Comparative study of different insulating materials for reducing the heat losses in steam pipes: a technical study

An efficiency loss such as heat loss across bare pipe surfaces reduces the available energy to end-uses and increases the burden on boilers to meet the demand. Energy losses create additional stress on the system that accelerates wear and leads to overloading on the system for which it is not originally designed. In the present study, calculations for heat loss and cost of different insulating materials for varied thicknesses were performed for typical location in Jammu and Kashmir, India. The detailed analysis of the heat loss from bare steam pipes was performed with a view to suggest suitable type of insulation to lower the heat loss to acceptable limits, thereby reducing the cost of fuel. The present work provides the detailed study on the heat conduction analysis of steam pipes for different diameters. This analysis includes the heat loss from steam pipes and cost of insulation for different thicknesses of mineral wool, cement and lead, which can be used as the insulating material. The economics of each insulation type is studied, and the analysis indicates that there is an appreciable fuel saving in terms of thermal units.