Corrosion control in ethylene plants

Responsibilities:
· Report to the Discipline Engineers Team Lead and work under his overall supervision and
directions.
· Develop and ensure implementation of Corrosion Control procedure and other required
documents for assigned area of plant assets. Provide technical guidance on application of
codes, standards, and design criteria.
· Establish corrosion control priorities including alignment between operational tasks and
corporate philosophy. Develop and maintain corrosion protection plans.
· Participate Risk Based Inspection (RBI) studies, Critical analysis meetings etc. within the
framework of Reliability and Maintenance program.
· Conduct identification of Thickness Measurement Location (TML) and Integrity Operating
Windows (IOW) limits that used to determine the different variables that could affect the
integrity and reliability of a process units. Calculating the remaining life of equipment and
lines based on thickness measurement.
· Facilitate consistent application of Company corrosion control procedures across assigned area
of Plant assets.
· Participate in all activities related to corrosion monitoring (using corrosion coupons/probes) and
corrosion prevention (Cathodic Protection, painting, chemical inhibitor, selection of corrosion -
resistant material-CRA) in plant assets.
· Review and provide feedback on remedial action mitigation plans resulting from in-line
inspections, cathodic protection surveys, close interval surveys, and internal corrosion inspections to
assist in assuring development of cost-effective solutions consistent with corporate philosophy.
· Prepare regular corrosion report and submit to line manager. Participate in annual corrosion
reviews including reviewing and feedback on the review report.
· Provide technical support to the site maintenance functions and leadership team, including
construction standards and material requirements as part of corrosion control.
· Provide technical expertise and assist in problem-solving to the supervisors and technicians for
complex corrosion control issues, design for specialized or complex cathodic protection systems, and
internal corrosion monitoring programs.
· Coordinate MOCs as required.
· Perform corrosion control failure analysis to determine root-cause and develop remediation
plans. Participate in a group study of Criticality analysis, RCM, HAZOP, SIL, 5WHY, RCFA including
leaks in static equipment and piping investigations etc. when required.
Corrosion control in ethylene plants

Cooling Water Corrosion

General or localized corrosion of carbon steels and other metals caused by dissolved salts, gases, organic
compounds, or microbiological activity in cooling water systems.

*
Affected Materials
Carbon steel, all grades of stainless steel, copper and copper alloys, aluminum and aluminum alloys,
titanium, and nickel alloys
Critical Factors
a) Higher cooling water temperature causes increased corrosion rates - above 140 °F (60 °C)
b) Mic and fouling are closely related and should be considered together.
c) Increasing oxygen content tends to increase carbon steel corrosion rates.
d) Low velocities can promote increased corrosion.
e) High velocities can also lead to accelerated corrosion.
Prevention/Mitigation
a) Cooling water corrosion (and fouling) is best managed by proper design, operation, and chemical
treatment of cooling water systems.
b) Process-side inlet temperatures of water-cooled exchangers should be maintained below 140 °F (60
°C).
c) c) Minimum and maximum water velocities must be maintained, particularly in saltwater systems.
Inspection and Monitoring
Cooling water should be monitored for process conditions that affect corrosion and fouling, including but
not limited to:
Corrosion control in ethylene plants

a) pH
b) oxygen content
c) cycles of concentration
d) biocide and other chemical residual
e) biological activity, iron, and manganese count
f) cooling water outlet temperatures
g) hydrocarbon contamination, and process leaks.
h) corrosion coupons, ER probes, or online monitoring sensors, can provide an early indication of
increased corrosion rates that need further evaluation.

Hydrochloric Acid Corrosion

Damage in refineries is most often associated with dew point corrosion in which vapors containing water
and hydrogen chloride condense from the overhead stream of a distillation, fractionation, or stripping
tower. The first water droplets that condense can be highly acidic (low pH) and promote high corrosion
rates (causes both general and localized corrosion).

