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Materials and Corrosion
Materials and Corrosion
Materials and Corrosion
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Composition of a steel or an alloy according to its standard designation can be identified in the tables
below. Substitutes corresponding to other standard or from oter manufacturer may also be found by
using these tables.
For the other undefined subtleties in these tables, the “STAHSCHLUSSEL” can be referred to :
§ Tables III A / B / C / D : foreign equivalents and its composition of stainless steel French grades.
Note :
Application limits of flanges according to the type of steel as shown in tables VA and VB are
indicated in paragraph 2
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Table VB
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4. CORROSION
When there is a risk of a specific corrosion, the corrosion allowance can be determined from the
corrosion tables available at the Documentation Department. Some of these tables are attached in
this chapter.
This corrosion allowance will be determined for a minimum life span of the equipment, generally
fixed for 10 years.
In several cases and especially when it is for a fluid difficult to characterise or with variable quality
of fluid (crude oil for example), there is no reference table and the corrosion allowance is
determined experimentally.
In this case normally, carbon steel is used with corrosion allowance of 3 mm for the moderately
corrosive fluids (crude oil, non desulphurised cut, etc...).
The corrosion allowance is reduced to 1.5 mm when the risk of corrosion is low (for example,
propane, butane, light gasoline after desulphurisation).
It is increased to 6 mm and even greater for the services particularly corrosive (H2 S + water at the
condensation), no other economically and technically acceptable solution can be proposed.
To be noted that it is general practice to take no corrosion allowance when designing a hydrocarbon
storage tank unless there is a possibility of water decantation together with the presence of H2S
(general case for hydrocarbon tanks or hydrocarbon slop tanks).
Finally, different corrosion allowance may be specified for a given fluid depending on the
equipment maintainability. For example, for boiler type equipment, the corrosion allowance is 3
mm where else 1.5 mm for the line that the maintenance is done or even changed frequently, the
operation that is not been normally done on the principal material.
When stainless steel type 18/8 is used, the phenomenon of corrosion is not to be worried, a zero
corrosion allowance can be used.
It is also possible to limit the corrosion in certain part of an equipment by application of coating :
Precaution shall be taken when using the first two type of coating because they are very fragile and
the basic metal can get corroded very fast. They are not suitable for the security system in case of
coating deterioration. It is advisable in this case to foresee an admissible corrosion allowance to
minimise this risk.
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Somehow, when metallic plating is used, this will substitute the corrosion allowance. However, one
has to verify, especially for an equipment with a small thickness, that the cost of basic metal +
plating is cheaper than the cost of having the massive metal at the same grade as the plating for the
equipment. Nevertheless, certain plating grades might have welding problems with the basic metal.
The faisability of this will have to be verified with the Boilermaking Department.
Hydrogen corrosion is well known phenomenon that refer to Nelson graphs published in API 941
(see figure 1).
A fifth edition published in January 1997 confirms the deletion of graphs related to carbon steel
0.5 Mo. Utilisation of this steel beyond the limits acceptable for carbon steel is not advisable.
On the graphs, zones which are delimited by the discontinued lines, correspond to hydrogen
corrosion that leads to surface decarburisation. (modification from late edition of April 1990).
The new edition of January 1997 supersede the graph of 3.0 Cr - 0.5 Mo. Utilisation of 3.0 Cr-
0.5 Mo steel is replaced by the graph 3 Cr-1 or 2.25 Cr-1 Mo-V.
1997 edition specifies that the temperatures indicated on the graphs represent the average operating
values around which a fluctuation of +20ºF (+11ºC) is to be considered. User may or may not
include this range when selecting the steels.
When this range is used, it is applicable only for the operating conditions.
This decarburisation does not lead to cracking but lead to a reduction of allowable constraint, of
hardness and to the increase of steel ductility.
Zones which are delimited by the continue lines correspond to an internal decarburisation in the
heart of the metal with the formation of methane that lead to the formation of cracks and blisters.
Graphs of API 941 are applicable also for the equipment functioning in liquid phase with dissolved
hydrogen, the partial pressure of hydrogen to be considered as the partial pressure of the vapour at
the equilibrium state with the liquid.
Hydrogen corrosion at high temperature will only appear after certain period of incubation related
to the nature of the steel and to the utilisation condition. Graph 2 can be used as refference for
actually limited utilisation in time of carbon steel, beyond its normal limit of utilisation. This
constraint will be clearly specified in the issued document (specification, PID, operating manual).
However, it is preferable to choose noble metal that has no constraint of exposition limitation to
hydrogen at high temperature.
Finally, the implementation of thermal treatment of the equipment limits the risk of hydrogen
corrosion at high temperature. However, this implementation does not allow the derogate the limit
specified by the graphs published in the API.
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The graph IV correspond to the foreseeable corrosion for petroleum products containing 0.6%
sulphur.
These graphs are only indicative.
Generally, on crude units (atmospheric premium pipestills), for temperature higher than 260/280°C,
4/6 Cr for bundle and plating and 11/13 Cr for massive parts are selected. It can happen that
massive chromium steel solution either in 4/6 Cr or in 11/13 Cr becomes cheapest that 4/6 Cr
plated steel in some local conditions. So this choice will remain open on PDS (Process Data
Sheets).
In these conditions, graphs VA to VE (COUPER AND GORMAN graphs) are to be used, which its
usage is general. Graph VI can also be used, older document.
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STEEL AT 12% CR
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a. Cr Equivalent
Express equivalence of alloying elements as ferrite stabiliser property of chromium :
% Cr equivalent = % Cr + 2 (% Si) + 1.5 (% Mo) + 5 (% V) + 5.5 (%Al) + 1.75 (% Nb) + 1.5 (% Ti) + 0.75 (% W)
b. Ni Equivalent
Express equivalence of alloying elements as austenite stabiliser property of Nickel :
% Ni equivalent = % Ni + % Co + 30 (% C) + 25 (% N) + 0.5 (%Mn) + 0.3 (% Cu)
c. Schaeffler Diagram
Approximate metallurgical structure of Stainless Steel
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