On the Conclusions Derived from the Experience of Recent Steam Boiler Explosions, by Edward B. Marten, Mem. Inst. M.E., excerpt Minutes of Proceedings of the Meeting of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, at Nottingham, 3rd August, 1870, Thomas Hawksley, Esq., Vice-President, in the Chair. By permission of the Council. The records of Steam Boiler Explosions in recent years are very numerous, as the increased attention drawn to the subject in this and other countries has placed far more information at disposal; and the experience of the last four years, since a former paper was read by the writer on the subject of boiler explosions, has confirmed the opinion then expressed, that all boilers, however good in original construction, are liable in the course of time to get into bad order and explode. The particulars of the explosions during this period are given in the Tables appended to the present paper, which show the number of explosions due to each cause in each class of boiler, distinguishing those of the United Kingdom from those in foreign countries. An analysis is also given of the explosions in the last four years, showing the causes of explosion of each form of boiler; and also a summary of the causes of explosion under the three general heads of—(1) faults in construction or repair: (2) faults in working which creep on insidiously and unnoticed: (3) faults which might be seen and guarded against by careful attendants. Nearly all of the faults in these three classes would have been detected by periodical examination. In the case of Cornish, Lancashire, and other boilers with internal flues, the faults of construction which have caused explosions have been weakness in the tubes, combustion chambers, ends, domes, or manholes; and explosions in these, as in other classes of boilers, In plain cylindrical boilers, and others without internal flues, explosions have resulted from the boiler ends being made flat, and also from frequent repairs producing seam rips, especially in boilers having the plates arranged lengthways instead of in rings. In marine boilers, weak flues and weak ends have also led to explosion, in addition to the other causes mentioned above. Locomotive boilers have in two cases exploded in consequence of the strains thrown upon them by their being used as a frame for the engine. Other explosions have resulted from want of stays, and from too much heat impinging on some particular part; and in domestic boilers from freezing of pipes under pressure. Altogether the total number of explosions in this country that have been recorded during the past four years has amounted to 219, which may be classed under the following heads:—
By these 219 explosions 315 persons were killed and 450 injured. The following are the particulars of the construction of the 219 exploded boilers:—
The causes of these 219 explosions may also be classed as follows:—
Sketches are given of the most instructive examples of boiler explosions during the last four years, which are sufficient to explain themselves, with a brief reference to their special features. explosion site Fig. 1. single tube horizontal boiler Fig. 2. exploded boiler Fig. 3. boiler with plate blown off Fig. 4. boiler with collapsed tube Fig. 5. Although the importance of periodical examination as the best safeguard against explosion is generally admitted, a great number of those who make or use boilers have not at present sufficient belief in its importance to adopt this course. Boilers are still constructed or set in such a manner as to render examination next to impossible; and are continued to be worked without making it the duty of those who mind them, or of any one else, to examine every part at frequent intervals; and hence such explosions have occurred as shown in Fig. 1, No. 12, 1870, in which the original position of the boiler before explosion is indicated by the dotted lines. Much mischief arises from special classes of boilers, fittings, or apparatus, being looked upon as promising permanent safety from An apparatus, for instance, for preventing explosion from shortness of water or over-pressure, however perfect for any such object, would be quite inefficient as a safeguard against explosion from corrosion, furrowing, channelling, or weak construction. It is curious to note how often it is the case that every other part of an establishment is subject to severe and perpetual scrutiny, the engines especially being overhauled with the most scrupulous regularity; while the boilers, the very source of the power and the heart of the whole business, are left to themselves for long periods, even for years, without examination; and it is too often only after bitter experience that owners have understood the need of this examination. In this, as in many other matters, experience has shown that there is no royal road to safety, and that immunity is only secured by unremitting care and constant