Section 2.

10
SUPERHEATERS AND REHEATERS

Saturated steam can be corrosive and erosive, especially to turbines. Superheaters and
reheaters are used to create dry steam, which is less corrosive and erosive. Some equipment
and process operations require steam below a specified temperature. For these applications,
steam attemperation or temperature adjustment is needed. This section will discuss these
topics, explaining the differences and applications.

PRINCIPLES AND PURPOSE

Heat applied to water in a closed vessel converts
the water to steam. As long as any liquid
remains, the temperature of the water and steam
remain roughly at the saturation temperature.
When all the water is evaporated, or when the
steam is removed from the presence of the
water, adding more heat will raise the tempera-
ture of the steam.
Steam at a temperature greater than the satura-
tion temperature is referred to as superheated
steam. The difference in temperature between
the superheat temperature and the saturation
temperature is referred to as degrees of super-
heat. Superheated steam has no entrained
moisture, so it is less corrosive and erosive than
wet steam. For superheated turbine operations,
these dry conditions are imperative. Saturated
steam turbines are designed for some moisture
in the steam. (See Section 2.11 Turbines.)
Superheaters and reheaters function similarly in
that they both serve to elevate the steam tem-
perature above its saturation temperature. In the
superheater, the steam is obtained directly from
the main steam drum or header; in the reheater,
the steam heated is the steam returned after it
passes through a high-pressure turbine or turbine
stages.
In addition to reducing moisture erosion prob-
lems in turbines, superheated steam has the
important advantage of being able to do more
work before it condenses. Reheated superheated
steam improves the cycle efficiency of a power
plant by 4-5% for each 200°F (111°C) increase
in superheat temperature.
In general, there are two types of superheaters:
integral units and separately fired units. Integral
units are situated within the boiler and are by far
the most common.
Integral superheaters are installed directly in the
path of the hot gases, but generally shielded
from the radiant section in the furnace itself.
The exact superheater-reheater locations depend
on the particular boiler design. Integral super-
heaters may be called radiant or convection
superheaters, depending on whether they are
installed in the radiant or convection section of
the boiler. (See Figure 2.10.1.)
REHEATER DESIGN
Reheaters and superheaters are similar in design.
Reheaters are used to reheat steam that has been
extracted from the turbine. For example, by
utilizing a reheater, primary steam may be
supplied to a high-pressure turbine at 2400 psig
(16.5 MPag) and 1000°F (538°C). The steam is
exhausted at 600 psig (4.1 MPag) and 600°F
(316°C), reheated to 1000°F (538°C), and then
passed through a second low-pressure turbine.
Reheaters significantly increase the efficiency of
the boiler condensing steam turbine cycle,
reducing the operating costs for fuel and han-
dling, and making their use quite advantageous
in most electric utility plants.

CONFIDENTIAL, For Nalco Employee Use Only ©2006 Nalco Company 287
PAC-2 Boiler Water Technical Manual (6-06)
Section 2.10
SUPERHEATERS AND REHEATERS