Affected Materials
All common materials of construction that used in refineries. (crude and vacuum units, hydro processing
units, and catalytic reformer units)
Critical Factors
Corrosion control in ethylene plants

a) HCl acid concentration, temperature, and alloy composition.

b) Carbon steel and low-alloy steels are subject to excessive corrosion when exposed to any
concentration of HCl acid that produces a pH below about 4.5.
c) 300 series SS and 400 series SS are not usefully resistant to HCl at any concentration or temperature.
d) Alloy 400, titanium, and some other nickel-based alloys have good resistance to dilute HCl acid in
many refinery applications.
e) The presence of oxidizing agents (oxygen, ferric and cupric ions) will increase the corrosion rate,
particularly for Alloy 400 and Alloy B-2. Titanium performs well in oxidizing conditions but fails
rapidly in dry HCl service.
Prevention/Mitigation
a) Water wash
b) Crude desalting operation. A common target is 20 ppm or fewer chlorides in the overhead
accumulator water.
c) Caustic injection downstream of the desalter is another common method used to reduce the amount of
HCl going overhead. Proper design and operating guidelines should be followed to avoid caustic SCC
(3.15) and fouling in the feed preheat train.
Inspection and Monitoring
a) Hydrochloric acid causes both general and localized corrosion and is very aggressive to most
common materials of construction, especially carbon steel, across a wide range of concentrations.
b) Where applicable, VT should be performed on all accessible components with the potential for
hydrochloric acid corrosion. These areas of concern can be characterized by orange-yellow
discoloration of the affected material with scale buildup and various levels of deterioration.
c) UT thickness mapping, including AUT, can be utilized to determine the extent of localized thinning.
d) Strategically placed corrosion probes and/or corrosion coupons can provide additional information on
the rate and extent of damage.
e) The pH of the water in the boot of the atmospheric tower overhead accumulator should be checked
regularly.

Erosion/Erosion-Corrosion
Erosion is the mechanical removal of surface material as the result of relative movement between, or
impact from, solids, liquids, vapor, or any combination thereof. It is typically found in services where
solids are entrained in liquid or vapor streams such as slurries and fluidized solids. In refining, with the
exception of water droplets in steam systems, it is unlikely that any flowing liquid or liquid impingement
(without entrained solids) would be able to erode typical materials of construction without there also
being a corrosion component present. The same can be said for gases, with the possible exception of
steam cutting.
Corrosion control in ethylene plants

Erosion-corrosion is a description for the damage that occurs when particle erosion and/or high flow
velocity contributes to corrosion by removing protective films or scales or otherwise accelerating the
corrosion rate. This is also called velocity-assisted corrosion.

Affected Materials
With solid particle mechanical erosion, metal loss rates will depend on the velocity and number of
impacting particles (e.g. a low concentration of particles vs a slurry), as well as the size, shape, hardness,
and density of the impacting particles, the hardness of the material subject to erosion, and the angle of
impact.

Critical Factors
a) Softer alloys such as copper and aluminum alloys that are easily worn from mechanical damage may
be subject to severe metal loss under high-velocity conditions.
b) Increasing the hardness of the eroding metal component can reduce the rate of erosion damage.
However, this may not be effective where corrosion plays a significant role.
Affected Units or Equipment
All types of equipment exposed to moving fluids and/or catalyst are subject to erosion and erosion-
corrosion. This includes piping bends, elbows, tees and reducers, piping systems downstream of letdown
valves and block valves, pumps, blowers, propellers, impellers, agitators, vessels with agitators, heat
Corrosion control in ethylene plants

exchanger tubing, measuring device orifices, turbine blades, nozzles, ducts and vapor lines, scrapers,
cutters, and wear plates.
Prevention/Mitigation
a) Changes in shape, geometry, and materials can help mitigate erosion and erosion-corrosion. Examples
include increasing the pipe diameter to reduce velocity, streamlining bends to reduce impingement,
and using replaceable impingement baffles.
b) Improved resistance to mechanical erosion is usually achieved by increasing component hardness,
e.g. using a harder alloy, hardfacing, or a surface-hardening treatment. Erosion-resistant refractories
in cyclones and slide valves have successfully resisted erosion.
c) Erosion-corrosion is best mitigated by using more corrosion-resistant alloys and/or altering the
process environment to reduce corrosivity, e.g. by deaeration, condensate injection, or the addition of
inhibitors, as applicable. Resistance is generally not improved through increasing component
hardness alone.
Inspection and Monitoring
a) Manual UT grids or automated scans can be used to determine the extent of erosion at susceptible
areas, such as changes in direction, changes in diameter, or other turbulent areas. Randomly placed
point UT readings may not be effective if they are not placed at the locations of potential
susceptibility.
b) Profile RT can be used to detect areas of erosion but may not be able to determine the actual
remaining wall thickness. UT thickness is normally used as a follow-up technique to quantify wall
loss.
c) GWT can be used as a screening technique in certain applications where changes in piping direction
will not impede the effectiveness of the examination.
d) Infrared thermography scans can be used on stream to detect refractory degradation (potentially due
to erosion).
e) Specialized coupons can be used to determine if erosion is a potential concern.

