Material developed and compiled by MR. V.K.

Gupta,
Sr. Engr. NPCIL and AD NPTI, Nagpur
A. PRE-START CHECKS, START-UP & LOADING
1. Pre-Start Checks
1.1 Check that all maintenance permits concerning the
boiler pressure parts, flue gas and air side paths are
cancelled.
1.2 Check that all the manholes, inspection doors of
furnace, flue gas and air path, drum, deaerator, fuel
storage tank, C.B.D. tank, I.B.D. tank, fans, mills etc.
are tight closed,
1.3 Check that:
1.3.1 Reserve Power and D.C. control system supply is
established to 6.6 KV station buses and unit
auxiliary buses; 415 volts supply to station service
switch gears, unit service switchgear, E.P. switch
gear, off-site plant switch gears. Boiler M.C.C.,
compressor M.C.C., Miscellaneous service M.C.C.,
soot blower M.C.C., V.D.D.C., F.S.S.S. panels etc.
1.3.2 220 V.D.C. board, 220 volts DC supply to control
panels relay panels, emergency lighting, FSSS etc.
is established.
1.3.3 110 V.A.C. supply to FSSS panels is established.
1.3.4 50 V.D.C. supply to annunciation system is
established.
1.4 Check that all the fuses in control and relay panel
are intact.
1.5 Check that electrical supply to the instruments is
switched on.
1.6 Check that instrument air compressors are in
service and air supply is established for all, Boiler
controls (viz secondary air control, Burner tilt
control, R.H. Steam temperature Control, burner
retract mechanism, milling system pneumatic
valve/damper, actuators etc.)
1.7 Check that station air compressors are in service
and air supply is established to Boiler and
auxiliaries area and Air heaters air motors.
1.8 Check that clarified water pump (s) is/are in service
and clarified water supply for cooling is available
for all Boiler auxiliaries.
1.8.1 Check that clarified water booster pump is in
service and cooling water supply to sample
coolers, air heater lub. oil coolers is available.
1.9 Check that Hydrazine dosing and Phosphate
dosing system are ready for taking in service.
1.10 Check that adequate D.M. water is stored in D.M.
water tanks.
1.11 Check that Auxiliary steam supply header is
charged through interconnection from running
Units. (Care should be taken to inform adjacent
unit from which steam is being taken prior to
charging the header)
1.12 Check that H.S.D. and Heavy oil system are in
service on recirculation. Heavy oil temp. is
adequate (> 1000C).
1.13 Check that Soot Blowers are in retracted position.
1.14 Check that Impulse safety valve is in service
condition and that its isolating valve is open.
1.15 Check that Drum, S.H.,R.H., Deaerator, C.B.D.
safety valves gags, test plugs have been removed
and safety valves are in service condition.
1. 15.1 Check that drum, superheaters and M.S.line
vents are open.
1.16 Check that constant load and constant spring
hangers of ducting, down comers, M.S.lines, C.R.H.
lines, H.R.H. lines and Feed and condensate lines
are unlocked and their settings are not disturbed.
1.17 Check that all drives of valves and dampers are in
perfect condition and can he operated from remote
as well as from local wherever possible/required.
1.18 Check that Boiler Drum level gauge glasses and
remote drum level indicators.
1.19 Check that furnace temperature probe is available.
1.20 Check that all the controls and interlock circuits
have been checked and are ready for operation.
Check that all protection circuits have been
checked and are OK.
1.21 Check that bottom ash hopper and seal trough have
been filled and constant over flow is maintained.
1.22 Check that all fly ash hoppers have been evacuated
and ash handling water supply is established to all the
fly ash hoppers.
1.23 Check that E.I.Ps have been cleaned and are ready for
operation.
1.24 Check that coal bunker filling has started.
1.25 Check all wind box secondary air dampers and
burner tilt for free operation and burner tilt is in
horizontal position. Check their operation from
remote.
1.26 Check all H.O. guns, warming up guns and igniters
and igniter spark plug assemblies have been cleaned,
inserted back and held tight by coupling bolt.
1.27 Ensure that all guns are in retracted position.
Check that fire fighting system is ready.
1.28 Ensure that scraper conveyors and clinker grinders
available. Ensure bottom ash trough is filled with
water & furnace seal has been established.
CHEMICAL CLEANING OF BOILER
WATER WALLS AND
ECONOMISERS ETC
Preparation for Boiler Light Up
THERMAL FLOW TEST OF
ECONOMISER, WATER
WALLS AND SUPERHEATER
INTRODUCTION:
After Boiler tube cleaning by alkali boil out has been
completed, the boiler shall be shut down for making
temporary connections and arrangements for acid
cleaning. For this necessary drum internals are to be
removed, orifice plates are to be put in position in the
designated down comer tubes and Superheater plugs
are to be placed in position from inside the drum in the
Superheater connecting tubes.
In the past tube boiler tube failures has been a major
contribution cause for the boiler downtime. Our
analysis reveals that that a major percentage of the tube
failure at least during commissioning and initial
operational stages of the boiler is due to internal
blockage of the tubes. A small tube failure in a boiler
under operation, if not detected in time can lead to
major repairs to the units.
INSTRUMENTS:
Thermal flow meter is an instrument used for detecting
chokes in water wall circuitry, Superheater section,
Economizer coils and terminal tubes of the boiler.
PRINCIPLE OF OPERATION:
 The thermal flow meter works on the following principle. The
time for a heated tube to cooler depends upon the rate of flow
fluid passing through the tubes. The tubes are heated and the
time taken for the temperature to drop from 100C to 30C above
ambient at that place indicates the rate of cooling.
 The cooling period is compared between all the tubes where
ever the detection is to be made. If there is a blockage
anywhere inside the particular tube, then the cooling period
for this tube will be much higher compared to the flow meter
period of all other tubes in that section. The accuracy of the
flow meter is good for a fluid velocity inside the tube of 0.15
m/sec to 3.0 m/sec. there would be about 2 to 3 times greater
error if the velocity is less than 0.15m/sec.
FOR WATER WALL AND ECONOMISER tubes
The ideal period of testing of water walls and
economizer would be after the acid cleaning as metal
debris inside the tubes will be cleaned by the acid in
circulation. For conducting test after second stage
passivation, the temporary connections may not be
available as the boiler has to be lighted up for second
stage passivation. It is also not advisable to conduct the
test after first stage passivation as circulating water for
a continuous period during the test can dislodge the
film of magnetite coating created first stage
passivation.
FOR SUPERHEATERS:
The ideal period for testing Superheater section would
be immediately after steam blowing. Establishing flow
through Superheater surface may require temporary
pipe connections from Superheater outlet connections
to deaerator tank. In units equipped with bypass system
the HP/LP stations or the existing pressure station lines
can be utilized.
Testing of Superheater Section: As mentioned earlier,
the ideal period of testing of Superheater surfaces
would be immediately after steam blowing. During
steam blowing there is a good possibility of blowing out
debris and other foreign materials from inside the
tubes, thereby avoiding unnecessary cutting and
welding of Superheater tubes due to choking.
Theory of Operation
Thermal mass flow meters are most often used for the
regulation of low gas flows. They operate either by introducing a
known amount of heat into the flowing stream and measuring
an associated temperature change or by maintaining a probe at a
constant temperature and measuring the energy required to do
so. The components of a basic thermal mass flow meter include
two temperature sensors and an electric heater between them.
The heater can protrude into the fluid stream (Figure 5-8A) or
can be external to the pipe (Figure 5-8B).