Figure 2.10.1 – Integral superheaters in a subcritical drum-type utility boiler

288 CONFIDENTIAL, For Nalco Employee Use Only ©2006 Nalco Company
PAC-2 Boiler Water Technical Manual (6-06)

SUPERHEATERS AND REHEATERS
SUPERHEATER OPERATIONAL
PROBLEMS
Problems in the superheater section can result in
blown tubes and plant downtime. Some of the
most common problems experienced in super-
heater tubes are discussed here.
Deposition – On the steam side, deposition
results from improper steam/water separation or
carryover. Deposits will lay down in the inlet
sections and low sections of the superheater,
causing the tubes to overheat and eventually fail.
Deposition on the fireside of the tubes can result
in low superheat temperature and high fireside
pressure drop.
Tube overheating – Steam has a much lower
specific heat than that of liquid water. Super-
heater tubes overheat when more heat is applied
than can be carried off by the steam. Too high a
heat input may result from broken or improper
baffling or overfiring. Tube blockage (e.g., water
in the tube at startup) or oxide scale buildup
may prevent heat from dissipating rapidly
enough. This overheating often takes the form of
mild, prolonged overheating, which eventually
weakens the superheater tubes and causes
them to fail. Boiler water carryover into the
superheater tubes will leave deposits in the
superheaters, resulting in the potential of over-
heating the tubes.
Corrosion – Corrosion to both the steam side
and fireside is always a potential problem.
Steam side corrosion can result from oxygen
attack on the metal, if not protected during
downtime, or from caustic concentration from
boiler water carryover evaporating to dryness.
Fireside corrosion normally results from the
deposition of sulfur-bearing ash and soot on the
tube surfaces.
It is important to realize the potential problems
that can occur in the superheater section and to
take precautionary steps to minimize them.
CONFIDENTIAL, For Nalco Employee Use Only ©2006 Nalco Company
PAC-2 Boiler Water Technical Manual (6-06)
Section 2.10
Periodic steam purity studies and fireside
inspections will help keep such problems at a
minimum.
PROTECTION DURING START-UP
During normal operation, every superheater tube
must have steam flow sufficient to prevent
overheating. During start-up, there is insufficient
steam flow through every tube. The flue gas
temperature, entering the superheater section,
must be held to the following limits to control
superheater metal temperature:
• 900°F (482°C) for carbon steel tubes
• 950-1000°F (510-538°C) for alloy tubes
During start-up, the superheater drains and
vents, if present, must be open to provide steam
flow for cooling the tubes until the boiler
reaches line pressure. If superheater drains are
not present, the initial firing rate must be very
low so all of the water is removed through
evaporation. Although firing rate is the primary
means of controlling flue gas temperature,
other means such as excess air and flue gas
recirculation can help prevent overheating of
the superheater tubes.
The two requirements for steam flow through
every superheater tube are:
1. All water must be removed from each tube
2. Total steam flow must be equal to or greater
than 10% of rated steam flow
Header drains are used to remove water from
drainable superheaters. On nondrainable units,
the water must be boiled away. Care must be
taken to minimize excess heat input to the tubes.
Thermocouples attached to the outlet of the
superheater tubes indicate saturation temperature
when water remains in the tube. A substantial
increase in temperature above saturation will be
noticed after removing all moisture from the
superheater and establishing proper flow.
289
Section 2.10
SUPERHEATERS AND REHEATERS
Superheaters normally collect some condensate
when firing is stopped. This condensate must be
drained or boiled out before start-up of the unit.
CLEANING
Internal cleaning of drainable superheaters is
normally accomplished using condensate or
demineralized water to remove any deposits.
(Non-drainable superheaters generally cannot be
flushed without the installation of a large
temporary pump capable of supplying enough
flow to get even distribution through all the
parallel paths.) Most deposits found in super-
heaters are water soluble. The conductivity of
the wash water gives a good indication of
cleaning progress. After washing, the super-
heater should be drained or boiled out, as
previously outlined.
Cleaning requirements of the external (fireside)
of the superheater vary considerably, based upon
the fuel burned and deposit composition. The
reason for deposition should be thoroughly
analyzed, and corrective actions taken to mini-
mize future occurrences.
Never make cleaning recommendations on
boiler system components without consulting
Nalco technical support. Severe liabilities exist
in these systems for poor performance and
equipment damage.
METALLURGY
Table 2.10.1 lists the materials of construction
commonly used in the U.S. for superheaters
today. The table also establishes the maximum
allowable stresses and temperatures these tubes
can tolerate.
290 CONFIDENTIAL, For Nalco Employee Use Only ©2006 Nalco Company
STEAM TEMPERATURE
ADJUSTMENT AND CONTROL
Following are the basic reasons for adjusting and
controlling steam temperature:
• To prevent overheating and failure of the
superheater and reheater tubes
• To prevent overheating and failure of the
turbine components
• To prevent thermal expansion, thereby
reducing turbine clearances to the danger point
• To minimize blade erosion caused from
excessive steam condensation in the later
stages of the turbine blades
Steam temperature adjustment typically includes
only off-stream methods used to affect steam
temperature. On-stream methods are called
steam temperature controls.
The control of fluctuations in temperature
caused by uncertainties of operation (such as
slag or ash accumulation) has some effect on
steam temperature. However, superheat and
reheat steam temperatures are mainly
affected by variations in steam output.
(See Figure 2.10.2.)
In drum-type industrial boilers, steam output and
pressure are normally kept constant by firing
rate, while resulting superheat and reheat steam
temperatures depend upon such variables as the
ratio of convection to radiant heat absorbing
surface, excess air, feedwater temperature, and
changes in the type of fuel burned. Standard
performance from a properly operated and
controlled system is a deviation of not more than
10°F (5.6°C) in the outlet superheated steam
temperature.
PAC-2 Boiler Water Technical Manual (6-06)
 Section 2.10
SUPERHEATERS AND REHEATERS

