3PP Coating for High-Temp Pipe Corrosion | Case Study

Operating refineries in Southeast Asia is fraught with unique and severe challenges, with high temperatures, high humidity, and highly corrosive environments constantly plaguing local energy enterprises. These harsh conditions pose a significant threat to pipeline systems, especially those transporting high-temperature media, where conventional anti-corrosion solutions often fall short. This article will present a specific project case to demonstrate how we provided a professional high-temperature resistant 3pp steel pipe solution for a large refinery in Southeast Asia, successfully addressing the technical challenges faced by the client.

Introduction: Special Environmental Challenges in the Southeast Asian Refining Industry

Southeast Asia is renowned for its hot and humid tropical climate, with an average annual temperature ranging from 28 to 32°C and a relative humidity consistently between 75% and 85%. Such climatic conditions significantly accelerate the corrosion process of metal pipelines, especially in industrial settings like refineries that handle various corrosive media. Coupled with salt erosion from the marine environment and the high-temperature requirements of refining processes, pipeline corrosion prevention has become one of the most significant challenges for local refining enterprises.

Traditional pipeline anti-corrosion coatings such as 3pe steel pipe perform well at normal temperatures, but their performance begins to decline significantly when the temperature of the medium transported by the pipeline exceeds 80°C, and they almost completely fail in high-temperature environments above 110°C. This is precisely the core technical bottleneck encountered by many refineries in Southeast Asia during their upgrading and renovation projects.

Customer Challenge: Pipeline Anti-corrosion Dilemma in High-temperature Conditions

The large-scale Southeast Asian oil refinery we are collaborating with is implementing a major upgrade plan aimed at enhancing its capacity to process heavy crude oil. This project requires the construction of a pipeline system for transporting high-temperature oil products, with the medium temperature consistently maintained between 110-125°C, and peak temperatures even reaching 130°C.

The project team of the owner initially considered using traditional 3PE coated pipes. However, preliminary tests indicated that under continuous high-temperature conditions, the 3PE coating softened, bubbled, and experienced a significant decline in adhesion. These issues could lead to premature coating failure, which in turn might cause pipe corrosion perforation, medium leakage, and other serious safety accidents. Moreover, the conveyed medium contains a certain proportion of sulfides and acidic components, further exacerbating the corrosion risk.

The specific challenges faced by the project team include:

1.Search for anti-corrosion coating systems that can withstand temperatures above 110°C for a long time.

2.Ensure that the coating maintains good adhesion and does not peel off at high temperatures.

3.Solve the construction problems in high-humidity environments and ensure the quality of the coating.

Meet the urgent project schedule requirements.

Control the overall cost without compromising on quality and safety standards.

The project manager admitted, “We need a pipe solution that can withstand continuous high temperatures and resist chemical corrosion. Conventional coatings performed disappointingly in tests, while high-end materials like duplex stainless steel met the performance requirements but exceeded the project budget. We are caught in a dilemma where performance and cost are hard to balance.”

Our solution: High-temperature resistant 3PP coated pipe system

After a thorough understanding of the challenges faced by the client, our technical team proposed a complete solution. The solution involved custom-fabricated LSAW steel pipe with a specialized three-layer polypropylene (3PP) anti-corrosion coating system. The 3PP coating is a specially designed anti-corrosion technology for high-temperature conditions, with a temperature resistance of up to 140°C, fully meeting the requirements of this project.

Composition and Characteristics of the 3PP Coating System

The 3PP coating system we provide consists of the following three layers:

First layer: Epoxy primer coating

It uses modified epoxy resin paint, providing excellent cathodic disbondment resistance and adhesion to the substrate. The main function of this layer is to ensure a firm bond with the surface of the steel pipe and provide a solid foundation for subsequent coatings.

Second layer: Polymer intermediate layer

A specially formulated polypropylene copolymer (PP copolymer) is selected as the functional intermediate layer. It not only provides additional anti-corrosion protection, but more importantly, serves as a bonding medium between the epoxy primer and the external polypropylene layer, ensuring a strong bond between each layer.

The third layer: Polypropylene surface layer

Isotactic polypropylene is used as the final protective layer. This layer provides mechanical protection, chemical resistance, and high-temperature resistance. Polypropylene material maintains excellent mechanical properties and dimensional stability even at high temperatures.

The core advantages of 3PP over 3PE

When explaining to clients why 3PP is more suitable for their projects than traditional 3PE, we emphasize the following key advantages:

1.The outstanding high-temperature resistance

The greatest advantage of the 3PP system lies in its temperature tolerance. While 3PE can typically only withstand a continuous temperature of up to 80°C, the 3PP coating can operate for a long time in a high-temperature environment of 110-140°C without performance degradation. This feature precisely meets the requirements of high-temperature oil transportation in customer projects.

