Sabp F 004

Best Practice
SABP-F-004 14 November 2010

Sootblowers Operation, Inspection,
and Maintenance Guidelines
Document Responsibility: Heat Transfer Equipment Standards Committee
Saudi Aramco DeskTop Standards

Table of Contents
1 Introduction.................................................... 2
2 References.................................................... 3
3 Definitions...................................................... 4
4 Sootblower Applications................................ 4
5 Main Types of Sootblowers........................... 5
6 Main Components of Sootblowers................. 7
7 Operation Consideration and Guidelines....... 9
8 Startup Guidelines....................................... 12
9 Inspection Guidelines.................................. 13
10 Maintenance Guidelines.............................. 14
11 Dismantling and Re-Assembly Procedure... 16
Previous Issue: New Next Planned Update: TBD

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Primary contact: Awwad, Mossaed Yousef on 966-3-8760206
Copyright©Saudi Aramco 2010. All rights reserved.

Document Responsibility: Heat Transfer Equipment Standards Committee SABP-F-004
Issue Date: 14 November 2010 Sootblowers Operation, Inspection,
Next Planned Update: TBD a nd Ma in tena nc e Gu id e lin es
1 Introduction
1.1 Purpose
The purpose of this best practice is to establish general guidelines for operation,
inspection, and maintenance on sootblowers system. Operation and
maintenance guidelines provided in this document may not cover all the
recommended activities by the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) and
referring to the equipment’s operation, inspection, and maintenance manual is
required. This document also provides the guidelines for reporting the
inspection and maintenance results and consequences corrective actions and
recommendations.
Note: This document has been developed based on the major sootblowers suppliers
(Clyde Bargeman and Diamond) Standards. All figures shown in this document
were extracted from these suppliers manuals since the majority of sootblowers
installed in Saudi Aramco facilities are from these suppliers.
The soot produced during combustion adheres to the furnace tubes and other
internal furnace surfaces. The soot reduces the heat transfer rates and, therefore,
has a large impact on the heat rate, opacity, and power output. Therefore,
sootblowing is necessary to control fouling of the furnaces and auxiliary
equipment at oil burning plants.
Sootblowing is performed by injecting steam, water, or air onto the furnace

tubes to loosen accumulated ash, slag, or soot from the tubes. The soot then
falls in the bottom ash or fly ash systems. Malfunctioning of the sootblowing
system causes major problems in the furnaces.
The information presented in these guidelines is intended to provide Saudi

Aramco plants personnel with an understanding of the sootblower types,
applications, main components, description of operation, factors that should be
considered in using various fuels, maintenance recommendations, and
troubleshooting guidelines.
1.2 Scope
This Best Practice provides guidelines for the operation, inspection, and
maintenance of sootblowers for refinery applications including fired heater,
boilers, and FC waste heat boilers.
1.3 Disclaimer
This Best Practice is being provided for the general guidance and benefit of
Saudi Aramco operating facilities. The use of this Best Practice does not relieve
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the manufacturer from his responsibility or duty to confirm or to verify the

accuracy of any information presented or from his contractual liability to expose
capability to manufacture sootblowers with the required safety, quality control,
accuracy in meeting delivery dates and filed support aspects that conforms to
Mandatory Saudi Aramco Engineering Requirements. Saudi Aramco® is a
registered trademark of the Saudi Arabian Oil Company. Copyright, Saudi
Aramco, 2010.
1.4 Conflicts with Mandatory Standards
In the event of a conflict between this Best Practice and other Mandatory Saudi
Aramco Engineering Requirement, the Mandatory Saudi Aramco Engineering
Requirement shall govern.
2 References
The mandatory engineering requirements of the specific equipment produced by the

plant being evaluated shall be considered per the relevant Saudi Aramco and
international codes and standards. This Best Practice is based on the latest edition of
the references below, unless otherwise noted:
2.1 Saudi Aramco References
Saudi Aramco Materials System Specification

32-SAMSS-029 Manufacture of Fired Heaters
2.2 Industry Codes and Standards
International Organization for Standardization

ISO-9001:2000 Quality Management System Requirements
American Petroleum Institute