watchfulness. It should never be forgotten that even a good boiler can explode; for however good at the outset, sooner or later the time must eventually arrive, when such wear and tear will have taken place as will result in dangerous weakness, unless the boiler is carefully and systematically attended to. Although a boiler may even last safely for ten to thirty or more years if worked slowly and with care, no confidence can be placed in a boiler which has worked so long, unless it is examined in every part. explosion site Fig. 6. marine boiler explosion Fig. 7. boiler on furnace showing feed water supply Fig. 8. boiler on furnace showing feed water supply Fig. 9. boiler on furnace Fig. 10. partly exploded upright boiler Fig. 11. horizontal boiler with explosion damage Fig. 12. The opinion is more general than many are aware of, that explosions as a rule are caused by shortness of water and the sudden turning on of the feed water upon red-hot plates; and the appearances of injury in the plates from fire, arising in the ordinary course of working, have been frequently mistaken for signs of overheating from shortness of water at the time of explosion, as illustrated in Fig. 6 and Fig. 7, No. 24, 1867, and No. 59, 1866. Although boilers do explode from the softening of the plates by Although it may be too much to suppose that boiler explosions will ever be entirely prevented, it is important that those who have boiler blown to several large pieces Fig. 13. boiler flattened by explosion Fig. 14. Before considering in detail the causes of explosion, it is necessary to recall to mind that beyond question there is sufficient accumulated force in any working boiler to cause all the violent effects of an explosion, if this force be suddenly liberated. In Fig. 13 and Fig. 14, No. 18, 1869, and No. 63, 1866, are shown the violent effects of the rupture of vessels employed for steaming rags, which were filled with steam only. The following appear to be the general results to be derived from the experience of the explosions in this country during the last four years. exploded boiler Fig. 15. exploded boiler Fig. 16. exploded boiler Fig. 17. exploded boiler in several pieces Fig. 18. First as to faults of construction which fall under the department of the boiler maker or repairer. One of the most apparent causes of explosion in stationery boilers is the loss of strength occasioned by frequent repair, not only from the injury done to the old plates by removing rivets, but from the want of bond in the new work. This has lead to many of the explosions of the Plain Cylindrical boilers, such as are shown in Fig. 15, Fig. 16, and Fig. 17, No. 45, 1869, No. 32, 1870, and No. 20, 1870. Where the plates are arranged Perhaps no boilers have worked for a greater number of years than the Plain Cylindrical boilers, many specimens being in existence and apparently in good order which were put to work fifty or sixty years ago. When such boilers have been too much or injudiciously upright boiler explosion due to bottom corrosion Fig. 19. two tube chimney boiler Fig. 20. Five very fatal explosions have occurred of boilers heated by Puddling and Mill Furnaces, leading in some cases to the supposition that this form of boiler is more liable to explosion than others. They were not adopted however in the iron-making districts without great care and consideration, and there does not seem ground for attributing special danger to them. The causes of the five explosions referred to of these boilers were manifest, and would have led to the explosion of any form of boiler; the loss of life however was great, because the situation of the boilers was among a large number of workmen. The steam power required in ironworks so far exceeds that in any other trade, that an ironwork is half composed of boilers; the workmen are necessarily within the range of explosion of many boilers, and hence the great loss of life when such an accident occurs. The explosions of such boilers shown in Fig. 19 and Fig. 20, No. 24, 1868, and No. 31, 1868, were from external and internal corrosion respectively of the bottoms, rendering them too weak to bear the ordinary pressure. boiler explosion due to central tube collapse Fig. 21. boiler explosion due to internal collapse Fig. 22. exploded boiler Fig. 24. Those shown in Fig. 21 and Fig. 22, No. 23, 1870, and No. 53, 1869, were from the collapse of the central tubes, which were weakened by external and internal corrosion respectively. In Fig. 24, No. 35, 1868, the shell was in bad order boiler exploded due to ruptured shell Fig. 23. boiler exploded due to collapsed fire tube Fig. 25. dismembered boiler Fig. 26. boiler with collasped flue Fig. 27. The greatest number of explosions and the greatest loss of life and personal injury have been in the case of Cornish and Lancashire boilers, or others with internal flues. In the county of Cornwall itself there have been many explosions, as