That boiler with current burner cannot run the Tesla engine.
At the pressure the boiler can take, without much superheating, it may never be capable of running the Tesla engine satisfactorily.
But I am making a larger burner (It can take about a 4.5kW gas burner in my calculations with un-forced exhaust up the chimney) - of around 3.5kW, possibly more if my design is good enough?
The significant problem is the water (condensate) that turns the turbine into a water wheel! It ran the other day when I did a mock-up with a 3kW burner, but slowly (maybe 100~200rpm) and sounded like a paddle wheel sloshing around. But even so it demonstrated the Tesla surface friction turbine action, when it simply started turning as soon as the steam was introduced. It runs (just!) as low as 10psi (without water drag).
The whole project is to teach a new guy about steam, so a project with problems (that is robust and relatively low pressure!) is teaching him very well what can - and does - go wrong, and he has remarked to me how he is learning more by watching the engine "not work" then understanding what is wrong, than by just seeing something that "works out of the box". It is not about making a Tesla turbine do real work. The steel bearings are pretty rough (you can feel it when you hold the engine and spin it by hand). With 100psi air from my compressor it only manages 20,000rpm, yet the maths say it needs to be at around 100,000rpm for the true "Tesla effect" to work. Bearings are only made for 30,000rpm. so ceramic bearings and fine balancing will be needed... if we are bothered...
It is just a bench demo project for open-day running for education really.
In re-furbishing the boiler, I have added longitudinal stays, after re-setting the blown end plates, re-set the pressure relief valve to match the capability per calculations, hydraulically and steam tested and certified the boiler with the inspector, and the "apprentice" has been involved all the way. Next he has to add cleading/insulation, based on a radiant heat double barrier. (2 layers of shiny aluminium foil separated by an insulating material).
https://www.hammockforums.net/forum/archive/index.php/t-7215.html
Finally, I shall make a superheater (when a big burner shows what it can do) so we can experience improvements from superheat.
Does this help?
K2