Design of Steam Heating Systems
An introduction to the basic design of steam heating systems
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The simplest steam heating system can installed at relative low costs. The disadvantages with the simple system is the lack of modulating quality.
The simplest steam heating system is the
Single Pipe Steam System with Main Pipes Pitched Towards the Boiler
Steam and condensate use the same main pipes. The condensate flows in the opposite direction of the steam.
Air valves are necessary for evacuating air during start-up.
The system is simple but the heat emission in radiators or in heat exchangers are hard to control. Modulating the heat will cause the heating elements to be partly filled with air. The system can work properly in applications where the heat can be modulated directly in the boiler, as applications for warehouses, garages and so on. The system should be avoided where it is necessary to individually modulate each radiator or heat exchanger.
The condensate draines back to the boiler and during stops the system fills with air. This makes the design suitable for temporarily heated application working under water freezing conditions.
The simple system can be modified to the
Single Pipe Steam System with Main Steam Pipes Pitched Away from the Boiler
This is a better design than the former because the steam and condensate are more separated in different pipes. It can be further improved with the
Single Pipe Steam System with Overhead Steam Distribution
A improvement to this system is to completely separate the steam and condensate in the
Steam Trap System
In the Steam Trap System the steam are hold back in heating elements and steam pipes by steam traps. The steam traps may work after several thermodynamic and mechanical principles. Read more about choosing steam traps.
The advantage with this system is better individual modulating of radiators and heat exchangers.
The disadvantage is more equipment and higher costs.
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Related Topics
- Pipe Sizing - Sizing steam and condensate pipes - pressure loss, recommended velocity, capacity and more
- Steam and Condensate - Steam & condensate properties - capacities, pipe sizing, systems configuration and more
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Related Documents
- Back Pressure and Steam Trap Capacity - Back pressure in a condensate systems will reduce the steam trap capacity
- Classification of Steam Heating Systems - Steam systems carries heat through pipes from the boiler to consumers as heat exchangers, process equipment etc.
- Classifications of Hot-Water Heating Systems - Hot-water heating systems can be classified by temperature and pressure
- Heating Capacity of Steam Radiators and Convectors - Steam radiators and steam convectors - heat capacities and temperature coefficients
- Outdoor Temperature - and Hot Water Heating Temperature - Adapting the hot water heating temperature to outdoor temperature allows modulating valves to operate in their design range
- Steam & Condensate Equations - Steam consumption and condensate generation formulas heating liquids or gas flows
- Steam Heating Processes - Load Calculating - Calculating the amount of steam in non-flow batch and continuous flow heating processes
- Steam Trap Selection Guide - A steam trap selection guide - Float & Thermostatic, Inverted Bucket, Bimetal Thermostatic, Impulse and Thermodynamic Disc steam traps