API 560 Fired Heaters for General Refinery Service
2.3 Other References
Soot Blowers Manufactures Manuals
Clyde Bargeman and Diamond Manual
Sootblowing Application and Maintenance Guide, EPRI, Palo Alto, CA: 2001.
1004005
BP Refineries Best Practice for Sootblowers
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3 Definitions
Blowing Medium: The fluid discharged through the sootblower nozzle. Either steam
or air can be used; steam is the most widely used.
Blowing Pressure: The fluid pressure downstream of the poppet valve and upstream of
the lance nozzle.
Convection Section: The heat Transfer tubes located downstream of the radiant section
where the heat transfer is primarily by convection.
Feed Tube: a tube that sits inside the blowing lance of a retractable sootblower and
provides the seal as the lance is extended and retracted into the heat transfer device.
Poppet Valve: A mechanical device for admitting and controlling blowing medium in
the sootblower. It should contain separate shutoff and thrusting valve seats.
Progressive Helix Mechanism: Sootblowers travel along a helical pattern as the lance
inserts and rotates. The progressive helix mechanism is a precision geared indexing
mechanism that shifts the nozzle starting position every time to ensure a more complete
cleaning and reduce tube damage due to erosion.
Retractable Sootblowers: A mechanical device for discharging steam or air to clean

heat absorbing surfaces that has a rotating lance. The lance extends into the heat
transfer device and retracts from the flow path after completing the cleaning cycle.
Rotary Sootblower: A mechanical device for discharging steam or air to clean heat
absorbing surfaces that has a fixed lance that include the heat transfer device.
Sequential Controller: A programmable logic controlers that controls the starting and
stopping of each sootblower in a system when the Start sootblowing push button is
activated. The controller only allows operation of one sootblower at a time during the
cleaning sequence.
4 Sootblower Applications
There are four main areas in the furnaces where sootblowing systems are used as
outlined below. For each of these areas, there may be more than one suitable
sootblower system.
4.1 Furnace Interior Surface
Wallblowers are typically used for cleaning the waterwall tubes within the
combustion zone of the furnace. These blowers consist of a short, retractable
lance which protrudes 1-1/2 in. (38.1 mm) from the wall. This lance contains a
nozzle head with single venturi nozzle directing a supersonic high-energy jet of
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blowing media (air or steam) parallel or at a slight angle to the furnace face of
the waterwall tubes. In addition, this lance rotates and as a result typically
generates an effective cleaning radius.
The type of fuel used determines the degree of difficulty of removing

combustion deposits and hence, the number and spacing of sootblowers on the
furnace walls. When wallblowers are not effectively removing the slag deposits,
other types of sootblower systems such as water lances and water cannons are
used.
4.2 Convection Surface
The superheater, reheater, and the economizer sections of the boiler contain the
convection surfaces. In larger boilers, long retractable lances are used as these
can penetrate the cavities between major heat-absorbing sections. Smaller
boilers tend to use rotary, non-retractable blowers where each nozzle cleans a
tube row. The nozzle tips can generate a spray pattern best suited for the
blowing media.
4.3 Air Pre-Heaters
The air preheater blowers usually consist of a retractable lance containing

several nozzles. Older models use a swing arm lance style sootblower. New
dual medium cleaners can use steam, low pressure water (150–300 psig), and
high pressure water (3000 psig) as the cleaning medium.
4.4 Economizer/Back Pass
Long and half retracts, retracts, and rotaries may be used in the economizer/back
pass area.
5 Main Types of Sootblowers

The following are the main types of typically used in the furnace cleaning applications
with a brief description of each type:
5.1 Long Retractable
The blowing element of the long retractable sootblower is the lance tube with
two opposed venturi nozzles arranged at the front end. The lance tube is
helically inserted into the flue gas pass, and then returned to the rest position by
means of the gear-motor driven carriage. The two blowing jets ensure a full
cleaning coverage along the entire blowing distance. The blowing medium is
fed to the lance tube via the poppet valve and the fixed feed tube. The poppet
valve is mechanically opened once the venturi has passed into the furnace and
closed before the venturi reaches the furnace wall while returning to the rest
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position. To improve the cleaning effect and to reduce erosions, the sootblower
is retracted in a different helical path (indexed) each time the blower is operated.
Because the lance tube is fully retracted from the furnace and cooled through the
blowing medium, the long retractable sootblower can be used in areas with
higher flue gas temperature than other sootblower types. The drive mechanism
and support beam extend the distance of the lance travel plus a 3–4 ft outside the
furnace.
5.2 Rotary
Rotary sootblowers clean convection surfaces of furnaces. The rotary