Table 2.10.1 – Maximum allowable design stresses for superheater and reheater tubes

ASME Max. Stress for Metal Temperature not Exceeding °F, psig
Spec.
Material Number Grade 900 950 1000 1050 1100 1150 1200 1300
Carbon Steel SA210 A1 5000 3000 - - - - - -
Carbon Moly SA209 T1a 12500 8500 - - - - - -
Croloy 1⁄2 SA213 T2 12500 10000 6250 - - - - -
14
Croloy 1 ⁄ SA213 T11 13100 11000 6550 4050 - - - -
14
Croloy 2 ⁄ SA213 T22 13100 11000 7800 5800 4200 - - -
Croloy 5 SA213 T5 - - 5600 4150 3050 2000 - -
Croloy 9M SA213 T9 - - 8500 5500 3300 2200 - -
Croloy 18-8 SA213 TP304H* - - 13700 12150 9750 7700 6050 3700
Croloy 18-8 SA213 TP304H - - 9750 9500 8850 7700 6050 3700
Croloy 18-8 SA213 TP321H* - - 14000 11700 9050 6900 5350 3150
Croloy 18-8 SA213 TP321H - - 10450 10100 8800 6900 5350 3150

ASME Max. Stress for Metal Temperature not Exceeding °C, Mpag
Spec.
Material Number Grade 482 510 538 566 593 621 649 704
Carbon Steel SA210 A1 34 21 - - - - - -
Carbon Moly SA209 T1a 86 59 - - - - - -
12
Croloy ⁄ SA213 T2 86 69 43 - - - - -
14
Croloy 1 ⁄ SA213 T11 90 76 45 28 - - - -
Croloy 2 1⁄4 SA213 T22 90 76 54 40 29 - - -
Croloy 5 SA213 T5 - - 39 29 21 14 - -
Croloy 9M SA213 T9 - - 59 38 23 15 - -
Croloy 18-8 SA213 TP304H* - - 94 84 67 53 42 26
Croloy 18-8 SA213 TP304H - - 67 66 61 53 42 26
Croloy 18-8 SA213 TP321H* - - 97 81 62 48 37 22
Croloy 18-8 SA213 TP321H - - 72 70 61 48 37 22

*Due to relatively low yield strength of these materials, these higher stress values were established at temperatures
where the short time tensile properites govern to permit the use of these alloys where slightly greater deformation is
acceptable. The stress values in this range exceed 62 1/2% but do not exceed 90% of the yield strength at temperature.
Use of these stesses may result in dimentional changes due to permanent strain. These stress values are not
recommended for the flanges of gasketed joints of other applications where slight amounts of distortion can
cause leakage or malfunction.

