Question for help: There is no drain valve at the end of the steam pipeline; the valve is slightly opened to allow condensate to flow out. What is the impact of steam leakage on energy consumption? How much is the leakage...

It is standard to install a hydroscoper (valve). Well, as a newcomer, it’s just enough to have a general understanding.

It wastes some steam, poses a slight safety risk, and is not standard; the impact isn’t very significant

For steam drain traps, it is generally advisable to have a mixture of half steam and half water; without such traps, this condition is difficult to achieve, which increases steam consumption

It wastes steam; it is necessary to check constantly whether the condensate has been completely removed.

It is rather wasteful of steam, as a large amount of steam is released, and it poses safety risks as it can injure passersby. If possible, it’s better to install a steam trap; the cost of such a valve is not high, and the savings on steam costs will be sufficient.

It is generally difficult to meet the requirements by manually controlling it with valves. Process steam requires that water be drained immediately; the function of a steam trap is also to prevent steam from entering and to drain condensate promptly. With manual control, if the setting is too high, steam will definitely be wasted; the amount of steam lost depends on the setting used. In processes where the steam consumption varies, it becomes even more difficult to maintain control. If the flow rate is too low, the condensate cannot be removed in time, which will occupy the heating surface and affect heat transfer, thereby severely impacting product quality.

You can discharge such straight drainage at set intervals; see the steam shut-off valve.

This post was last edited by longziyun on 2020-7-20 at 18:57. Although it seems that many of the friends mentioned above work for companies with very large operations, effective traps (valves) must definitely be installed at the end of the steam piping systems. In the steam pipelines of the equipment, drain valves are necessary in order to discharge large amounts of condensate when the system is started up or shut down. However, during normal operation, it is still essential to use traps for draining water. What those upstairs said is quite correct – no other type of valve can control the amount of steam condensate as effectively as a trap. It might be more intuitive to use data for clarification: a DN20 trap consumes about 35–50 kilograms of steam per hour, while when the steam discharge length is controlled using a gate valve at one foot, the steam consumption is around 100–150 kilograms per hour. 30 steam traps consume around 1 ton per hour of steam. When the cost is calculated based on heat, it amounts to roughly 100 yuan per ton. Assuming 8,000 hours of operation per year, the annual consumption comes to between 840,000 and 1,200,000 yuan, which is indeed a significant amount of money ； Using the same 30 valves to control the steam discharge length at one foot, if the steam consumption is calculated based on heat output, the cost of steam would amount to around 2.4–3.6 million yuan per year. This results in heat losses of 1.36–2.4 million yuan per year; compared to these losses of over 1 million yuan, it is definitely worthwhile to install several more steam traps.

If this phenomenon is common in the north, it usually occurs at the end of the pipelines; primarily, the function of the traps is not sufficient to prevent such issues. In the event that there is rust or the traps fail to perform their function properly, it is possible for the entire insulation pipeline or the collection station to freeze over. Using rubber hoses for draining condensate is also a temporary solution, and it certainly poses safety risks; therefore, it is usual to assign dedicated personnel to carry out these operations