Equipment: Causes of refinery equipment failure and means for eliminating failures
The petroleum refining and petrochemical industry, both here and abroad, incurs major losses due to corrosion damage, amounting to 10-12% of the production cost in refineries. About 60% of all premature failures of equipment are due to corrosion of various elements of the equipment. Of the various types of condensing and cooling equipment in atmospheric-vacuum tubestill units, the condenser/coolers on the overhead line from the atmospheric tower are the most susceptible to corrosion damage. The head fractions of the crude that are condensed in the tubes contain hydrogen sulfide and hydrogen chloride (formed as a result of conversion of organic sulfur and chlorine compounds present in the original crude), along with moisture. This combination produces acids and sharply increases the corrosivity of the working medium in the equipment. From our analysis we have been able to relate the failures to the very marked increases of hydrogen sulfide and hydrogen chloride contents in the head fraction, obviously as a consequence of the high contents of these corrosive components in the condensate from the barometric box (most of the hydrogen sulfide and hydrogen chloride enters the condensate when the head fraction is condensed and the hydrocarbon part of the condensate is separated from the water).
- OSTI ID:
- 175814
- Journal Information:
- Chemistry and Technology of Fuels and Oils, Journal Name: Chemistry and Technology of Fuels and Oils Journal Issue: 5-6 Vol. 30; ISSN 0009-3092; ISSN CTFOAK
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Evaluation of corrosion rates based on content of iron in drain water from atmospheric-vacuum pipestill units
Solutions to equipment failures