CONFIDENTIAL, For Nalco Employee Use Only ©2006 Nalco Company 291
PAC-2 Boiler Water Technical Manual (6-06)
Section 2.10
SUPERHEATERS AND REHEATERS
Figure 2.10.2 – Substantially uniform final
steam temperature over a range of output can
be attained by a series arrangement of radiant
and convection superheaters
VARIABLES AFFECTING FINAL STEAM
TEMPERATURE
Many operating variables can affect the tem-
perature of the steam that a boiler produces; to
maintain constant steam temperature, means
must be provided to compensate for the vari-
ables that affect final steam temperature.
Load – As the load increases, the quantity and
temperature of combustion gases increase. In a
convection superheater, steam temperature
increases with load because the quantity and
temperature of combustion gases increase. In a
radiant superheater, steam temperature decreases
as load increases. Sometimes, a convection and a
radiant superheater are installed in series in a
single steam-generating unit to maintain sub-
stantially constant steam temperature over a
considerable range of load. (See Figure 2.10.2.)
292
Excess air – For a change in the amount of
excess air entering at the burners, there is a
corresponding change in the quantity of gas
flowing over a convection superheater; there-
fore, an increase in excess air tends to raise the
steam temperature.
Feedwater temperature – An increase in
feedwater temperature reduces superheat be-
cause, for a given steam flow, less fuel is fired
and less gas passes over the superheater.
Heating surface cleanliness – Removing ash or
slag deposits from heat-absorbing surfaces ahead
of the superheater reduces gas temperature and
steam temperature. Removing deposits from the
superheater surface increases superheater
absorption and raises steam temperature.
Use of saturated steam – If saturated steam
from the boiler is used for soot blowers or for
auxiliaries, such as pumps and fans, an increased
firing rate is required to maintain constant main
steam output. This raises the steam temperature.
Burner operation – The distribution of heat
input among burners at different positions or a
change in the adjustment of a burner usually has
an effect on steam temperature through changes
in the furnace heat-absorption rate.
Fuel – Variations in steam temperature may
result from changing the type of fuel burned or
from changes in the characteristics of a given
fuel from time to time. For example, changing
from blast furnace gas, which releases heat
higher in the boiler, to oil, which releases heat in
the lower portion of the boiler, will have an
impact of increasing steam temperature.
CONFIDENTIAL, For Nalco Employee Use Only ©2006 Nalco Company
PAC-2 Boiler Water Technical Manual (6-06)

