Stainless Steel Feedwater and Condenser Tubing –Expectations, Results and Choices
Summary:
A tubing manufacturer has many alternatives for manufacturing
and testing stainless steel tubing for feedwater heater
and condenser applications. ASTM/ASME specifications are
basic requirements intended to cover all applications.
These minimum requirements may not sufficient for providing
the appropriate quality tube for the demanding requirements,
such as continuous duty for 18 to 24 months common with
feedwater heaters and condensers today.
This paper summarizes
the basic ASTM/ASME requirements with many of the additional
property and testing options available to ensure reliable
service for today’s power plant environment. It identifies
the advantages and disadvantages of each and provides
suggestions on what should be specified to ensure the
best value tubing for your application.
The initiation of deregulation has driven a need for all
power producers to become more efficient to be competitive.
One positive way to do this is ensure that base loaded
generation stay on line at full capacity, months at a
time. This requires that materials perform at levels not
needed in the past. The purchaser may need to specify
additional processing and testing requirements for additional
reliability. ASTM and ASME requirements are intended to
cover a broad range of products. For example, ASTM A 268
and A 249 are commonly specified for stainless steel automotive
exhaust pipe. The expectations for super-critical high
pressure feedwater heater tubing are quite different than
exhaust pipe. One phrase common to most ASTM tubing specifications
is “It is the responsibility of the purchaser to
specify all requirements that are necessary for material
ordered under this specification.” It’s up to
you!
Format:
Pages :22
Size: 690 kb
Author :Daniel S. Janikowski
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