Project Overview

• Project Location: Xi'an, Shanxi, China
• Customer Industry: Pharmaceutical Manufacturing
• Boiler Model: WNS6-1.25-Y.Q
• Rated Capacity: 6 tons of steam per hour
• Fuel Type: Natural Gas
• Boiler Type: Integrated Condensing Gas-Fired Steam Boiler
• Application: Pharmaceutical production and process heating

Background: Reliable Steam for Pharmaceutical Manufacturing

Xi'an Libang Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. is a high-tech pharmaceutical enterprise in China integrating pharmaceutical research and development, manufacturing, and sales. The company operates six automated production lines covering several important pharmaceutical fields, including anesthetics, cardiovascular medicines, and pediatric immunization products.

Steam is an essential energy source throughout many pharmaceutical manufacturing processes. It is used for traditional Chinese medicine decoction, medicinal material drying, sterilization, drying, tablet production, capsule manufacturing, and other thermal processes. Because pharmaceutical production requires stable temperatures, reliable steam pressure, and strict environmental compliance, the company needed a modern steam boiler system with high efficiency and intelligent control.

As part of China's ongoing efforts to reduce air pollution and promote cleaner industrial energy, the pharmaceutical company decided to replace its existing high-pollution coal-fired boiler system. After evaluating the required steam capacity, operating conditions, energy efficiency, and environmental requirements, the company selected a 6-ton WNS6-1.25-Y.Q integrated condensing gas-fired steam boiler supplied by FANGKUAI Boiler.

The new boiler provides stable and efficient steam for the company's pharmaceutical production while helping the factory reduce emissions and improve overall energy management.

Why Was a 6-Ton Gas-Fired Steam Boiler Selected?

For pharmaceutical factories, boiler selection is closely related to production stability and product quality. Insufficient steam capacity can affect sterilization, drying, and other critical processes, while unstable pressure may lead to fluctuations in production conditions.

The WNS6-1.25-Y.Q boiler provides a rated steam capacity of 6 tons per hour and a rated working pressure of 1.25 MPa, making it suitable for medium-sized pharmaceutical production facilities with multiple steam-consuming processes.

Compared with the previous coal-fired system, the gas-fired boiler offers several advantages:

• Cleaner combustion and lower pollutant emissions
• Faster automatic load adjustment
• More stable steam pressure
• Reduced manual operation requirements
• Compact equipment layout
• Improved energy efficiency
• Better compatibility with modern environmental regulations

For a pharmaceutical production facility, these advantages are especially important because the steam system must operate continuously and reliably to support different production stages.

High-Efficiency Design for Pharmaceutical Applications

The WNS6-1.25-Y.Q is a horizontal fire-tube gas-fired steam boiler designed for efficient and stable industrial steam production. The boiler adopts a large-diameter corrugated furnace design. This structure provides sufficient combustion space and helps enhance the interaction between the high-temperature flue gas and the heating surfaces.

The optimized furnace structure promotes more complete fuel combustion and improves heat transfer efficiency. This is particularly valuable for pharmaceutical applications such as:

• Traditional Chinese medicine decoction
• Medicinal material drying
• Steam sterilization
• Pharmaceutical equipment cleaning
• Drying processes
• Tablet manufacturing
• Capsule production
• Process heating

The boiler is also equipped with a dual-stage waste heat recovery system consisting of an economizer and condenser. The system recovers heat from the exhaust gas and transfers it back to the boiler feedwater or other usable systems.

According to the project specifications, the condensing system helps reduce the flue gas temperature to approximately 60°C, allowing more heat to be recovered from the exhaust gases. Under suitable operating conditions, the system can achieve a high overall thermal efficiency of up to 104% based on the relevant condensing efficiency calculation method.

This high-efficiency design helps reduce fuel consumption and operating costs, especially for pharmaceutical factories with long daily operating hours.

Intelligent PLC Control and Remote Boiler Management

Modern pharmaceutical manufacturing requires more than just a reliable heat source. The boiler system must also provide accurate control and convenient operation.

The WNS6-1.25-Y.Q gas-fired steam boiler is equipped with an automatic PLC control system. The system monitors and regulates key operating parameters, including:

• Steam pressure
• Boiler water level
• Burner operation
• Combustion conditions
• Safety protection parameters
• Automatic start and shutdown sequences

The control system automatically adjusts the burner output according to the actual steam demand. When the pharmaceutical production line requires more steam, the boiler can increase its operating load. When the steam demand decreases, the system reduces the fuel input accordingly.

