Monitoring chloride, sulfite, phosphate and cycle of concentration in palm oil mill boiler using statistical process control analysis

The quality of boiler feedwater and boiler water has a significant impact on the efficiency and productivity of the boilers. It is due to the corrosion and formation of scale in the boilers which are contributed by the high concentrations of pollutants in the boiler water. Therefore in this study, data-driven techniques using Statistical Process Control (SPC) has been utilized to monitor the quality of the parameter of the boiler and boiler feedwater for palm oil mills in the State of Perak, Malaysia. The data was collected from 39 palm oil mills from the year 2017 to 2019. Data-driven analysis methods of the data collected were carried out for the parameter namely chloride, sulfite, phosphate and cycle of concentration (COC) profiles in the boiler. There are four (4) box plot profiles were produced for parameters investigated. From the results of the analysis, one parameter that is being investigated which is chloride is not within the recommended ASME guidelines where the median is beyond the recommended limit. This behaviour also reflects to other parameters as well which is beyond the recommended limit of ASME guidelines. Therefore, proper monitoring and treatment of boiler feedwater are needed to ensure the quality of the boiler water parameter is following the ASME guidelines.