sootblower uses a multinozzled element permanently located within the tube
bank to be cleaned. The element can extend across the entire tube bank or, on
larger boilers where rotary sootblowers are used on both sides of the boiler,
halfway across. The specially-designed nozzles are positioned along the
element so that one nozzle is located in each tube lane. The nozzles may be
located on one or both sides of the element.
The rotary sootblower is mounted on the exterior of the furnace. When the
sootblower is actuated, the combination gear drive rotates the element as the
blowing medium, steam or compressed air at around 100 to 350 psig, is admitted
through a poppet valve. While the element is rotating, this blowing medium
passes through the element and exits the nozzles. The hydrodynamic force
created by the nozzles removes the deposits on the furnace tubes. The blowing
medium and the type of fuel used determine the blowing pressure, the number of
nozzles and nozzle size, and the number of sootblowers. Since the element is
exposed to flue gas all the time, the temperature where these rotaries can be used
is limited to 1800°F or 2200°F with high temperature alloys.
5.3 Wall Blowers
These are a short, retractable sootblowers primarily used for cleaning boiler
furnace walls. This retractable sootblower extends a very short distance from
the furnace wall and rotates and blows 360 degrees, or through a predetermined
arc, using a variety of conventional blowing media including superheated or
saturated steam, or compressed air.
5.4 Water Based Cleaning Equipment or Water Lances
The water lance sootblower is designed for use on furnace wall surfaces where
slag deposits cannot be removed by conventional air or steam blowing wall
blowers.
When the blower is turned on, it accelerates to maximum travel speed during
travel, when it reaches a specified distance, water at high pressure water (150–
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300 psig) is discharged from nozzle jets at the end of the lance tube. These jets
clean the slagged furnace wall surface by multiple impacts.
5.5 Sonic Horns
Sonic horns are air operated and produce low-frequency, high-energy sound
waves. The sound waves that are transmitted by the acoustic horns resonate and
dislodge ash deposits from the surfaces. Sonic horns have been used in the
industrial and utility boilers to remove ash deposits from economizer and air
heaters with some degree of success. Sonic horns are being tested for selective
catalytic reduction (SCR) applications and if proven effective, may be used
more extensively. The advantages of sonic horns are that they have very few
moving parts, namely the diaphragm. Therefore, maintenance requirements for
the sonic horns are minimal and reliability is high.
6 Main Components of Sootblowers
The following are the main components of sootblower types that have mentioned above
with a brief description of each component:
6.1 Sootblower Housing
The housing is a heavy-duty formed steel canopy that provides rigid support and
protection for the blower components. Square rails and angles with bolt-on style
gear racks are attached to both sides of the canopy to provide support to the
blower carriage and maintain good pinion clearance. A removable top cover at
the rest position allows replacement of the gearbox or motor through the top of
the canopy while leaving the spindle housing, lance, feed tube, and poppet valve
in place.
6.2 Blower Carriage
The blower carriage consists of two separate components: the lower spindle
housing and the upper gearbox/motor. Since the excessive heat transfer from
the hot spindle housing to the blower gearbox is avoided, the leakage of
lubricants is minimized. The electric motor is mounted directly to the gearbox
which has two output shafts. The gearbox has side rollers that guide the blower
carriage on the rails. A roller and pinion are mounted to the two output shafts
resulting in a dual rack drive.
6.3 Lance and Feed Tube
The lance tube is designed to meet the specific requirements of each application.
The feed tube ensures proper packing sealing while the lance tube is moving
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forward or reverse. The feed tube is connected to the poppet valve via a
removable split ring and clamp plate.
6.4 Poppet Valve and Operating Mechanism
The blowing media is delivered to the feed and lance tube through a poppet
valve. The flange on the poppet valve connects to the media supply piping.
When the blower carriage reaches a given insertion depth, the poppet valve is
opened via a valve latch and arm assembly and closed on the return travel. The
opening forces are centered due to the dual linkage system. The switching travel
is adjustable to suit the actual requirements by relocating the trip pin in the trip
bar. The valve control is easily accessible for adjustments and maintenance
work. The pressure from the media supply can be independently adjusted with
respect to the valve opening via the pressure control disc. A connection is
provided for seal air and blowing pressure indicator.
6.5 Wall Box
Two types of wall boxes are provided: negative or positive. A negative wall box
is provided for furnaces with a reliable negative gas pressure condition. A
spring loaded floating plate seals the boiler opening sufficiently and still
provides proper lance tube clearance. A positive pressure wall box with sealing
air is provided for positive flue gas conditions to avoid gas leaks from
sootblower wall openings. Positive pressure wall boxes also have provisions for
purge steam and scavenging air.
6.6 Blower Suspension
The front plate of the sootblower has two arms extending away from the
sootblower. These arms have a threaded hole in them which lines up with the
two pivot holes (bosses) that are on the sootblower wall box. The arms on the
front plate and the pivot holes on the wall box are aligned and connected with a
threaded pin that is inserted through the holes. The wall box is supplied with the
sootblower and welded to the wall sleeve.
6.7 Electrical Equipment
The sootblower’s travel is constrained by two limit switches: one at the rest and
one at the reverse position. These limit switches are adjustable and activated by
a trip lever bolted on the spindle housing.
6.8 Lance and Feed Tube Support (if required)
The lance and feed tube support prevents deformation of the lance from cooling
after it has retracted from the furnace. The need for lance and feed tube support
depends on the travel length, lance tube diameter, and other aspects of the
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particular system. This device is supplied to give support to the lance tube when
the sootblower is in the rest position. It also gives support to the feed tube when
the lance is fully extended, preventing deformation of the feed tube. This device
is actuated using a cam mounted to the feed tube support weldment. There is an
actuation lever between the feed tube support weldment and the lance tube axle
weldment that rotates these two components to the proper orientation. When the
sootblower is in the rest position, the lance support assembly is supporting the
lance. As the sootblower travels into the furnace, a trip pin mounted to the
carriage will come into contact with and rotate the cam mounted to the feed tube
support weldment. This cam will be rotated by the linear travel of the
sootblower. This rotation will rotate the feed tube support assembly up into
place while at the same time rotating the lance tube support assembly down out
of place. The opposite will take place when the sootblower retracts out of the
furnace.
6.9 Front Support Roller Assemblies
The sootblower is supplied with one of two different style front support roller
assemblies: without droop correction and with droop correction. Both styles
support the weight of the sootblower lance tube and also allow for linear travel
as well as rotation. The front plate assembly without droop correction is a fixed
plate welded to the sootblower housing. This plate has lance support rollers
mounted to it which can be adjusted axially to allow the lance tube to rotate
without rubbing due to linear travel. The front plate with droop correction is a
combination of two plates: fixed and adjustable front plate. The fixed plate is
welded to the sootblower housing. The adjustable plate is bolted to the fixed
front plate and has many functions. It has the ability to adjust for droop
correction of the lance tube as well as having a pivoting roller assembly to
account for any angling of the lance tube as a result of droop correction. The
support rollers on this plate can also be adjusted axially to allow the lance tube
to rotate without rubbing due to linear travel. A second type of droop correction
is the contoured rack. This contoured rack will drop the carriage assembly down
as it is inserted into the furnace causing the lance to rise and arc into the furnace.
This also keeps the lance horizontally level.
7 Operation Consideration and Guidelines
Sootblowers are typically operated once or twice a day on fired heaters. The rise in flue
gas temperature with time determines blowing frequency. There are several operation
considerations that affecting the amount of soot and deposits formed.
Good Operating practices can reduce the amount of soot formed in the combustion
process. Preventing soot formation is just as important as its removal after it has been
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formed. Factors that affect soot formation and blowing frequency on furnaces are
listed below with a brief description of each factor:
7.1 Type of Fuel
Particulate and soot are formed during the combustion process. Particulate will
be formed in greater quantity in fuel oils than in fuel gases. Sootblowers are
installed in the convection section to remove deposits from the tubes on oil or
combination fuel services. A rule of thumb for soot formation is as follows:
o Oil Fired Soot= 0.1 Ib/ 1 MM Btu/h Fired + wt % ash in fuel oil
o Gas Fired Soot= 0.005 Ib/ 1 MM Btu/h Fired
These rules of thumb are for good operation. A smoking oil flame will produces
much higher amounts of soot. Since gas fired heaters produce very little soot,
sootblowers are not installed on gas fired heaters.
7.2 Ash and Sediment Content
The wt.% ash is typically 0.05-0.1 for heavy oil. Much of ash is organically
bound metals found in the asphaltene portion of the heavy oil. The amount of
ash can be determined from the crude analysis.
The ASTM specification of sediment content of heavy oils is 0.5 wt%

