Cross Learning for

Steam Systems
Forbes Marshall

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For more than 70 years now, Forbes Marshall has been working on
Steam Usage in process plants

Our approach has been to study existing setup and come up with
solutions that are right and relevant for productivity and economy,
given plant specific constraints

This has resulted in us surveying and auditing more than 6000 plants

The knowledge from Benchmarking energy consumption and its trends

as well as hands on studies and improvement projects lead to
development of newer products and services

Today, we talk about our experience in these process plants and Paper
Mills

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 Accounts for 70%
Consumption on
Machine

Steam That’s about

250 Tons of
Extra Paper!!

20% Reduction on a 100

TPD Machine means INR
1,00,00,000 Savings in an
Year

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 A Study Conducted…

Specific Fuel Consumption

700
637 650 650
613
560 561
516 520
525 490
470
451 451
435 435 436 441 443 450 449
399 400 400 410 413
380 395
375
kilogram

350 323 336 351

281 281

175

0
A C E G I K M O Q S U W Y AA AC Minimum Maximum
Mill

Note: Though different mills use different fuels, ranging from firewood to Indian coal to imported coal, for the purpose of comparison, all mills have been converted to an equivalent of Indian coal with a gross
calorific value of 4500 kcal/kg

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 The Steam Loop

Distribution
1 to 5 % Losses

• Energy utilised in the

Steam process is only between
Energy from fuel
Utilisation 45 to 61%
Generation 45 to 61%
80 to 100% 18 to 30% Used
• Losses, or opportunities,
losses exist in all segments of
the loop

Recovery or Drain
0 to 20 %

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 What are others doing?

Litre of Furnace Oil Per KL

of Brew
75
Breweries have seen fuel
consumption go down by 40% over a
decade 60
58
45
The improvements were a result of
44
rectification of trapping system,
improvement and sustenance of 30 35
boiler efficiency, reduction in 28
leakages and heat recovery from 15
wort vapours
0
2003 2013

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 What are others doing?

Kg Lignite per meter cloth

processed
0.45
Textile units have seen fuel
0.36 consumption go down by 15 to 40%
0 over a decade
0.27 0
0 The improvements were a result of
0.18 rectification of trapping system,
0 improvement and sustenance of
0.09 condensate recovery, reduction in
leakages and hot water
0 management
2003 2013

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 What are others doing?

Litre of Furnace Oil Per ton

of Finished Product
275
Tyre plants have seen fuel
consumption go down by 18 to 32%
over a decade 220
210
The improvements were a result of 165 184
162
rectification of trapping system,
improvement and sustenance of 110
110
boiler efficiency, reduction in
leakages and hot water system 55
management
0
2003 2013

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Opportunities in Steam Generation

90% 8% Perception and Reality

86%
Boiler Efficiency Ideal, Indirect & Direct Efficiency (Avg)
83%
4% 8%
78% 78%
Ideal
74% Indirect
75%
5% Direct
70%

68%
65%

60%
Oil Solid
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Opportunities in Utilisation - Process Traps

Industry Remarks

Performing OK Not Performing Correctly

Trap Selection & design of
SEP
100% CRS

30%
39% Trap Selection + group
75% 50% Textile
55% trapping issues
60% 50%
70%
50% System design; Operating
Paper
practices.
70%
60%
25% 50% 45%
38% 40% Brewery Bottle washer stalling of traps
25%
0% Selection of traps; Multiple
Solvent Textile Paper* Brewery* Pharma Chemical Refineries Pharma
Utility

Chemical Balance not known

Refineries 27% failed + no trap locations

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Opportunities in Recovery - Condensate Recovery

Industry Remarks

SEP Improper design of system

Actually Recovered Recoverable Condensate

Textile Plant Layout, CRS+FS design
113%

90% Flash recovery w/o affecting

Paper
trap performance
68%

45%
Bottle washer condensate
Brewery
23% recovery

0%
Solvent Paper Beverage Pharma & Beverage Sustaining CRF
Chemical

Flash Steam Loss highest.

Tyre
Water - mass & energy balance

Contamination of condensate
Pharma & Chem
due to Multiple Utility cycles
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Example of improvement in a Refinery - Distribution
Network

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How the Improvements came about..

• Process modification
• Custom solutions to the plant

• Modifying systems for better efficiency

• Application of concepts prevalent in the industry,
but not practiced in the plant
• 5 to 8% improvement

• Rectifying existing stuff

• Involved selection of right components
• Involved rectification of installation
• Does not need new knowledge, only
application
• 10 to 15% improvement

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 Potential Area in Paper Mill

And Also
Potential to
Improve Drying
Rate and
Production
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Steam System In a Waste Paper Mill

How much Steam is

needed?

How much fuel should

be consumed?

Whats the best

possible recovery?

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 Steam Loads - Good Mill
A 100 TPD mill will have fuel bill in the vicinity of 5 Cr!!

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Comparing the two examples

Parameter Average Mill Good Mill

Steam Consumption on the 168 TPD 138 TPD

Machine
Steam Consumption in the Starch 12 TPD 10 TPD
Cooker
Condensate Recovery 133 TPD @ 70 to 80 deg C 133 TPD @ 100 deg C

Flash Recovery 0 TPD 5 TPD

Feed Water Temperature 73 deg C 100 deg C

Steam to be Generated from the 192 TPD 153 TPD

boiler
Make up water requirement 60 TPD, 31% 15 TPD, 10%

Blowdown in Boiler 2 TPD 1 TPD

Distribution Losses 11 TPD 4 TPD

Fuel Consumption 36 TPD 25 TPD

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Opportunities for Optimisation

• Generation • Steam leakages from rotary joints

• Boiler Efficiency • Reducing differential between steam
and dryer surface temperature
• Blow down optimisation
• Effective trapping or blow through
• Feed water tank - Level, deaeration
system
• Distribution
• Pressure control for groups
• Main line trapping
• Temperature control for starch
• Location and operation of the main cookers
pressure reducing station
• Recovery
• Steam metering
• Recovering condensate at high
• Valve Leakages on the distribution temperature
header
• Final flash steam recovery
• Utilisation
• Others
• Steam leakages from dryer isolation
• Stock Flow Metering
valves

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The Encon Triangle for a Paper Mill

QCS
Hoods – 5%

Monitoring
Sustenance - 3%
Moisture Control – 4%
Pulp Mill Applications
Boiler Efficiency – 6%

Condensate Recovery – 5%,

Flash Recovery– 3%
Steam Conditioning, Isolation Valves – 2%
Pressure Control, Condensate Evacuation, Traps / Blow-Through – 10 %

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 Inclusive Approach

•System Design
•Operating Practices

•System Design •Desire from Management

•Component Selection •Maintenance Practices
•Maintenance Practices

•Monitoring of parameters •Continuous Improvement

•Top driven •Understanding / Training

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 Happy to Assist

Plant Surveys & Audits

Unique approach for each plant focuses
on improving specific energy
consumption benchmarks, delivering
generic savings or carrying out
troubleshooting of the steam system to
address utility related production
bottlenecks.

Utility Design
Our approach - designing reliable, safe,
energy efficient and easy to operate and
maintain utility systems for process
industries. Plants designed by us have
been set up with the most optimized
Capex and lowest Opex.

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www.forbesmarshall.com
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