01
The Challenge
High fuel cost, inconsistent combustion temperatures, recurring refractory wear, and casing losses on an ammonia plant's process boiler.
02
What Was Applied
Emisshield on both castable refractory and carbon-steel tube surfaces of Boiler 1. Steel was grit-blasted and chemically cleaned; refractory needed no preparation. Thermal imaging before and after tracked burner-wall and sidewall temperatures against Boiler 2.
03
Why It Worked
Coated refractory re-emits absorbed energy to the tubes rather than the flue, and coated tubes absorb more of it, so the same fuel raises more steam while walls run cooler. See Energy Savings and Production Increase.
04
Summary of Results
| Metric | Uncoated (Boiler 2) | Coated (Boiler 1) |
|---|---|---|
| Natural gas use | Baseline | −4 to 5% |
| Steam output | Baseline | +15 to 20% |
| Boiler efficiency (normalized, after burner adjustments) | 966 BTU/scf | 1,009 BTU/scf (+4.4%) |
| Shell temperature (burner wall, sidewalls) | Baseline | Notably lower |
| Excess air | Baseline | Reduced; more stable combustion |
| Maintenance cycle | 9 months | 24+ months |
Daily heat-value data showed a 1.1 to 1.3% efficiency gain immediately after coating and 3.9 to 4.4% after burner adjustments, with additional gains from lower stack temperature and higher feedwater temperature. The plant manager's summary: "This technology gave us more steam with less fuel, and pushed our maintenance window out by over a year."