A Review of the Common Causes of Boiler Failure in the Sugar Industry

Unscheduled boiler outages in process industries are a major problem resulting not only in expensive emergency repairs, but also loss of production. This paper draws on the experience of the author's company relating to common failures of pressure parts of boilers. The paper identifies the most common types of pressure part failure and the metallurgical mechanism involved. With a knowledge of the underlying failure mechanism a number of basic causes can be identified. The paper suggests solutions that, if implemented, can reduce the incidence of unscheduled outages and thereby improve profitability.