Causes and solutions for cracking of coextruded and weld overlay floor tubes in black liquor recovery boilers

Cracking of coextruded, black liquor recovery boiler floor tubes is both a safety and an economic issue to mill operators. In an effort to determine the cause of the cracking and to identify a solution, extensive studies, described in this and three accompanying papers, are being conducted. In this paper, results of studies to characterize both the cracking and the chemical and thermal environment are reported. Based on the results described in this series of papers, a possible mechanism is presented and means to lessen the likelihood of cracking or to totally avoid cracking of floor tubes are offered