Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited TIRUCHIRAPALLI

DISCUSSION

ON

BOILER TUBE FAILURES

TYPES

CAUSES
&
REMADIES

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Boiler Tube Failures

 Boiler Tube Failures - main cause of forced outages and

availability in steam generating boilers

 One tube failure in a 500 MW unit  Rs. 5 to 5.5Crores

(replacement, generation charges for 3-4 days to repair)
besides affecting Plant Morale.

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Tube failure indications

1. Sudden or abnormal loud noise

2. Continuous hissing noise
3. Steam / Water leakage
4. Furnace draft fluctuations / pressurization
5. Flame out
6. Falling in drum level
7. Increase in quantum of make-up water
8. Uncontrolled Boiler Feed Regulation / Feed Pump Trip

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Aspects to be considered at various stages

Design stage: Selection of material
1. Compatible for working pressure and temperature
2. Steam flow, velocity / pressure – tube size
3. Heat transfer characteristics
4. Metal temperature / Thermal expansion / constraints
5. Radius of bends
6. Attachments

Manufacturing • Material mix-up

• Welding defects
• Forming defect / Radius of bend
• Heat treatment

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Aspects to be considered at various stages

Transportation / • Length of panel/walls
Handling • Packing, bottom support

Storage • Foreign material entrapment

• Corrosion attack
• Atmospheric corrosion
Erection • Handling, temporary supports/lugs for lifting,
• Welding, plugging of tubes
• Material mix-up
• Expansion restriction ,
• Supports & hangers etc

Commissioning • Initial commissioning activities

• Boiler thermal expansion

Operation and Fatigue, creep, erosion, corrosion etc.

Maintenance
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Failure Mechanisms which cause Boiler

Tube Failure

1. Stress rupture
2. Water-side corrosion
3. Fire-side corrosion
4. Erosion
5. Fatigue
6. Lack of quality control

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Boiler Tube Failures (22 Primary Mechanisms)

Stress Rupture Fatigue
 Short Term Overheating  Vibration
 High Temperature Creep  Thermal
 Dissimilar Metal Welds  Corrosion

Water-side Corrosion Erosion

 Caustic Corrosion  Fly Ash
 Hydrogen Damage  Falling Slag
 Pitting  Soot Blower
 Stress Corrosion Cracking  Coal Particle

Fire-side Corrosion Lack of Quality Control

 Low Temperature  Maintenance cleaning damage
 Waterwall -$  Chemical excursion damage
 Coal Ash - $  Material Defects
 Oil Ash  Welding Defects

$ - indicates that such problems have not been reported in India

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This is the highest metal temperature for which maximum allowable stress values are given.

Source: EPRI Manual

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Source: EPRI Manual

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Lack of Quality

• Raw material defect

• Tube manufacturing defects
• Test Certificate not in order
• Quality requirement (non adherence)
• Inspection – Visual & NDT

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STRESS RUPTURE FAILURES

Short term overheating

STOH occurs when the tube temperature rises above the design limits
for a brief period.

Depending on the temperature, the failure might occur in a very short

time.

STOH – mostly due to an upset over a short period.

Operating procedures or parameters are to be analysed to find out the

reason for the failure.

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STOH
Identification:
• Mostly a fish mouth opening with gradual reduction in thickness
• Uniform tube expansion.
• Absence of large amount of thermally formed magnetite
• No significant internal deposit

Metallographic examination will reveal the reason.

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Short Term Overheating
Location: Steam & water cooled
sections
Reasons:
 Plugged by debris, scale etc.
 Drum level low
 High Heat Transfer / Improper
firing
 Low water/steam flow due to
poor circulation /upstream leak
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Corrective Action:
 Prevent Blockage
 Maintain Drum level
 Assure Coolant flow
 Reduce over firing
 Redesign tubing to promote
flow
 Relocation of horiz. /
inclined tubes to avoid film
boiling
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SHORT TERM OVERHEATING

Fish mouth opening with gradual reduction in thickness

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SHORT TERM OVERHEATING

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1. STOH - ORIGINAL STRUCTURE

2. STOH - TRANSFORMED MARTENSITE

1 2

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High temperature Creep

(Long term overheating)

 Metal temperature exceed the design limit for days, weeks,

months or longer.
 LTOH is the cause for more failures because the metal loses its
strength at elevated temperatures

Causes:
o Tubes often contain significant deposit
o Long term system operating problem
o Reduced coolant flow
o Excessive heat input (nearer to burner)

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High temperature creep

(Long term overheating)

Identification:
 A thick, brittle oxide layer near the failure
 Bulging and plastic deformation at the failure

 Rupture is always longitudinal with a fish-mouth shape

 Rupture edge can be thick or knifelike depending upon the time

temperature and stress level.
 Multiple bulges might also be there in case of deposit inside.

Metallograhic inspection will ascertain the failure.

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