maximum. However, it allows for higher sediment content if a deduction in
quality is made. Many fuel oil additives are magnesium-based compounds.
These additives increase the ash deposits on the tubes, but make deposits easier
to remove. These additives should only be used when solid clinkers are found
on tubes. These additives are often used when the vanadium content of fuel oil
is in the range of 200+ ppm range. A high solids content requires most frequent
soot blowers.
7.3 Asphaltene Content
Most heavy fuel oils are blends of cutter stock and vacuum bottoms. The
vacuum bottoms have a typically boiling range of 590-815. The Ashphaltenes
are the heaviest portion of the vacuum bottoms and can range from 10-25 wt%.
These heavy Ashphaltenes are difficult to burn and form considerable soot
formation. Many operating companies limit the refinery fuel oil to 10 wt%
asphaltenes.
7.4 Polymerization Reactions
The Visbreaking process heats vacuum bottoms and cracks the oil to reduce
cutter stock requirements. Too muck cracking can destabilize the asphaltenes
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and cause them to precipitate. These solids do not burn clean and produce a lot
of soot in addition to plugging the oil guns. The FCC and delayed coking
process produce olefins that can polymerize and forms gums. Proper blending
and storage can minimize these problems.
7.5 Amount of Oil Fired
Many refineries fire one or two burners on oil t o facilitate the switching of fuels
if the fuel gas supply is lost. These heaters will require as much sootblowing as
a heater fired completely on fuel oil.
7.6 Combustion Quality
Factors that affect combustion quality and soot formation include:
7.6.1 Fuel oil Viscosity
Fuel oil firing problems may occur because the fuel is to clod at the
burners. The oil must be burned as a vapor to get a prober flame pattern.
Cold oil results in large oil particles, which take longer to burn. This
produces bad flames and increases particulate emissions.
7.6.2 Atomization Differential
The steam assists in breaking down the oil particles to approximately the
100 micron range. These small particles have a high amount of surface
area that increases the speed of vaporization. The oil should burn as a
vapor. If the oil burns as a liquid, high particulate is formed. The typical
differential pressure is 30 psi.
7.6.3 Excess Air
The typical flue gas oxygen content is 2-5 % O2 for fuel oil firing. Low
oxygen levels can cause smoking and soot formation.
7.6.4 Physical Condition of Burners
The burners must be maintained in like new condition to obtain good

