Application Recommendation

Avoiding Condensate Accumulation in Non-Steam Conditioning Systems

Introduction
Condensate accumulation in steam piping is the most common cause for system problems during both start-up and normal operation. Water can collect in steam piping during plant start-up as warm steam comes into contact with the still cold pipe walls and condenses. Water can accumulate during normal operation when the steam present within the piping is stagnant, loses heat through the pipe walls and condenses. Typical problems caused by water accumulation are water hammer, erosion in valves and piping, and potential loss of temperature control. reliable automatic drain provided before the control valve as well as at any low point of the pipe for flowing conditions

With horizontally installed flow-to-close control valves, the drain should be at the lowest point of the valve inlet side (and may be located within the valve body cavity) Piping downstream of a control valve should be self-draining with a minimum of a 1% continuous slope If the downstream piping is not selfdraining, reliable automatic drain of sufficient capacity should be installed at any low point of the pipe Drains must be properly sized and functioning Drains must be regularly checked locally by plant operating personnel for proper operation CCI Valve Doctors are available to provide a technical review of steam piping isometric drawings and drain arrangement

Avoiding Condensate Accumulation with Drains

Potentially damaging water accumulation in steam piping can be avoided by observing the following rules during plant design and operation.

Only reasonably dry steam should flow through Control Valves Condensate from the main steam pipe should be drained before the branch connection to the Control Valve. The connection pipe from main steam lines should be self-draining for nonflowing conditions and should have a

Drain Sizing
The drip leg should have a diameter of 0.5 x pipe diameter and a minimum depth of 1.5 x pipe diameter. The required capacity for drains increases for cases where the steam velocity is low or the steam is within 10oC of saturation. When determining the minimum pressure drop between the pipe to be drained and the drain receiving system, all operating conditions must be considered. Drains should have sufficient capacity for condensate formed during all start-up conditions as well as other transient plant operating conditions CCI must be informed with the order about location and size of any required drain and pre-warming connection in the control valve body.

Draining With Steam Traps

Motorized Valve

Steam Trap

TYPICAL DRAINAGE SYSTEM WITH STEAM TRAP

When a steam trap is used for drainage, a motorized valve operates during start-up while the steam-trap removes condensate during normal operation. Steam traps are not always suitable for higher and/or variable pressure operation. For conditions where automatic steam traps are not suitable other means of drain valve control must be used. Alternatives to steam traps are automated drain valves triggered by measurement of condensate level or measurement or degree of superheat in the drain pot.

Avoiding Water Accumulation with Warming

The avoidance of water accumulation can also be achieved by keeping the piping hot. Warming alleviates the load on drains during plant operation. A small controlled leak flow

through the control valve can achieve the necessary pipe warming during plant operation. In addition, there are various arrangements which can keep control valves and piping warm with very low heat consumption.

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543 - avoiding condensate accumulation in non-steam conditioning valves.doc / Rev.0 543 02/03