2.Stronger adhesion retention capability

Even under high-temperature conditions, the 3PP coating layers and the coating to the steel pipe substrate can still maintain extremely strong adhesion. The 3PP system we provide has been tested and shown that after 1000 hours of aging at 125°C, its adhesion only decreases by less than 15%, which is far superior to the performance of 3PE coatings under the same conditions.

3.Outstanding mechanical damage resistance

The polypropylene surface layer has higher hardness, impact resistance and wear resistance, which can better resist mechanical damage during transportation, installation and use. This is particularly important for Southeast Asian projects that require sea transportation and installation in complex terrain on site.

4.Chemical corrosion resistance

Polypropylene has excellent resistance to most acids, alkalis and salt solutions, including sulfides and acidic components commonly found in refineries. This property ensures that the pipes are fully protected when transporting high-temperature oil products containing corrosive media.

5.Construction adaptability

Our 3PP coating system adopts a special construction process, which can meet the construction requirements in the high-humidity environment of Southeast Asia and avoid the adverse effects of humidity on coating quality.

Implementation of customized solutions

In response to the specific requirements of this project, we also offer a series of customized solutions:

1.Adjust the coating thickness, increasing it from the usual standard of 2.0-2.5mm to 2.8-3.2mm, to provide an additional margin of protection.

2.Develop a dedicated end protection scheme for pipes to prevent thermal damage to the coating during on-site welding.

3.Design special transportation and storage solutions to adapt to the logistics challenges under the rainy climate conditions in Southeast Asia.

4.Provide on-site technical guidance teams to ensure the integrity of the coating during the installation process.

Project Outcomes: Outstanding Performance and Significant Benefits

The project was successfully delivered and put into operation, achieving satisfactory results. The pipeline system has been in stable operation for over 24 months since its commissioning, having withstood multiple high-temperature peak tests without any coating failure or pipeline corrosion issues.

1.Technical performance meets standards

After regular testing and data collection, the 3PP coated pipe system we provide has fully met the expected technical indicators:

· At a continuous working temperature of 125°C, the adhesion retention rate of the coating exceeds 85%.

· The cathodic disbondment radius is less than 5mm, which is far below the international standard requirement of 15mm.

· There are no visible bubbles, peeling or softening phenomena.

· The electrical insulation performance remains stable, and the leakage detection is zero.

2.The economic benefits are remarkable.

This project has brought remarkable economic benefits to the client:

· Reduce maintenance costs: Compared with traditional solutions, 3PP-coated pipes are expected to reduce maintenance costs by more than 40%. Customers do not need to frequently carry out coating repairs and pipe replacements, saving a significant amount of human and material resources.

· Extended service life: It is expected that the service life of the pipeline system can be extended from the conventional 10-12 years to over 20 years, significantly reducing the long-term investment cost.

· Reduce downtime losses: Avoid unplanned shutdowns caused by pipeline corrosion and leakage, ensure continuous production, and improve overall operational efficiency.

3.Safety and environmental benefits

This project also brings significant safety and environmental benefits:

· Eliminating safety hazards: Completely resolved the safety risks that may be caused by coating failure in high-temperature environments, ensuring the safety of factory personnel and equipment.

· Environmental protection: It avoids the risk of soil and groundwater pollution caused by pipeline leakage, and complies with the increasingly strict environmental regulations in Southeast Asia.

· Sustainable development: A long life cycle reduces resource consumption and waste generation, supporting customers’ sustainable development strategies.

The project director stated during the follow-up visit: “This solution not only resolved our current technical challenges but also set a new standard for similar projects in the future. We have designated the 3PP coating as the standard configuration for all high-temperature pipeline projects.”

Conclusion: Your Partner for High-Temperature Pipeline Anti-Corrosion Solutions

Through this successful case, we have demonstrated our ability to provide professional pipeline anti-corrosion solutions in high-temperature and highly corrosive environments. The 3PP coating technology is an ideal choice for handling high-temperature conditions and is particularly suitable for the special needs of the oil refining and chemical industries in Southeast Asia.

Our technical team, with rich experience and professional knowledge, can provide you with full-process services from material selection, scheme design to construction guidance. No matter what kind of corrosion challenges you are facing, we can tailor the most economical and effective solutions for you.

Contact our technical expert team immediately to obtain consultation and quotations for anti-corrosion solutions tailored to your specific project. Let us help you solve the anti-corrosion problems of high-temperature pipelines, enhance operational reliability, and reduce life cycle costs.