hey any one can put some light on fundamental of steam trapping and why it is os important and why we can mainten it. if it is niot proper do we have to pay more for steam?? how to save money for steam.

They only call them steam traps.  They are really CONDENSATE traps.  Condensate forms in the steam lines, and does not contribute to the job the steam does.  It erodes the piping, it puddles up and causes steam hammer, and condensate has about 1000 btu/lb less heat content than a pound of saturated steam.  

I am pleased that some of you found my comments colorful.
My points were that equipment designed to be heated by steam usually is less efficient when exposed to a steam/condensate mixture. Heat transfer is decreased in a partially-flooded device, and slugs of condensate moving at steam velocity can be destructive. It is important to separate the steam from the condensate, and condensate forms continuously because heat leaks through pipe walls, even when they are insulated.  

For the sake of grabbing real numbers: 100 psi dry saturated steam carries an enthalpy of 1189 BTUs per pound. 338F.  WIthout losing any temperature whatsoever, it gives up 880 BTUs and becomes saturated condensate with an enthalpy of 309 BTU/lb.  THAT's a pretty efficient heat transfer medium.  You can reclaim the condensate at (initially) 309 btu/lb, but removing one BTU from a pound of the condensate drops its temperature by one degree (round number).  True, those ARE BTUs that have been paid for and they are worth recovering.  MOST of the piping in a steam-cycle power plant is dedicted to recovering heat from condensate and pumping essentially saturated feedwater back into the boiler.  It still takes a lot of BTUs to boil it(Needle Valves), but it's better than starting with cold water.  

Every steam trap vendor with which I have had contact offers surveys to inspect steam systems, identify problem areas and malfunctioning traps, and to increase efficiency/decrease heat loss of the system.  The biggest obstacle to doing this is that the expenses come out of different budgets and accountability is indirect.  If a supervisor spends $10,000 repairing/replacing faulty steam traps, that comes out of his maintenance budget.  The resulting $20,000 decrease in fuel cost gets an attaboy for the supervisor at the steam plant.  There is not always a recognition of the cause-effect relationship.

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