First company in the Spanish sector with quality ASME certification

Pirobloc, a manufacturer company of thermal oil heaters for industrial use, has recently obtained the ASME quality certification (American Society of Mechanical Engineers), while in possession of the quality certification according to ISO 9001: 2008.

The first step to reach the certification (as said in the previous blog), is to decide which of our processes you would like to certify under such standard of quality, since the ASME classifies equipment or products in Sections and Divisions, finally granting:

• a metal Stamp, to be used to mark with a letter the technical nameplate contained in products manufactured under the chosen design code, which can be "R", "S", "U", etc... , and
• a Certificate of authorization to manufacture under the corresponding design code.

So, to buy a boiler manufactured according to ASME stamp, involves the certification of the following qualities:

1. Manufacturing under the standards of the "x" design code
2. A qualified and certified staff to carry out the work
3. The traceability of the materials used in the manufacture of the product subject to certification
4. The realization of non-destructive tests during the manufacturing of the stamped products
5. Registration of non-conformities
6. Monitoring of standards during the manufacturing processes

See you on the next publication. Read More!

The ASME certificate

After a long absence, due to the daily work and the projects in which our company has been involved, we have been preparing new contents that we believe they will be of your maximum interest.

So, this is the first in a series of blogs dedicated to obtaining the ASME certificate of quality, which means that the ASME institution AUTORIZES to a manufacturer to be able to use its seal on their products.

ASME stands for the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. This association has generated from its appearance a code of design, manufacture and inspection for pressure equipment, recognized and accepted not only in America but also in countries in other continents.

The interest to be able to manufacture a product under the ASME regulations lies in the fact of access to the American market, as well as, to open the possibility of offering your products to potential clients situated in any part of the world that based its standards of quality in the mentioned legislation.

Advantages of an ASME certification

• International market of more than 113 countries
• Authorization to manufacture equipments under the ASME stamp
• Publication in the ASME authorized manufacturer registry
• Competence for the use of the ASME code
• Responsibility as ASME manufacturer
• The confidence of a design and manufacturing under quality ASME
• Implement of the quality requirements
• Enable to compare, to expand and/or to include ASME processes to your own standards

In our next blog, we will talk about the parameters of quality certified by the ASME stamp. Read More!

MODULATING BURNERS

Although, it is certain that at present many equipment of new acquisition incorporates this type of burners. In fact, Pirobloc always implements them without additional cost in all gas equipment. They still even exist many facilities with burners of two steps or, for low powers, at one step. 

Each process of manufacture is different, but the habitual fact is that the heat consumer does not even require all the power at any moment. Also, in certain cases, the consumption is null or low. In those cases of variable processes and, still considering an optimal regulation, the burner will go out. Opposite to the appearances, this action does not contribute to any economic saving. From a point of view of energetics efficiency, when the burner starts again, it will take place the relative "blowing" of the combustion chamber, producing an unnecessary cooling of it. 

With a correct sizing and the supplying of modulating burners, when the demand of power is low, the modulation of the burner complies consequently with that low demand, avoiding complete unemployment and the cooling of the combustion chamber for, immediately afterwards, returning to warm up it. That is to say, useless fuel consumption.

See you in our next appointment.

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Fuel Saving

¿DID YOU KNOW…?

That in a heating process with thermal fluid fuel consumption is between 20 and 25% lower than with steam.

Of course you did. Despite and maybe because not everybody did, I’m not get bored to repeat. Nowadays energy and industry are focused in the climatic change, fuel fossil exhaustion and in its consequent price increase. Then, to choose the suitable technological option to heat up a process becomes the key not just for our planet but also for our pocket.

Still there are many companies and process burning more than 20% strictly needed. The global efficiency of one indirect heating installation is 65 - 70%. That is to say more than 30% of the energy is get lost. Third part of it is getting lost by the chimney. Exhaust recovery has to be develop notably in the coming years. But this is not the topic of today. The worst is the other 20% of the whole burnt fuel. Condensates and steam traps are in charge of it.

The good new is that this same process heated up by hot oil will have a global efficiency of 90%. The other 10% is getting lost again by the stack. But that’s all. Is not phase change, nor condensates recovery, nor steam traps. It’s just a closed circuit. Read More!

The heat insulation in a thermal oil installation

The technology of the heating through thermal oil has like basic characteristics the possibility of working at high temperatures (180-280ºC), not generating high pressures as it happens in steam installations.

This is due to the fact that there is not a change of phase from its liquid form and to the fact to work in a closed circuit.

But, today we want to focus ourselves in the type of specific heat insulation recommended to isolate the thermal fluid facilities, existing in the market multiple products for it, between which the mineral wools (rock wool), the plastic foams, products with cellulose, etc., all of them with the basic characteristic to avoid losses of heat from the heating fluid, to guarantee the yield and good operation of the installation, avoiding accidents and expensive energy losses, avoiding a greater environmental contamination and global heating.

In our case, it is important to consider the working temperature of the process and the diameter of the installation piping, recommending the following:
We will use casting dies in pipes of small and medium diameter, due to the concentric disposition of fibers. Therefore, the thickness of the casting dies would not have to be inferior to 60 mm for the pipe until DN-65, being of 80 mm for the pipe of greater diameter. The use of the rock wool is recommended in higher diameters of the previously mentioned ones, and for working temperatures over 200ºC.

In order to extend the previous information, you can consult the norm UNE 9310 that applies in Spain and that informs into the minimum thicknesses of isolation according to the diameters and temperatures of work.

Please, remember that it is not necessary to isolate the expansion and collecting tanks in the thermal oil facilities.
Please, also remember that the insulating wools use noninflammable materials and of a minimum calorific power, being against the propagation of fires. If we have high working temperatures or increases of temperature in an installation, will have to choose high density (HD) rock wools for our insulation.

To finish, as habitual norm and with the object of calculations, it is used the following reference: the temperature of wall of a heat consumer machine, of a thermal oil heater, of the piping, etc., does not have to surpass in 30ºC the room temperature.
See you next time. Read More!