often from the rupture of the shell, Fig. 23, No. 58, 1869, as from the collapse of the tube, Fig. 25, No. 35, 1869. The temporary patching on some of these old boilers was most extensive, Fig. 26, No. 52, 1869, and the only wonder really was that they held together as long as they did. The belief that shortness of water is the only cause which can lead to the collapse of tubes is so strong, that the boiler minders have often been condemned almost unheard in cases of explosion, as if there were no room for doubt that their neglect was the cause. Explosions from weakness of tubes are not however confined to Cornwall, crane boiler Fig. 28. exploded crane boiler Fig. 29. Several instances have occurred of explosion of Portable Crane Boilers. Their small size has led to their condition being disregarded, under the idea that scarcely any pressure could burst them. In practice it is found however that they are often exposed to greater pressure than other boilers, because the fire is large and quick in proportion to their size; and they often have to stand for a considerable time with the steam up, and their exposed position and long intervals of rest add to the chances of corrosion, as shown by the example in Fig. 28, No. 14, 1869. The large manholes without strengthening rings, that are so often put in these boilers, have been the cause of explosions such as that shown in Fig. 29, No. 57, 1866. exploded portable boiler Fig. 30. agricultural boiler with large man hole Fig. 31. The same remark applies to some of the portable or agricultural boiler with flat inside tube Fig. 37. Much mischief is often caused by bad imitation of well planned boilers. Thus in boilers of the Cornish form, the ends are made sometimes so rigid as to give no allowance for the expansion of the tube, and the result is such continued strain as to cause constant leaking and the consequent risk of fracture. In furnace boilers the tops of the crowns of the inside tubes are often made flat, as in Fig. 37, instead of being domed; or the inside tube is of undue size, as in Fig. 21, No. 23, 1870, see page 73. Furnace boilers have been made with the omission of the stays that are so peculiarly necessary in that form, whereby both ends have been left free to bulge outwards with the pressure, as in Fig. 32. boiler without stays Fig. 32. boiler with two flue tubes removed Fig. 33. exploded boiler with flue tube removed Fig. 34. boiler with bolted patch Fig. 35. exploded boiler Fig. 36. Cornish boilers are often altered to the plain cylindrical form, without compensation being made for the loss of strength caused by the removal of the tube; this has led to such explosions as shown in Fig. 33, No. 47, 1869, where two tubes where taken out, and Fig. 34, No. 42, 1867, where one tube was taken out. One of the most frequent and serious causes of loss of strength is the repairing of externally fired boilers. Not only are the patches sometimes only bolted on in a temporary manner, as in Fig. 35, No. 29, 1869, but even where they are rivetted on there is an entire want of bond or crossed joint, as in the case of the exploded boilers shown in wear on boiler plate Fig. 38. flame softened plate Fig. 39. excess flame softening boiler plate Fig. 40. internally fired boiler Fig. 41. boiler with plate blown off Fig. 59. An attempt is made in Fig. 38 to show the effect of wear and tear of boiler plate in an ordinary upright furnace boiler, such as is shown in Fig. 37. The external surface is exposed to intense heat and consequently expands, while the internal surface is kept cool by contact with the water and expands to a much less degree. The continued repetition of this process produces the same effect of cracking the surface as that seen in the anvil blocks of steam hammers; and the strength of the plate is reduced in proportion to the destruction of the continuity of its surface. The deleterious effect of this process is much increased if the boiler is subject to alternate In order to enable boiler minders to make proper periodical examinations, it is necessary that care should be taken to arrange both the boilers and the flues with that view; and this can be done without materially injuring the efficiency of the boiler. Ordinary plain cylindrical boilers can be entered easily, as in Fig. 42; and although the small spaces between the tubes and the shells of Cornish and Lancashire Boilers, as shown in Fig. 43, render the complete examination troublesome, there is no difficulty in seeing those parts most likely to need examination, such as the crowns of rectangular domestic boiler Fig. 51. exploded domestic boiler Fig. 52. The explosions of fourteen Domestic or Heating-Apparatus Boilers are included in the list of explosions, Table III; and some cast iron boiler Fig. 53. wrought iron boiler Fig. 54. domestic boiler within an open-topped boiler Fig. 55. The cast-iron boilers commonly used, Fig. 53, end of 1869, are capable