SUPERHEATERS AND REHEATERS
ADJUSTMENT OF STEAM
TEMPERATURE
Adjustment of steam temperature means a
change in the arrangement of equipment, which
affects the final steam temperature, but cannot
be used to vary the temperature during actual
operation. An example of temperature adjust-
ment is the installation or removal of superheater
tubes.
Importance of Adjustment
Power-generating units today represent a large
capital investment, and means should be pro-
vided to regulate steam temperature to meet any
changes affecting the system. For instance, a
change in the type of fuel a unit burns will affect
the resultant steam temperature considerably.
Adjustments in equipment design will be
necessary unless the plant controls (e.g.,
attemperation) can compensate for such
changes.
Means of Adjustment
The following methods can be used to adjust
steam temperature:
• The basic method of steam temperature
adjustment is to add or remove superheater or
reheater tubes
• Another method is to reduce or increase the
amount of saturated surface ahead of the
steam-heating elements. Such alterations
modify the gas temperature at the inlet to these
elements. Removing saturated surface to
increase steam temperature is relatively simple
and, in general, costs less than adding steam-
heating elements. However, adding saturated
surface in order to decrease steam temperature
can be difficult and expensive, or, in some
cases, impractical.
• The gas temperature at the superheater inlet
can also be adjusted by changing the
effectiveness of the heat-absorbing surface in
the furnace. This is accomplished by adding or
removing refractory covering on parts of the
CONFIDENTIAL, For Nalco Employee Use Only ©2006 Nalco Company
PAC-2 Boiler Water Technical Manual (6-06)
Section 2.10
furnace surface. While a refractory coating on
water-cooled furnace surfaces can have a
favorable effect on combustion and carbon
loss, it should not be added in areas where
undesirable ash would deposit.
• One of the simplest, least expensive, and most
effective means of adjustment is to change the
gas mass velocity over the steam-heating
elements by baffle changes, if the design of
the unit will permit such changes. Several of
the standardized boilers, especially in the
smaller sizes, have an adjustable baffle
suitable for steam-temperature regulation.
This design makes it possible to vary the
steam temperature range as much as 20%.
The limit of variation is the effect on draft
loss and efficiency.
CONTROL OF STEAM TEMPERATURE
Control of steam temperature may consist of one
of the following:
• Regulating steam pressure during actual
operation (generally not practical)
• Direct spray attemperation
• Attemperation using a heat exchanger, e.g.,
a heat exchanger in the bottom drum
• By-passing hot gases past the superheater
Importance of Steam Control
Controls must be used to regulate steam tem-
perature within required limits. The primary
reason for regulating steam temperature is that
ash deposits can form on the tube surface of both
the steam generating section and the superheater
sections. This condition can usually be corrected
by simple changes in the operating schedules of
soot and slag blowers along with fuel treatment.
To hold the optimum heat rate of a turbine
designed to use full first-stage pressure over a
given load range, the steam temperature must be
regulated over this range by an effective means
of control.
293
Section 2.10
SUPERHEATERS AND REHEATERS
The time in which a turbine may be brought to
full load is established by the turbine manufac-
turer in accordance with a safe steam tempera-
ture-time curve. Because the temperature of the
steam is directly related to the degree of expan-
sion of the turbine elements, and consequently
the maintenance of safe clearances, it must be
regulated within permissible limits by some
means of accurate control.
The removal of feedwater heaters for servicing
is an example of variable operation. Maintain-
ing the same load with feedwater heaters out
requires an increase in the heat input to the
boiler unit, with a corresponding increase in
superheater or reheater absorption. Unless some
means of control is available for regulating
steam temperature to cover this condition, a drop
in load might be required to protect both the
superheater tubes and the turbine.
Methods of Controlling Steam
Temperature
There are numerous methods for controlling
steam temperature. The choice depends on the
particular boiler system design and operation.
Following are the most commonly used methods
of controlling steam temperature:
Separately fired superheater – A superheater
completely separate from the steam generating
unit and independently fired may serve one or
several saturated steam boilers. This arrange-
ment is not generally economical for power
generation, where a large quantity of high-
temperature steam is needed. Its use is largely
confined to process industries, such as chemical
manufacture and petroleum refining, to meet
special requirements. Because heat absorption
can be varied independent of the quantity of
steam delivered, the separately fired superheater
has great flexibility in operation and a wide
range of steam temperature regulation at all
loads. Either oil or natural gas is customarily
used as fuel. (See Figure 2.10.3.)
294 CONFIDENTIAL, For Nalco Employee Use Only ©2006 Nalco Company
Excess air – Boiler operators have long known
that the steam outlet temperature of a convection
superheater on a drum- or separator-type unit
can be increased at fractional loads by decreas-
ing the furnace heat absorption through an
increase in the amount of excess combustion air.
Additional volumes of excess air result in higher
gas velocities and less contact time in the
furnace. The resulting greater gas weight to the
stack increases the stack loss, but the drop in
boiler efficiency is made up to some extent with
an increase in turbine efficiency. Such an
arrangement is illustrated in Figure 2.10.4.
Gas recirculation – One of the most attractive
methods of controlling superheat or reheat, both
from economic and operational viewpoints, is
gas recirculation. As the name implies, this
involves a method by which gas from the boiler,
economizer, or air heater outlet is reintroduced
to the furnace by means of a suitable fan and
ducts. In the following discussion, recirculated
gas introduced in the immediate vicinity of the
initial burning zone of the furnace and used for
steam temperature control will be referred to as
“gas recirculation”; recirculated gas introduced
near the furnace outlet and used for control of
gas temperature will be referred to as “gas
tempering”. Figure 2.10.5 shows an application
of gas recirculation on a hopper-bottom radiant
boiler. In most instances, the gas is obtained
from the economizer outlet. The effect desired
dictates the point of reintroduction. The recircu-
lated gas should be introduced into the furnace
so that interference with the combustion of the
fuel is avoided. The amount of recirculated gas
is generally expressed as a percentage of the gas
that remains after the point of take-off of the
recirculated gas.
Recirculated gas may be used for several
purposes; however, its basic function is to
provide a means of altering the heat-absorption
pattern within a steam generating unit. An
important feature of recirculated gas is that its
use changes only the pattern of heat absorption
PAC-2 Boiler Water Technical Manual (6-06)
 Section 2.10
SUPERHEATERS AND REHEATERS

