plant or industry can deliver what is expected from it.
If it’s a power generation plant, can it deliver the required rates to the consumers?
When it comes to a boiler that is used in power generation in a steam power plant, it has to have a higher efficiency to increase the output.
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As I told you earlier that a large part that contributes to the higher efficiency of the boiler it’s from the furnace.
The thermal efficiency of the boiler should be higher to increase the overall plant efficiency.
The heat utilized by the boiler to generate steam should be of the required energy value.
This all goes to the type of fuel used in the boiler. If the fuel selected has a higher calorific value, the plant efficiency is going to be increased and the vice versa is true.
So, when selecting a fuel to be used in the boiler, one has to ensure that it can deliver the expected results when it comes to the efficiency of the plant.
If the fuel chosen can’t deliver the plant efficiency, that is not fit for use in that boiler.
To cut a long story short, the fuel chosen for the boiler should be of a high calorific value to increase the plant’s efficiency.
2. The cost of fuel
One of the biggest costs in a power plant when it comes to electrical energy generation after erection is the cost of fuel.
As long as the power plant is operational, fuel is going to be used every single day.
For the operational cost of the power plant to be significantly lower, reducing the amount of money spent on fuel is going to do the trick.
And that is why when choosing the type of fuel to use in a boiler, one should consider the allocated budget for the fuel.
The fuel chosen to be used in a boiler should not be too expensive if the cost of electrical energy production is to be reduced.
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Every measure should be put into place to ensure that the boiler is going to utilize less fuel at a lower cost to increase the profits of the power plant.
The output should always be higher than the input if profits are to be incurred in any power plant or industry.
The fuel chosen to be used in a boiler should cost less but be effective.
Also, one should ensure that the fuel chosen for the boiler can deliver the required expectations when it comes to its efficiency.
3. The cost of the fuel-burning equipment
When choosing a fuel for a boiler don’t only consider the cost of the fuel only but also the cost of the equipment that is going to be used to burn the fuel.
If you are choosing a fuel to be used in the boiler, you should ask yourself if they can afford to buy the equipment that is going to be used by such kind of fuel.
It will be worthless to choose the best fuel with all the necessary qualities, yet the power plant can’t even afford to buy the fuel-burning equipment.
This will be the case of buying a vehicle and not being able to afford its gas.
So, before one selects any type of fuel to be used in a boiler, one should first consider if the cost of the fuel-burning equipment is reasonable.
If the type of fuel chosen requires special fuel-burning equipment that the budget of the power plant or industry can’t afford then another option should be considered.
What one should understand is that liquid, solid or gas fuel all require different types of fuel-burning equipment.
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They all have different costs; it’s important for one to do research on the cost of these pieces of fuel-burning equipment that are going to be used before the decision is made.
As usual, the cost of the fuel-burning equipment should be lower but able to meet the demands of the power plant or industry.
4. The operation and maintenance of the fuel-burning equipment
After the cost of the fuel-burning equipment has been considered, it’s time to check whether the operational and maintenance cost of these pieces of equipment is going to be affordable.
The cost of the fuel-burning equipment might be reasonable but their operational and maintenance costs may be extremely higher.
When the operational and maintenance cost of these pieces of equipment are higher it’s going to be hard for the power plant to keep them functional.
Lots of money is going to be invested in keeping these pieces of equipment working thus increasing the operational cost of the power plant.
What you need to know is that as long as the power plant is working, the fuel-burning equipment is going to be used.
As it’s being used daily, it has to be maintained for it to remain effective. One will have no choice but to allocate enough budget for the maintenance.
If the maintenance cost is going to be higher it will reach a point where the power plant won’t be able to afford that since there are other important supplies that are needed to keep the power plant operational.
The pieces of fuel-burning equipment chosen should be easier to operate so that any unskilled personnel can operate them, this will prevent the power plant from hiring experts who are going to need more money.
These are all some of the factors that should be considered when choosing the type of fuel to be used in a boiler.
It all starts from the fuel, if the choice is wrong it’s going to affect all the things I have talked about in this article.
5. The cost of fuel preparation and its storage
The fuel chosen to be used in the boiler will have to be prepared before it’s fed into the furnace.
There is an entire process that the fuel should go through before it even reaches the furnace.
Depending on the type of fuel-burning equipment used, the preparation is going to cost more or less.
For instance, if it’s coal that is chosen to be used in a boiler, it has to be cleaned and that is going to be another budget.
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If the coal is to be used in a pulverized fuel burner, it has to be pulverized by pulverizing mills and this will also add to the cost of preparation.
After the fuel is prepared to be used in the boiler, some will have to be stored since it can’t all be used at once.
The storage of this fuel will be needed which also going to add to the cost.
Some of these costs can’t be avoided if a certain type of fuel is chosen since the fuel must be prepared and handled before it’s used in the boiler.
But it’s important to think of measures that are going to reduce the preparation and storage cost when choosing the type of fuel to be used in the boiler.
6. The fuel transportation cost
The fuel transportation cost is another important thing that should be considered before selecting any type of fuel to be used in the boiler.
The cost of fuel transportation should be considerably low to reduce the operational cost of the power plant.
This can be made easier by ensuring that the transportation of the fuel to the power plant is going to be significantly reduced.
Fewer trips should be taken when it comes to fetching the fuel from its source.
This can be made easier by the type of fuel that is going to be used in the power plant.
If the fuel chosen to be used in the boiler is going to be of a higher calorific value, the trips will be fewer.
But if the energy value of the fuel is going to be lower, more fuel will be needed to meet the demand of the power plant.
That means lots of trips and this will end up increasing the transportation cost of the fuel.
I guess you have understood what I am trying to share with you in this article.
Lastly…
When it comes to the effectiveness of a boiler, it’s mainly contributed by the power coming from the furnace.
The efficiency of any boiler depends on the calorific value of the fuel used (lower or higher), the steam pressure (which is also highly contributed by the heat energy from the furnace) and the effectiveness of the burning fuel selected.
You can notice that the operating efficiency of the boiler will require the furnace to deliver sufficient heat energy for it to be higher.
With this piece of information, I have shared in this article, you can now come up with measures to increase the efficiency of your boiler without a cost.
You might like this: How To Increase a Boiler Efficiency On A Budget
Thanks for reading, if you have any points you would like me to add to this article, just leave a comment.
See you in my next piece.
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