of bearing but little pressure; and the wrought iron boilers, agricultural boiler Fig. 56. A few remarks may be useful as to those faults arising in working which fall under the department of the boiler minders. Not a few of the explosions during the last four years have occurred from acts of simple carelessness, such as where a blow-off pipe was left open, so that the boiler was nearly emptied of water while at work; or in another case where two boilers were fed at the same time through a common pipe without a back valve, and the water from one "kicked" over into the other. Undue pressure has been allowed to accumulate by safety valves being tied down, as in the agricultural boiler, Fig. 56, No. 16, 1867; or by an extra weight being put upon the safety valve, as in an instance where three bricks were fastened to the lever and the fires were lighted earlier than usual, under the idea that an accumulation of steam could be raised during the night to make a good start in the morning. Another explosion was caused by working a boiler at more than three times its proper pressure to meet a temporary emergency. In not a few explosion due to corrosion Fig. 57. Corrosion has been the direct cause of many of the explosions. In one or two cases the corrosion was known to exist, but the renewal of the boiler was too long delayed, as in Fig. 57, No. 8, 1869, in others it took both owners and minders by surprise, as in Fig. 1, No. 12, 1870, page 63. It is said that to produce rapid rusting of iron there must be present oxygen, water, and carbonic acid; and as all these are present in a boiler flue when there are leaks, it is not surprising that so many cases occur of explosions from corrosion. mud buildup in a boiler Fig. 58. Much mischief is often done by the injudicious use of compositions in the boiler that are designed to prevent incrustation, especially where there is no blow-off cock or where its use is neglected. A hard deposit on the boiler plates is, in the writer's opinion, not so injurious as the soft and muddy deposit produced by the use of such compositions. A hard scale is equivalent to thickening the plate; and although this is sufficiently mischievous, the injury to the plates is much more rapid when a thicker but spongy deposit entirely prevents contact of the water and impedes the transmission of the heat. An attempt to illustrate this is given in Fig. 58, which is an enlarged view of a portion of such a boiler as is shown in Fig. 37. The writer has had to mention only faults in boilers; but it is not to be inferred that all boilers are working in actual danger. A very small percentage perhaps are so; but without periodical examination no one can feel sure of the condition of any boiler. It is not likely that explosions in future will be from exactly the same causes as those now described, because the known faults will be avoided. For instance no new Balloon, Wagon, or Butterley boilers are now made; and the peculiar faults and the weakness of the tubes in Cornish and others of the better classes of boilers are now so well known as to be generally avoided; and as information spreads, many evils will become things of the past. As periodical examination has been so strongly advocated, it might seem natural to desire that it should be enforced by government authority; but this is by no means recommended. A select parliamentary committee has been recently investigating the subject, with a view to ascertain whether that would be desirable, but has adjourned for the session without coming to any decision on this point. Even if a perfect system of government inspection could be contrived and perfectly administered, it would have the effect of taking the responsibility from the owners, who are the natural guardians of the safety of their boilers. Although the loss of 70 lives per annum by boiler explosions is sufficiently deplorable, the deaths by railway accidents are more than three times that number; yet The writer's object has been that the boilers found most convenient and best suited for the different purposes for which they are used should be made to work with safety, rather than that reliance should be placed upon the qualities of any particular kind of boiler or fittings. No form of boiler at present admits of absolute reliance upon its freedom from risk. The following general conclusions appear to arise from the consideration of the records of boiler explosions.
TABLE I.
TABLE II.
TABLE III.
TABLE IV.
BRIEF ABSTRACTS FROM REPORTS ON STEAM BOILER EXPLOSIONS, PRESENTED TO THE MIDLAND STEAM BOILER INSPECTION & ASSURANCE Co., BY EDWARD BINDON MARTEN, CHIEF ENGINEER TO THE COMPANY. Description is shortened as much as possible, and facilitated by slight sketches, showing the position of the fragments or line of fracture, and the general construction of the Boilers. REPUBLISHED BY THE PERMISSION OF THE COMPANY. STOURBRIDGE: B. BROOMHALL, PRINTER, HIGH STREET. 1869. |