archives of thermodynamics Vol. 32(2011), No. 3, 103–116 DOI: 10.2478/v10173-011-0016-2 New technique of the local heat flux measurement in combustion chambers of steam boilers JAN TALER a* DAWID TALER b TOMASZ SOBOTA a PIOTR DZIERWA a Cracow University of Technology, Chair of Thermal Power Engineering al. Jana Pawła II 37, 31-864 Kraków, Poland b Cracow University of Technology, Institute of Heat Engineering and Air Protection , ul. Warszawska 24, 31-155 Kraków, Poland Abstract A new method for measurement of local heat flux to water- walls of steam boilers was developed. A flux meter tube was made from an eccentric tube of short length to which two longitudinal fins were attached. These two fins prevent the boiler setting from heating by a thermal radia- tion from the combustion chamber. The fins are not welded to the adjacent water-wall tubes, so that the temperature distribution in the heat flux me- ter is not influenced by neighbouring water-wall tubes. The thickness of the heat flux tube wall is larger on the fireside to obtain a greater distance between the thermocouples located inside the wall which increases the ac- curacy of heat flux determination. Based on the temperature measurements at selected points inside the heat flux meter, the heat flux absorbed by the water-wall, heat transfer coefficient on the inner tube surface and tempera- ture of the water-steam mixture was determined. Keywords: Heat flux measurement; Inverse heat conduction problem; Steam boiler; Slagging of combustion chambers; CFD simulation * Corresponding author. E-mail address: taler@mech.pk.edu.pl