Boiler Energy efficiency tip of the day (Excess O2)

1. All combustion requires the correct measure of oxygen; too much or too little can cause
undesirable effects. However* the error is almost always intentionally on the high-side (too much
oxygen) because the main effect on the high side is low efficiency.
2. Too little air results in carbon monoxide formation* sooting and even explosion if accumulated soot
and other non-combusted suddenly get enough oxygen to rapidly burn.
3. When boiler burners are manually tuned on a periodic basis* they are typically adjusted to about
3% excess oxygen which is about 15% excess air. This is because there are many ambient and
atmospheric conditions that can affect oxygen/air supply. For example* colder air is denser and
contains more oxygen than warm air; wind speed affects every chimney/flue/stack differently; and
barometric pressure further affects draft.
4. Therefore* an excess oxygen/air setting at the time of tuning assumes there will still be enough
oxygen available for complete combustion when conditions worsen.
5. From an efficiency standpoint* the excess O2 means there is more air in the combustion stream
than there needs to be. That air also contains moisture* and it all is heated and then lost up the
stack.
6. The amount of excess O2 is about directly proportional to the efficiency lost; that is* 3% excess
O2 means 3% efficiency drop.
7. Although it may be possible to monitor and adjust the burner on a daily basis* it is not practical
and efficient way to control.
8. Automatic O2 systems continuously monitor the flue gases and adjust the burner air supply. They
are generically called O2 Trim Systems.

Boiler thermal insulation energy efficiency tip of the day

1. Insulation increases the amount of energy available for end uses by decreasing the amount of heat
lost from the distribution system.
2. Insulation removed during maintenance is often not replaced* and older insulation deteriorates
with time.
3. To improve the energy efficiency of the system* regular insulation surveys assist in identifying
areas with insufficient insulation.
4. Use thermal camera to conduct the survey for the boiler and the steam network.
5. You can buy the camera or hire a consultant to conduct the service for you every one year.
6. You can consider insulation upgrade for old system and such investment will always payback in
about one year.
7. Please share this with others to share energy efficiency knowledge and contact me for any support
in this regard.

How to Minimize De-aerator vent losses? (energy efficiency tip of the day

Tip summary
A deaerator works to remove dissolved oxygen from boiler feed water and must vent this oxygen*
and any other non-condensable gases that were removed* into the atmosphere.
A very small percentage of steam (5 to 14%) will also be venting when the gases are vented. The
amount of steam vented should be minimized through proper operation and controls.
If the deaerator is operated at very high pressures* this may cause excessive venting of steam to
the atmosphere. Instead* the deaerator tank should be operated to meet water chemistry
requirements for oxygen (range of 7 ppm dissolved oxygen for most of the cases) and carbon dioxide
rather than simply using pressure and temperature as a guide.
Most of the modern deaerators using nozzle spry type have less steam venting compared to try type
especially when the try type deaerators are overloaded (working more than the design capacity)* it
will suffer from excessive steam venting.
Proposed actions
Adjust deaerator steam consumption and pressure with your water chemistry requirements.
Install online O2 analyzer for the deaerator outlet stream or conduct a regular sampling program.
For the old overloaded deaerators consider replacing/retrofitting your deaerator with modern
technology.

Economics
System tuning will have low cost.
System retrofit will have low to medium cost but quick ROI.
Savings
Estimated energy savings range: 0.5-1% of boiler energy use.
Decrease equivalent amount of boiler load and decrease CO2 emissions accordingly to save the
environment.

Conclusion
Optimize deaerator vent rate minimizes avoidable loss of steam. The opportunity is easy to
implement with low/no cost required.
Please share this tip with others to share knowledge and increase energy efficiency awareness.
Please contact me for any advice or support about this issue or other energy management issues.

How to optimize Boiler Load management and rightsizing? (Energy Efficiency Tip of the
Day)

Tip summary
o An oversized boiler will turn on and off more often than a boiler that has been properly matched to
the demand* which may result in short-cycling losses.
o If the boiler is instead left on standby* short-cycling losses will be avoided but energy will be
wasted in keeping the boiler on standby.
o The main reason for energy losses at standby mode for the boiler is the lost amount of heat
required to heat the boiler casing at this mode.
o Rather than sizing a boiler to meet the highest possible load* fuel savings can be achieved by
adding a smaller boiler sized to meet the plants average loads* or by using multiple small boilers.
o Multiple small boilers offer reliability and flexibility to operators to follow load swings without over-
firing and short cycling.
o Load management also helps to reduce load variation. As this measure is normally an end-of-life
option there should be no incremental costs to right size a boiler but a benefit exists by purchasing a
smaller boiler.

Proposed actions
o Evaluate your current boiler load management strategy.
o For multi boilers systems* try to adjust steam demand to keep and boilers loads to keep the
selected boiler running with acceptable load for long time (without steam venting).
o The load management could be done manually by changing the current operating procedures or
automatically by modifying boilers load control.
o Consider/evaluate installing a small boiler to cover small load periods instead of operating large
boiler at low load.

Economics
o System tuning will have low cost.
o New small boiler addition will have medium cost but quick ROI.

Savings
o Estimated energy savings range: 10-50% of boiler energy use.
o Decrease equivalent amount of boiler load and decrease CO2 emissions accordingly to save the
environment.

Conclusion
o Boilers Load Management Assessment could save up to 50% of boiler energy use.
o The load management is easy to implement with low cost for proper control modifications.
o Please share this tip with others to share knowledge and increase energy efficiency awareness.
o Please contact me for any advice or support about this issue or other energy management issues.