combustion. Damaged burners tiles, won atomizers, and improper tip
location result in poor combustion and increased soot production.
7.6.5 Air Preheat and Forced Draft
Heavy oil is difficult to burn. Both air preheat and forced draft flame
temperature and decrease the amount of time for combustion, reducing
the amount of soot formation. Poor oil flames result in uncontrolled
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burning and incased soot production. It also results in unburned oil

entering the convection section. This unburned oil is sticky and fouls the
tubes. Most sootblowers will not remove unburned oil from the
convection section.
Sodium vanadates attack and destroy the burners tiles. Damage tiles
produce unstable flame, increase soot formation and possibly unburned
fuel entering the convection section
8 Startup Guidelines
1. Verify that both cold mechanical and electrical activities are completed. See the
inspection checklist for documentation verification.
2. Verify that sootblower casing is horizontal with the furnace hot and in operation.
3. Verify that all necessary cleaning media pipe work tests have been satisfactorily
completed in accordance with appropriate international standards.
4. Verify that the cleaning media conditions are within the minimum/maximum
specified contract values.
5. Verify that the cleaning media pipe work internals have been cleared of cuttings
and debris.
6. Adjust pipe work warm-up timer (if applicable) inside control panel to ensure that
steam pipe work has reached a temperature level above saturation temperature.
Temperature measurement must be made on pipe work surface adjacent to
condensate drain valve.
7. Check individual operation of sootblowers with cleaning media blowing.
8. Check by observation the effectiveness of seal on feed tube packing gland. If
adjustments are necessary this must be carried out with cleaning media and
electrical supplies isolated.
9. Check sequence operation of sootblowers with cleaning media blowing.
10. Ensure that all protective guards, covers and junction box covers are secured in
place.
11. Record all hot startup values including cleaning media pressure at each sootblower
inlet valve and valve of the motor running current in both directions, etc. See the
inspection checklist for documentation verification.
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9 Inspection Guidelines
9.1 Mechanical Inspection