In the direct-heat version, a fixed amount of heat (q) is added by

an electric heater. As the process fluid flows through the pipe,
resistance temperature detectors (RTDs) measure the
temperature rise, while the amount of electric heat introduced is
held constant.
The mass flow (m) is calculated on the basis of the
measured temperature difference (T2 - T1), the meter
coefficient (K), the electric heat rate (q), and the
specific heat of the fluid (Cp), as follows:

m = Kq/(Cp(T2 - T1))
Heated Tube Design
Heated-tube flow meters were developed to protect the heater
and sensor elements from corrosion and any coating effects of
the process. By mounting the sensors externally to the piping
(Figure 5-8B), the sensing elements respond more slowly, and
the relationship between mass flow and temperature difference
becomes nonlinear. This nonlinearity results from the fact that
the heat introduced is distributed over some portion of the
pipe's surface and transferred to the process fluid at different
rates along the length of the pipe.
The pipe wall temperature is highest near the heater (detected as
Tw in Figure 5-8B), while, some distance away, there is no
difference between wall and fluid temperature. Therefore, the
temperature of the unheated fluid (Tf ) can be detected by
measuring the wall temperature at this location further away
from the heater. This heat transfer process is non-linear, and the
corresponding equation differs from the one above as follows:

m0.8 = Kq/(Cp(Tw - Tf ))

This flow meter has two operating modes: one measures the mass
flow by keeping the electric power input constant and detecting
the temperature rise. The other mode holds the temperature
difference constant and measures the amount of electricity
needed to maintain it. This second mode of operation provides
for a much higher meter range ability.