Boiler House Earby > News and Posts

Here is where we publish our latest news, events and posts regarding the industry we operate in

Does my boiler need Servicing?

There are many reasons for regularly servicing of your commercial gas appliances for instance keeping it in tip top condition will help to ensure that its life span life is maximized, it will also help to identify any possible commercial boiler or appliance breakdowns, and more importantly the appliances operate more effectively and efficiently saving you money!

Having a commercial gas safety check and commercial gas safety certificate will not only help protect and keep you safe, it will help save you money, but also it gives you peace of mind that you are fully legally compliant.

A commercial gas safety checks is required by law since 1996, for landlords, facility managers, or anyone that owns a commercial property for rental purposes.

What is Gas main purging, commissioning and de-commissioning?

It is sometimes difficult to find competent experienced gas engineers that can provide industrial gas pipe testing and purging but gas main work is where experience counts.

The Aim of this post is to give a basic understanding on what is involved with gas testing and purging work and what you should expect from the engineers you use.

Where alterations need to be made to a main, purging is the safe solution to remove the main totally of combustible gasses. On completion, the main can then be safely modified or totally removed without the worry of gas inside the main becoming ignited.

First the main or leg is disconnected at source, capped off and made safe. If the meter is removed it should be capped and made safe also.

The final end of the main or leg should be identified. A thorough investigation of site should be carried out to identify additional branches from the main and a simple line diagram created for reference and volume calculations.

The purge point end is connected to the purge point shown above by flexible hose. The source of the main is connected to a Purge Fan and operatives use 2 Way Radio to communicate.

When the fan is turned on fresh air is forced down the main which begins to purge the gas from the pipe. The gas flows out of the main into the flexible hose, through the purge rig and into the atmosphere. A special flare point is used to prevent flash backs should the gas be ignited.

An analyser and volume flow meter connected in line to the flare point shows the volume of gas / air purged from the main and the level of gas in the purging mixture. When the calculated volume is purged and the mixture reads only oxygen, the main is purged and can safely be removed.
A special procedure applies to mains with branches to ensure that 100% of the gas is safely removed from all legs of the pipework.

In the event of a failure of the fan blower component during operation, the engineers would continue to purge the main using Nitrogen gas.

Purging requires an accurate measurement of the volume of the main to be commissioned.
When the new gas main has been pressure tested, certified and connected, the purge point is connected to the extreme of the main. The volume flow meter on the purge kit is reset and the gas is turned on.

The main is safely purged until the volume of air in the main is replaced with gas, hence the need to identify the volume before starting work.
The gas analyser can be used to confirm that the purge of air was successful and that no air remains inside the pipework.

What is NOx formation?

The aim of this post is a quick basic description of NOx formation, where it comes from and how it can be reduced, there are other methods and other variations of NOx but I have mentioned what I would consider to be the three main types.

There are three main forms of combustion related NOx, Thermal, fuel bound and prompt.

Thermal NOx formation

This type of NOx formation is generally produced by a high flame temperature whilst oxygen is present. Therefore the main way to limit the thermal NOx is limit peak flame temperature, decrease oxygen presence and exposure at high temperatures.

Burner manufactures have succeeded in reducing NOx without any post combustion control through steam injection and flue gas recirculation. Steam injection works because steam temperature is considerably lower than flame temperature, furthermore steam is pure water which contains oxygen.

Flue gas recirculation is when waste flue gas is combined with the air for combustion before entering the burner, furthermore exhaust gas is cooler than flame temperature and contains only a small amount of oxygen, although temperature varies depending on boiler design and the use of economisers.

In case you were wondering, flue gas recirculation is much cheaper simply because generating steam for injection can be much more costly so flue gas recirculation is often the preference.

Fuel Bound NOx formation

This type of NOx formation is contained within the fuel and can only be reduced through post combustion processes. If you compare the nitrogen in natural gas than with other fuels like oil then the nitrogen content is very low and pretty much contains an insignificant amount.

Prompt NOx formation

This particular type of NOx formation generally occurs through reactions of the nitrogen molecules that is in the combustion air supply and hydrogen radicals from the fuel. Manufactures now have ultra-low NOx designs that can limit the formation of prompt NOx basically by reducing the formation of sub-stoichiometric regions within the flame.

Photograph above is of a Baltur low NOx burner when visiting the factory in Bologna Italy with EOGB’s Martin Cooke.

SWOT analysis 2015

STRENGTHS

Under the EU’s sustainable energy targets, the UK is obliged to generate 15% of its electricity from renewable energy sources by 2020.
Average annual investment in renewable energy production has doubled over the past few years, reaching around £8bn in 2013.
The UK is endowed with varied renewable energy resources in Europe, including wind, wave and tidal resources.
Solar photovoltaic’s (PV) enable domestic generation of renewable energy.
The renewable energy market is supported by a number of government policies and incentives, such as Contract for Difference (CfD) scheme and Ofgem’s Renewables Obligation (RO) scheme.

WEAKNESSES

Investment in renewable energy technology has been affected by financial issues due to the recession and market uncertainty.
The cost of developing and building wind farms, biomass plants and solar farms is high.
Limited Government funding for key technologies, such as onshore wind, solar and biomass, is likely to have a negative impact on investment in renewable technology.
The lack of a consistent, long-term commitment from the UK Government may have a negative impact on renewable investors’ confidence, which is essential to achieve long-term plans for renewable energy.
From the point of view of energy companies, to invest in large capital intensive renewable energy projects, these projects need to be commercially viable and generate enough return on investment; however, this is largely dependent upon the regulations and incentives provided by the Government.
The building of solar farms often involves protests by local groups and residents, as they are considered unsightly and damaging to the local landscape and wildlife.

OPPORTUNITIES

Geographically, the UK is one of the windiest countries in Europe. This puts the UK in an excellent position to optimise the potential of wind power.
The Government’s allocation of a £300m budget for low-carbon technology through the CfD scheme will prompt a new surge in renewable energy investment over the next few years.
The UK’s offshore wind market is one of the most established in the world.
The UK can look to export its expertise to international markets.
Technological advancements and innovations will help to boost renewable technology and reduce costs.
Continued economic growth will stimulate overall energy consumption, including consumption of renewable energy.

THREATS

According to EY in September 2014, the UK’s attractiveness as an investment destination for renewable energy plants has dropped to seventh place, the lowest since December 2009.
The UK Government recently announced plans to cut subsidies for large-scale solar schemes — the Renewable Obligation (RO) scheme — from April 2015.
As such, larger solar farm developers will be forced to compete for CfD subsidies. Furthermore, the lack of a consistent, long-term commitment from the Government provides a degree of uncertainty and may have a negative impact on investors’ confidence in the UK as a destination for renewable energy generation.
Hydropower generated from inland sources has been affected by climate change, as it relies on regular rainfall.
Nuclear energy may rival renewable energy sources and could become the preferred low-carbon energy source in the UK.