1. Check that all blowers are completed, have no parts missing and that all
nuts and bolts, etc., are tight.
2. Check correct chain tension for both traverse and rotary chains
(if applicable).
3. Check that lance is centrally located in wall box gas-seal. Adjust height by
jacking screws on forward bearing assembly if applicable.
4. Manually operate all blowers to check for free movement and actuation of
the limit switches at correct setting(s). Also, check that blower inlet valve
is mechanically actuated during the operation.
5. Check furnace internally to ensure that the lance/element nozzles cover the
required cleaning area and clearances are adequate.
6. Manually operate the cleaning medium supply valve to check the extents of
operation.
7. Ensure that all protective guards, covers and junction box covers are
secured in place.
9.2 Electrical Inspection

1. Verify the control panel internal equipment with no damaged or
contaminated parts, no ingress of moisture or solids.
2. Verify suitability of site cabling and wiring methods.
3. Verify that the electrical supply source for sootblower panel(s) contains the
necessary short circuit and overload protective devices, and that voltages
are to specified tolerances.
4. Verify that all sootblower and valve limit switches, level switches, etc.,
activate their corresponding PLC input channel in the correct manner.
5. Set all control panel protective devices accordingly. i.e., motor overload
relays.
6. Verify that ALL sootblower motor directions are correct.
7. Verify the correct electrical operation of sootblowers and valves on a cold
furnace, in all modes of control i.e. the local, automatic and individual
modes of control.
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8. Record all cold startup values.
9.3 Test Equipment

1. Suitable Pressure Gauge, c/w isolation cock and siphon tube.
2. Suitable differential pressure indicator for wallbox differential pressure
measurement.
3. Suitable adjustment spanner for packing gland, forward bearing adjustment
and chain tensioner mechanism if (applicable).
4. Suitable electrical tong tester for current measurement up to 5 Amperes.
10 Maintenance Guidelines
A sootblower system will not function satisfactorily if it is not properly installed,

operated, and maintained. Specific maintenance requirements vary depending on the
design of the sootblower. The sootblower maintenance includes valves and other parts
that handle high pressure air, steam, or water. These components can be subjected to
excessive heat, dirt, and corrosive gases and therefore, proper maintenance should be
performed. Lubrication and packing, pressure seals, water seals, and protective covers
must be properly maintained. If only corrective maintenance is performed without
proper preventive maintenance, the sootblowers will degenerate and maintenance costs
will rise. A missed oil level check may escalate into a gearbox replacement or a
packing adjustment may escalate into a feed tube, lance, and gearbox overhaul.
Therefore, it is highly recommended a preventive maintenance program is established.
For a pressurized boiler, if the hot corrosive flue gas is allowed to blow back on the
sootblower, both mechanical and electrical gear will prematurely fail. Therefore, the
sleeve-sleeve pressure seal and the air-purge valve should be maintained.
The air-purge valve is used to keep the corrosive flue gases out of the sootblower.
Routine maintenance of the sootblower should include:
1. Packing adjustment
2. Lubrication checks
3. Cleaning the sootblower assembly
4. Walkdown and visual checks
5. Periodic inspection of the lance for retracts
6. For rotaries, sootblower element inspection during boiler overhaul
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10.1 Maintenance Checklist
Check List Blower No. Blower No. Blower No.