This automatic adjustment helps improve operating efficiency while reducing unnecessary fuel consumption.

The boiler system also incorporates the FANGKUAI Cloud Service 4.0 system, which enables remote monitoring and intelligent operation management. Through the cloud-based platform, authorized personnel can monitor boiler operating conditions, review energy consumption data, identify abnormal operating conditions, and receive fault warnings.

For a pharmaceutical factory, this remote management capability can reduce the need for frequent manual inspections and help maintenance personnel respond more quickly to potential problems.

Compact Structure for Pharmaceutical Factory Applications

Pharmaceutical factories often have strict requirements for production space and equipment layout. The boiler system must provide sufficient steam capacity without occupying excessive floor space.

The integrated design of the WNS6-1.25-Y.Q boiler helps reduce the complexity of installation and equipment arrangement. The compact structure is suitable for factories where available space is limited.

The boiler also adopts optimized water circulation and manufacturing processes designed to improve equipment reliability and service life. According to the project information, the optimized design can help extend the expected service life of the boiler to approximately 20 years under proper operation and maintenance.

For the pharmaceutical industry, long-term equipment reliability is particularly important. A stable boiler system can help reduce unexpected downtime and support continuous production.

Results After Boiler Installation

After the new 6-ton integrated gas-fired steam boiler was put into operation, the pharmaceutical factory achieved improvements in both production performance and environmental management.

More Stable Steam Supply

The stable steam output improved the performance of sterilization, drying, and other pharmaceutical processes. Reliable steam pressure is especially important for processes requiring consistent temperature and thermal conditions.

Improved Energy Efficiency

The combination of the high-efficiency combustion system, economizer, and condenser allows more energy to be recovered from the fuel. This reduces heat loss and helps lower overall fuel consumption during long-term operation.

Lower Emissions

Replacing the former coal-fired boiler with a natural gas-fired system significantly reduced pollutant emissions. According to the project information, nitrogen oxide emissions were reduced by approximately 80% compared with the previous system, helping the company meet its environmental compliance requirements.

Easier Operation and Maintenance

The automatic PLC control system and cloud-based monitoring platform reduce the workload associated with manual operation and routine inspections. Operators can obtain important operating information through the control interface and remote management system.

The customer also reported improved maintenance efficiency and reduced operating workload after the new boiler system was installed.

About FANGKUAI Boiler

FANGKUAI Boiler is a Chinese industrial boiler manufacturer specializing in the design and production of gas-fired boilers, oil-fired boilers, biomass boilers, electric boilers, hot water boilers, and steam boiler systems for industrial applications.

The company provides boiler solutions for industries including pharmaceuticals, food processing, textiles, chemicals, hospitals, hotels, manufacturing, and other industrial sectors.

For pharmaceutical manufacturers, FANGKUAI Boiler focuses on providing complete steam solutions based on the customer's production capacity, steam pressure requirements, fuel availability, environmental regulations, and factory layout.

The Xi'an pharmaceutical project demonstrates how a modern 6-ton gas-fired steam boiler can replace a traditional coal-fired system and provide a cleaner, more efficient, and intelligent steam supply for pharmaceutical production.

Conclusion

The successful installation of the WNS6-1.25-Y.Q 6-ton integrated condensing gas-fired steam boiler at Xi'an Libang Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. provides a practical example of boiler modernization in China's pharmaceutical industry.

By replacing the traditional coal-fired system with a high-efficiency natural gas steam boiler, the pharmaceutical manufacturer achieved more stable process steam, improved energy efficiency, reduced emissions, and more convenient intelligent operation.

For pharmaceutical factories looking to upgrade their existing boiler systems, a properly selected gas-fired steam boiler can provide a reliable solution for sterilization, drying, decoction, tablet production, capsule manufacturing, and other industrial heating applications.

If you are planning a new pharmaceutical boiler project or replacing an existing coal-fired, oil-fired, or gas-fired boiler, FANGKUAI Boiler can provide customized industrial steam boiler solutions based on your required steam capacity, working pressure, fuel type, and production process.