Additionally, traction engines, steam rollers, portable engines, and a few other steam road vehicles employ locomotive-style boilers. Because of its inherent strength, the boiler serves as the foundation for the vehicle, with all other parts—including the wheels—mounted on brackets fastened to the boiler. Super heaters are not often seen in boilers of this sort, and when they are, they are typically considerably smaller (and simpler) than those used in railway locomotives.
Well, in this reading, I’ll be exploring what Locomotive Boiler is, its application, diagram, parts, advantages and disadvantages & how it works.
Let’s Get Started!
What Is Locomotive Boiler?
Locomotive boiler is a boiler type that is used to heat up the water and create steam from this water. This boiler sits horizontally, just like Lancashire boiler and Cornish boiler. Many people think that Locomotive boiler is a water tube boiler, but in fact, it’s a fire-tube boiler. The locomotive is another feature of the overtype steam waggon, the steam-powered predecessor of the truck, is the locomotive-type boiler. However, in this instance, the boiler is coupled to the vehicle’s load-bearing chassis, which is composed of massive girder frames.
It is an external fire boiler and it has a large fire space. The locomotive boiler consists of a horizontal shell and this shell consists of a number of fire tubes. The locomotive boiler is utilized in various applications such as railways, road rollers, agricultural fields, saw-mill plants, and stationary power services.
How Does Locomotive Boiler Works?
Locomotive boilers are essential components for heating and powering locomotives. They consist of tubes, grates, ash pans, draft pipe, stack, diaphragm, smoke box, water level indicator, safety valves, and brick arches. Flues, made of carbon molybdenum steel and 18-8 Cr Ni steel, provide the majority of the boiler’s heating surface. The grate contains fuel and is made of cast iron. Ash pans collect and transport ashes and coal, and are hung underneath the firebox.
Draft pipe is used to draw combustion gases into the front end of the boiler through the flues, maintaining less pressure than the ambient in the smokebox. The stack is a crucial component of the front end, with straight and tapered stacks being widely used. The draft pipe can be increased or decreased as needed. The diaphragm, also known as the deflector plate, balances the draft in the flues.
The smoke box is the entire section of the boiler beyond the front tube sheet, including the diaphragm, draft, exhaust nozzle, netting, and steam or branch pipes. The water level indicator is used to show the water level in the boiler and maintain consistency. Safety valves are installed on every locomotive boiler, with two pop-type options available.
Brick arches improve combustion and uniform dispersion of hot gases through the tubes. They are used in railways, road rollers, agricultural fields, saw-mill plants, and stationary power services.