Figure 2.10.3 – Typical arrangements for separately fired superheaters

through a boiler. Its effect on the total boiler heat
absorption, the gas weight up the stack, and the
boiler efficiency is negligible.
Figure 2.10.6 shows the variation in heat absorp-
tion with gas recirculation introduced into the
hopper. Introduction of gas at this location
produces a marked reduction in furnace absorp-
tion and increases the absorption of the convec-
tion section. The total heat absorption remains
unchanged.
Furnace heat absorption is primarily a function
of the gas temperature and gas-temperature
patterns throughout the furnace, because the heat
is transferred mainly be radiation. Hence, the
introduction of gas recirculation into the furnace
hopper reduces furnace absorption by altering
the gas-temperature pattern.
The major portion of the heat absorbed in the
superheater, reheater, and economizer is trans-
ferred by convection, which depends on gas
temperature and gas mass velocity. Both are
affected by gas recirculation. Therefore, when
the gas mass velocity through a convection bank
is increased by gas recirculation, the amount of
heat transferred may increase, decrease, or
remain unchanged, depending on the changes in
the relationship between gas temperature and

CONFIDENTIAL, For Nalco Employee Use Only ©2006 Nalco Company 295
PAC-2 Boiler Water Technical Manual (6-06)
Section 2.10
SUPERHEATERS AND REHEATERS

Figure 2.10.4 – Steam temperature control by use of increased excess air

296 CONFIDENTIAL, For Nalco Employee Use Only ©2006 Nalco Company
PAC-2 Boiler Water Technical Manual (6-06)
 Section 2.10
SUPERHEATERS AND REHEATERS

Figure 2.10.5 – One arrangement for gas recirculation

CONFIDENTIAL, For Nalco Employee Use Only ©2006 Nalco Company 297
PAC-2 Boiler Water Technical Manual (6-06)
Section 2.10
SUPERHEATERS AND REHEATERS
Figure 2.10.6 – Effect of gas recirculation on
heat absorption pattern at constant firing rate
gas weight entering the bank. Figure 2.10.6
illustrates a condition in which the gas tempera-
ture entering the secondary superheater (furnace
exit temperature) is relatively unchanged by gas
recirculation. Therefore, increasing the amount
of gas recirculation increases the heat absorption
in the secondary superheater. The heat absorp-
tion in the reheater, primary superheater, and
economizer is also increased, with the greatest
increase occurring at the cold end of the unit.
This is a typical example of variation in the
convection pass heat absorption pattern gas
recirculation.
Burner selection – Steam temperature can often
be regulated by selective burner operation. High
steam temperature may be obtained at less than
full load by operating only the burners giving
the highest furnace outlet temperature. When
lower steam temperature is required, firing may
be shifted to the other burners. This method of
298
control can be improved by distributing the
burners over a considerable height of the burner
wall or by installing a special burner near the
furnace outlet.
Movable burners – Regulation of steam tem-
perature by changing the furnace absorption
pattern can also be effected by the use of mov-
able burners operated to shift the main combus-
tion zone in the furnace. Burners that can be
tilted are used for this purpose.
Gas by-pass – If the convection banks of a
steam-generating unit are separated by gas-tight
baffles into two or more parallel gas passes
isolating portions of the superheater and reheater
surfaces, the proportion of gas flow over all or
part of the superheater and reheater may be
varied by regulating dampers. This method has
the advantage of low initial cost. Disadvantages
include the following:
• It is difficult to keep the dampers operable
unless they are placed in a cool gas zone
• Draft loss through the unit is increased for
some designs, particularly if control is desired
with alternate fuels
• Control is more sluggish than with
attemperators
• High gas temperature exists at the bypass
dampers unless there is a heat-absorbing
surface in the pass
Attemperation – All of the methods discussed
above are based on varying the amount of heat
absorbed by the steam-heating elements. In the
two most common types of attemperators, steam
temperature is regulated by removing heat from
the steam or by diluting higher temperature
steam with lower temperature water.
The attemperator may be located in one of three
places:
1. Between the saturated steam outlet and the
superheater
CONFIDENTIAL, For Nalco Employee Use Only ©2006 Nalco Company
PAC-2 Boiler Water Technical Manual (6-06)

