Boiler Circuit

Definition

The closed loop in which water is pretreated, deaerated, heated to steam, delivered to the point of use, condensed, and returned to be heated again. It is best understood as a system, not a single vessel.

The softener removes hardness, the deaerator removes oxygen, the steam drum generates steam, and condensate return recovers hot water, each existing because of the prior step. Diagnosing low sulfite means tracing through deaerator temperature, condensate return rate, and makeup volume rather than just adjusting the pump. Bicarbonate decomposes here and re-forms as carbonic acid in the condensate. It is the worked boiler application the chapter revisits.

Related concepts

Boiler · The Four Pillars · Condensate Return

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Part of The Blueprint of Water · 🛠️ operations