COLD
Chain tension check (√)
Lance centre check (√)
Sealing air connection check(√)
Sootblower damage check(√)
Lubrication check(√)
Manual operation function check(√)
Motor rotation check (√)
Supply voltage ( V) ( Hz)
Current consumption (A)
Valve actuation check (√)
HOT
Cleaning media Pressure (bar.g)
or MPag
Cleaning media Temperature (ºC)
Flue Gas Pressure (mbar)
Flue Gas Temp. (ºC)
Blowing pressure (bar.g) or MPag
Motor current (A)
Operating time (Sec)
Tightness valve /feed tube packing (√)
Tightness valve seat (√)
Tightness vent valve (√)
10.2 Post Overhaul Checks

1. Check that all sootblowers are complete, have no parts missing and that all
nuts and bolts, etc., are tight. Inspect cleaning media supply and drainage
pipework.
2. Ensure supply and drainage pipework have been installed in accordance
with applicable international standards.
3. Check correct chain tension for both traverse and rotary chains
(if applicable).
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4. Check that lance is centrally located in wallbox gas-seal.

5. Adjust height of lance by jacking screws on forward bearing assembly
(if applicable).
6. Check individual operation of sootblowers with cleaning media blowing.
7. Check by observation the effectiveness of seal on feed tube packing gland.
If adjustments are necessary this must be carried out with the cleaning
medium (air/steam) and electrical supply isolated.
8. Check that all protective guards, covers and junction box covers are secured
in place.
10.3 Routine Preventative and Corrective Maintenance
TYPE OF ROUTINE
DESCRIPTION SERVICE INTERVAL
SERVICING
Spur gear and motor 5 years Cleaning and lubrication
Chain wheel pair 1 year Cleaning and lubrication
Intermediate tube On furnace inspection Check on corrosion and erosion
Stuffing box
6 months Check on tightness
(Intermediate tube)
Blower valve 6 months Inspection of tightness
Stuffing box (Valve stem) 6 months Inspection of tightness
Valve operating mechanism 6 months Cleaning and lubrication
Vent valve 6 months Inspection and tightness
Blowing tube/Flexible
During furnace standstill Check on corrosion and erosion
element connection
Seal and Scavenging air fan According to dust build up Blow with compressed air
11 Dismantling and Re-Assembly Procedure
11.1 Replacement of the Intermediate Tube Packing

1. Make sure that the sootblowing medium supply valves in the sootblower
piping are shut off, the line depressurized and that the blower is electrically
isolated.
2. Loosen the stuffing box gland and move the sootblower carriage about
0.3 m forward. In most cases a part of the old packing is pushed out because
of this movement.
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3. Carefully remove the remaining packing from the packing space.

4. Insert the new packing rings individually into the parking space. They have
to be driven home carefully by means of the stuffing box gland.
5. Ensure that the partial joints of all the rings are offset to maintain the
sealing effect of the whole packing.
6. After insertion of the packing tighten the stuffing box gland uniformly
(not too tight, observe motor current). Now the sootblower can be put into
operation again.
7. Operate the sootblower several times, and then slightly retighten the
stuffing box packing.
11.2 Replacement of the Valve Spindle Packing

isolated.
2. Dismount the sootblower valve.
3. It is recommended that the following valve maintenance procedure takes
place in a maintenance workshop.
4. Compress the valve spring and remove the horseshoe key from the valve
spindle. Take off the spring retainer and the valve spring.
5. Unscrew the packing nut and remove the packing follower.
6. Remove the old packing rings from the packing cavity and thoroughly clean
out all small scraps of packing left in the cavity.
7. Insert the new rings one by one into the packing cavity, making sure that
the rings are not damaged.
8. Once the new packing is inserted, replace the packing follower and tighten
the packing nut lightly.
9. Return the valve spindle to its original position and insert the valve spring,
the spring retainer and the horseshoe key.
10. After reassembling, re-mount the sootblower valve in the reverse sequence
of dismounting.
11. After the blower has been operated a few times, retighten the packing.
Page 17 of 19
11.3 Dismounting and Mounting of the Sootblower Valve

isolated.
2. Disconnect the sootblower valve from the piping and dismount the
scavenging air line, if necessary. Unscrew the nuts from the valve’s
connecting plate. Pull the valve off the feed tube. In doing so be aware of
the flange gasket and the gasket between the valve casing and the feed tube.
3. Examine the dismounted gaskets for signs of damage and fit replacements if
necessary
4. Re-mount the sootblower valve in reverse sequence of dismounting.
5. After the sootblower has been operated, all screwed connections of the
cleaning medium flow parts are to be checked for tightness.
11.4 Dismounting and Mounting of the Blowing Element