SUPERHEATERS AND REHEATERS
2. At some intermediate point between two
sections of the superheater
3. At the superheater outlet
An attemperator located before the superheater
will condense some of the saturated steam
passing through it and will deliver wet steam
of reduced enthalpy to the superheater.
There are important advantages to locating an
attemperator between two stages of a super-
heater. With this arrangement, the average steam
temperature never exceeds the final steam
temperature desired. Additionally, the steam
from the various circuits of the first-stage
superheater is so thoroughly mixed that it enters
the second-stage superheater at a uniform
temperature. This is, therefore, the most pre-
ferred location. Its only disadvantage is the
amount of piping required from the first-stage
superheater to the attemperator and from the
attemperator to the second-stage superheater.
Attemperators may be classified into two types:
surface and direct contact. In the surface type,
steam is isolated from the cooling medium by
the heat exchanger surface. In the direct-contact
type, the steam and the cooling medium (water)
are mixed. The surface attemperator includes
both shell and drum types. The direct-contact
attemperator is exemplified by the spray type.
When a drum-type attemperator (Figures 2.10.7
and 2.10.8), located in the mud drum, is used
interstage, a part of the steam from the primary
superheater is diverted to it by an automatic
valve. The diverted steam is reduced in tempera-
ture by giving up heat to the boiler water. It is
then mixed with the rest of the steam from the
primary superheater and passes on to the second-
ary superheater. The final temperature of the
steam is regulated by the position of the auto-
matically operated valve that controls the
amount of steam diverted through the
attemperator.
CONFIDENTIAL, For Nalco Employee Use Only ©2006 Nalco Company
PAC-2 Boiler Water Technical Manual (6-06)
Section 2.10
Figure 2.10.7 – Drum-type surface attemperator
In the shell-type surface attemperator, the
superheated steam flows through a bundle of
tubes fitted in a cylindrical shell through which
cooling water circulates. A valve in the base of
the shell diverts the proper proportion of the
superheated steam (through the tubes) to give
the final steam temperature desired. The shell is
connected to the boiler circulating system,
assuring a positive flow of water in the shell at
all times. Thermal-sleeve ferrules at the steam
inlet ends connect the tubes to an inlet box,
which protects the tubesheets from severe
thermal stresses. Disadvantages of this type of
attemperator are the relative inaccessibility of
the tubes and tubesheet for inspection.
The direct-contact type spray attemperator
(Figure 2.10.9) has proved most satisfactory for
regulating steam temperature. High-purity water
is introduced into the superheated steam line
through a spray nozzle at the throat of a venturi
section within the line. Because of the spray
action at the nozzle and the high velocity of the
steam through the venturi throat, the water
vaporizes, mixes with, and cools the superheated
steam. An important feature of construction is
the continuation of the venturi section into a
thermal sleeve, downstream from the spray
299
Section 2.10
SUPERHEATERS AND REHEATERS

Figure 2.10.8 – Automatic control for drum-type attemperator

300 CONFIDENTIAL, For Nalco Employee Use Only ©2006 Nalco Company
PAC-2 Boiler Water Technical Manual (6-06)
 Section 2.10
SUPERHEATERS AND REHEATERS

nozzle, to protect the high-temperature piping

from thermal shock that could result from any
incompletely evaporated water droplets striking
the hot surface of the piping.

The spray attemperator provides a quick acting,

sensitive means of regulating steam temperature.
The spray water must be of highest purity, since
solids entrained in the spray water enter the
steam and may, if excessive, cause troublesome
deposits on superheater tubes, piping, or turbine
blades. High-pressure heater drains are a source
of extremely pure water, but they require a
separate high-pressure corrosion-resistant pump
if used to supply the attemperator. Boiler
feedwater may be satisfactory, provided that
only volatile treatment chemicals are present
and that only polished deionized makeup water
is used.

A sweet water condenser can be used to provide

a source of high-purity water for attemperation.
A sweet water condenser is a stainless steel, or
other corrosion resistant alloy tube and shell
condenser that uses boiler feedwater as a coolant Figure 2.10.9 – Spray attemperator showing
source and saturated steam as the source of the thermal sleeve
condensate. High-purity polished condensate or
condensate from a sweet water condenser are the
preferred sources of attemperator water.

CONFIDENTIAL, For Nalco Employee Use Only ©2006 Nalco Company 301
PAC-2 Boiler Water Technical Manual (6-06)
Section 2.10
SUPERHEATERS AND REHEATERS

For your notes

This page has been intentionally left blank.

302 CONFIDENTIAL, For Nalco Employee Use Only ©2006 Nalco Company
PAC-2 Boiler Water Technical Manual (6-06)