Brittle Fracture
Brittle fracture is the sudden rapid fracture under stress (residual or applied) where the material exhibits
little or no evidence of ductility or plastic deformation. Although rare in refining operations, in-service
brittle fracture of a pressure vessel or other pressurized equipment can have serious consequences.
Corrosion control in ethylene plants

Affected Materials

Carbon steels and low-alloy steels are of prime concern, particularly older steels. 400 series SS are also
susceptible even if not embrittled. In addition, materials susceptible to an embrittling mechanism such as
sigma phase embrittlement (3.56), 885 °F (475 °C) embrittlement (3.1), temper embrittlement (3.63),
strain-aging embrittlement (3.60), or titanium hydriding (3.66) pose a risk for brittle fracture if they are
sufficiently embrittled.

Critical Factors

a) Brittle fracture can occur in a potentially susceptible piece of equipment containing a flaw or other
significant stress concentrator. Three primary factors are:
1. the material’s fracture toughness (resistance to crack-like flaws) as indicated in a Charpy impact test or
other fracture mechanics test;
2. the size, shape, and stress concentration effect of the flaw;
3. the amount of residual and applied stresses on the flaw.

b) Susceptibility of a material to brittle fracture may be increased by the presence of embrittling phases.
c) Steel cleanliness (level of S, P, and other impurity elements) and grain size have a significant influence
on toughness and resistance to brittle fracture. In addition, higher-strength, micro-alloyed steels can
experience secondary hardening in certain temperature ranges due to the precipitation of embrittling
phases that reduce the fracture toughness of the steel. Micro-alloying elements like V, Cb (Nb), B, and Ti
in certain ranges as well as S, P, and Mn above their residual limits can cause low toughness.
d) The heat treatment condition of the material can affect its fracture toughness.
e) Thicker material sections have an inherently lower resistance to brittle fracture due to the nature of the
stress state within a thick section of metal. Thick sections are under higher constraint (i.e. they are
constrained from deforming), which increases triaxial stresses at the crack tip and promotes brittle, rather
than ductile, fracture.
f) In most cases, in materials that exhibit a ductile-to-brittle transition, brittle fracture occurs only at
temperatures
below the Charpy impact transition temperature (also called the ductile-to-brittle transition temperature),
the
temperature at and below which the toughness of the material drops off sharply.
Affected Units or Equipment

a) Equipment manufactured to the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) Section VIII,
Division 1, prior to the December 1987 Addenda, had no Code-required restrictions on notch
toughness for vessels operating at cold temperatures.
b) Most processes run at elevated temperature, so the main concern is for brittle fracture during start-up,
shutdown, or hydrotest/tightness testing. Thick wall equipment in any unit should be evaluated.
c) Brittle fracture resulting from an auto refrigeration event should be considered in units processing
light hydrocarbons such as methane (CH4), ethane/ethylene, propane/propylene, or butane. This
includes alkylation units, olefin units, and polymer plants (polyethylene and polypropylene). Storage
bullets and spheres for light hydrocarbons may also be susceptible.

Prevention/Mitigation
Corrosion control in ethylene plants

a) For most new equipment, brittle fracture is prevented by using materials compliant with UCS 66 in
Section VIII of the ASME BPVC. In some cases, equipment will need to be specifically designed for
low-temperature operation including upset and auto refrigeration events or will have additional
requirements to account for a large wall thickness. Materials with controlled chemical composition,
special heat treatment, and/or impact test verification may be required.
b) For existing equipment, the combination of stress, material toughness, and existing or potential flaw
size govern the probability of a brittle fracture event. In cases where there is a concern for the
possibility of a brittle fracture occurring, an engineering evaluation can be performed in accordance
with API 579-1/ASME FFS-1, Section 3, Level 1 or 2.
Inspection and Monitoring

a) Routine inspection is not normally used to detect or mitigate brittle fracture, but awareness of
susceptible equipment can help prevent future damage.
b) susceptible vessels can be inspected for pre-existing crack-like fabrication flaws, as well as for
cracking from relevant in-service cracking mechanisms using magnetic particle testing (MT), PT,
and/or UT, as applicable.