Fire Tube Steam Boiler vs Water Tube Steam Boiler

There are mainly two types of industrial steam boiler–water tube steam boiler and fire tube steam boiler. In fire tube steam boiler, there are numbers of tubes through which hot gases are passed and water surrounds these tubes. Water tube steam boiler is reverse of the fire tube boiler. In water tube steam boiler, the water is heated inside tubes and hot gasses surround these tubes. Fire tube steam boiler and water tube steam boiler has many difference and now, we will introduce both of them in detail.

Fire Tube Steam Boiler

As it indicated from the name, the fire tube steam boiler consists of numbers of tubes through which hot gasses are passed. These hot gas tubes are immersed into water, in a closed vessel. Actually in fire tube steam boiler one closed vessel or shell contains water, through which hot tubes are passed. These fire tubes or hot gas tubes heated up the water and convert the water into steam and the steam remains in same vessel. As the water and steam both are in same vessel a fire tube steam boiler cannot produce steam at very high pressure. Generally, it can produce maximum 17.5 kg/cm2 and with a capacity of 9 Metric Ton of steam per hour.

Advantages of Fire Tube Steam Boiler

1) It is quite compact in construction.

2) Fluctuation of steam demand can be met easily.

3) It is also quite cheap.

Disadvantages of Fire Tube Steam Boiler

1) As the water required for operation of the boiler is quite large, it requires long time for rising steam at desired pressure.

2) As the water and steam are in same vessel the very high pressure of steam is not possible.

3) The steam received from fire tube boiler is not very dry.

Water Tube Steam Boiler

A water tube steam boiler is such kind of steam boiler where the water is heated inside tubes and the hot gasses surround them. This is the basic definition of water tube steam boiler. Actually this steam boiler is just opposite of fire tube steam boiler where hot gasses are passed through tubes which are...