Monitoring dissolved oxygen in high-pressure boiler systems

Dissolved Oxygen (DO), the primary corrosive agent of steam-generating systems, is one of the most important water quality parameters to control in a boiler system. Improper water quality management can thus result in inefficiency, costly repairs, and downtime. Operators of high-pressure boilers try to eliminate DO entirely from feedwater through the rather economical technique of mechanical deaeration, a process that may be supplemented with chemical treatment using oxygen scavengers. DO levels are monitored routinely to confirm sufficient removal of DO within the system.

Probes and online analysers offer continuous DO measurement but require routine calibration of sensors. Portable colorimetric test kits such as those offered by CHEMetrics are also routinely used in boiler applications. CHEMetrics kits feature the convenience of “snap and read” self-filling ampoules and offer plant operators a rapid, reliable, maintenance-free means of determining ppb levels of DO within one minute. Over the course of 50+ years, CHEMetrics has earned a reputation for providing quality DO tests to this marketplace.