isolated.
2. After loosening the four screws, the blower is to be removed from its
mounting plate.
3. Disconnect the blower valve from the piping, and the scavenging air line if
necessary. Dismount the sootblower valve.
4. After removing the sootblower valve, the blowing element coupling is
exposed and is to be detached from the blower, care should be taken not to
damage the lapped feed tube.
5. Mounting of the blowing element in reverse sequence. Examine gaskets
and packing and fit replacements if necessary.
6. Re-mount the sootblower valve in reverse sequence of dismounting.
7. After the sootblower has been operated, all screwed connections of the
cleaning medium flow parts are to be checked for tightness.
11.5 Removal and Replacement of the Intermediate Tube and Chain Wheel
isolated.
Page 18 of 19
2. Disconnect the sootblower valve from the piping and dismount the
scavenging air if necessary.
3. The intermediate tube and chain wheel are now exposed and can be
withdrawn from the bore hole of the fasten bracket.
4. The chain wheel can be drawn off from the intermediate tube.
5. Before reassembly in the reverse order, check whether any gaskets and
packings are damaged and require replacing.
6. Ensure that after reassembly that the intermediate tube is exactly centered in
the stuffing box and that the gear moves freely.
Revision Summary
14 November 2010 New Saudi Aramco Best Practice.
Page 19 of 19

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Best Practice

SABP-F-004 14 November 2010

Saudi Aramco DeskTop Standards

Previous Issue: New Next Planned Update: TBD

Copyright©Saudi Aramco 2010. All rights reserved.

Sootblowing is performed by injecting steam, water, or air onto the furnace

The information presented in these guidelines is intended to provide Saudi

the manufacturer from his responsibility or duty to confirm or to verify the

1.4 Conflicts with Mandatory Standards

The mandatory engineering requirements of the specific equipment produced by the

2.1 Saudi Aramco References

Saudi Aramco Materials System Specification

2.2 Industry Codes and Standards

International Organization for Standardization

American Petroleum Institute

2.3 Other References

Soot Blowers Manufactures Manuals

Clyde Bargeman and Diamond Manual

BP Refineries Best Practice for Sootblowers

Retractable Sootblowers: A mechanical device for discharging steam or air to clean

4.1 Furnace Interior Surface

The type of fuel used determines the degree of difficulty of removing

4.2 Convection Surface

4.3 Air Pre-Heaters

The air preheater blowers usually consist of a retractable lance containing

4.4 Economizer/Back Pass

5 Main Types of Sootblowers

Rotary sootblowers clean convection surfaces of furnaces. The rotary

5.3 Wall Blowers

5.4 Water Based Cleaning Equipment or Water Lances

5.5 Sonic Horns

6 Main Components of Sootblowers

6.1 Sootblower Housing

6.2 Blower Carriage

6.3 Lance and Feed Tube

6.4 Poppet Valve and Operating Mechanism

6.5 Wall Box

6.6 Blower Suspension

6.7 Electrical Equipment

6.8 Lance and Feed Tube Support (if required)

6.9 Front Support Roller Assemblies

7 Operation Consideration and Guidelines

7.1 Type of Fuel

7.2 Ash and Sediment Content

The ASTM specification of sediment content of heavy oils is 0.5 wt%

7.3 Asphaltene Content

7.4 Polymerization Reactions

7.5 Amount of Oil Fired

7.6 Combustion Quality

Factors that affect combustion quality and soot formation include:

7.6.1 Fuel oil Viscosity

7.6.2 Atomization Differential

7.6.3 Excess Air

7.6.4 Physical Condition of Burners

The burners must be maintained in like new condition to obtain good

7.6.5 Air Preheat and Forced Draft

burning and incased soot production. It also results in unburned oil

9.1 Mechanical Inspection

9.2 Electrical Inspection

8. Record all cold startup values.

9.3 Test Equipment

A sootblower system will not function satisfactorily if it is not properly installed,

10.1 Maintenance Checklist