Monitoring Boiler Efficiency using DASY Lab and a Case Study on Analysis of Boiler Losses

Abstract: Boiler efficiency is a great concern in all process industries. To improve thermal efficiency of boiler, heat loss of the boiler needs to be monitored continuously and controlled. Direct method of evaluating the boiler efficiency is simpler but does not provide any information about boiler losses. Calculation of boiler efficiency using indirect method is time consuming process as it involves complex mathematical expressions. In most of the process industries, the boiler efficiency is calculated once in a month, due to which the boiler losses cannot be controlled as and when they vary. This paper presents development of application software for monitoring of boiler efficiency using conventional indirect method. The software eliminates time consuming calculation for boiler engineers and the control action can be initiated immediately, which reduces the fuel consumption. The system is developed in Data Acquisition SYstem Laboratory (DASY Lab) software package and validated using the data collected from one of the leading cement industries. The data is further analysed to identify the causes for various boiler losses and measures to be taken to minimize losses there-by increasing boiler efficiency.

Keywords: Indirect method, Boiler efficiency, DASY Lab, Heat losses.