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| Boiler Explosion |
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| Bernd:
GWRdriver, Thank you very much for such an informative post. It is greatly appreciated coming from somebody in the know. :bow: Bernd |
| GWRdriver:
Dave and BernD, You are welcome. Dave, if you follow all of the tried and proven guidelines for copper boiler construction and operation, available in books or on model engineering and live steaming web sites, there is no reason why you cannot build a perfectly safe and long-lived boiler. Not everyone in every country agrees on every detail of copper boiler construction, the Australian regulations are more stringent than the US for instance, but generally speaking we are all on the same page which has resulted in a stellar record of safety. The problem arises when someone decides to ignore the proven basics and do things on the cheap and quick, as aluded to by PT, although not exactly in the way and for the purposes he addresses. I'll start you off with a few basic guidelines. If you are subject to a testing or certification authority, contact them first - you may be exempt. If not, begin a conversation with the official who will be repsonsible for certifying your boiler. Use new copper material and seamless hard-drawn tube stock. The thickness of materials will be determijed by the size and design you choose. If you design your own, or need one not covered by an existing design, design formulas are available for everything about a small copper boiler. Use copper and bronze for all the structural components. Never use brass in a steam pressure vessel structure. Keep everything as clean as possible. "Pickle" (deoxidize and degrease) all components before final assembly and soldering to remove all oxidation and oils. Use silver solder of around 45% silver content. Don't skimp on flux, it's cheap, use plenty. Have sufficient heating equipment available. It takes LOTS more heat than you suspect. The typical DIY propane torch will not do. And most importantly ask for guidance and advice from those who have done it, although as can be expected everyone will have a slightly different approach. As you can imagine there are lots of additional design and construction details to be aware of but these are the very basics and this will get you started. |
| Ronkh:
--- Quote from: John Hill on July 24, 2011, 03:41:42 PM --- --- Quote from: DaveH on July 24, 2011, 03:30:21 PM ---PT, The safety valve - why doesn't this take care of the problem? DaveH --- End quote --- There are a few possible reasons for the saftey valve to fail to do its job:- One that first springs to mind is the case where the operator screws down or otherwise disables the valve in an attempt to operate at a higher pressure. There is also the possibility that the boiler is damaged or deteriorated such that it is no longer safe at the normal operating pressure, I think that is what caused the recent traction engine explosion in the US. Locomotives and maybe others have been destroyed when the water level has been low and part of the fire box has got overheated then movement of the locomotive has caused water to surge over the overheated metal where it instantly turned to steap and overwhelmed the safety valve. I believe a locomotive was destroyed in Canada when the crew reversed it up a steep spur to alow a train to pass on the main line. While they were waiting the crown plate overheated as most of the water was at the front of the loco, when they went back onto more level track the water flowed back over the hot metal and the loco exploded. --- End quote --- This has been a facinating thread and I thank you all for it. I have never made a boiler but I do have the material in which to do so and if or when I do, it will only be with the correct books and help from the right people. (I value my life and my kids too much to go headfirst on a subject I know almost sod all about). I have a question regarding the above quote; could an explosion similar to this happen with a model? Whether home-made or a bought model, say a Mamod or any commercially bought boiler, when if for some reason the model was placed at an angle for a while and then brought to an even level? Kind regards, Ron. |
| crabsign69:
i was gonna say everybody wrote something but nobody answered the question until gwr came on board . all round the darn thing with out a answer . wtg gwrdriver. thank you for a answer i like straight answers no b/s. |
| NickG:
Surprised nobody posted this, which is a good illustration of what can happen - remember this is a very small, relatively low pressure boiler, having said that, they had no idea what the pressure was at - watching it as I type ... idiots. Nick |
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