sig ©eeece. Severe Cracking of CO, Absorber Exit Line by 2.u. Nightingale i Chemicals & Polymers Limited C1 Fertilizers Gillingham Fertilizer Works O Box8 illingham leveland 23 118 ¥ngland e |UMMARY lecently major cracking was found in the line exit the CO, Absorber on the No. 4 imonia Plant operated by IC! at Billingham (UK). This paper describes the perating conditions, the extent of the cracking and the likely mechanism. It also Weals with the short and long term solution. © 4 resented at the 1988 Ammonia Symposium Safety in Ammonia Piants and Related Facilities © (AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERS enver Gugust 1988 ©» w theSCRIPTION OF THE PLANT {© 4 ammonia Piant at Bitingham was designed for a fewsheet rate of 1100 tes/day and was commissioned in G7, he Mant has subsequently been debottienecked ‘now runs at 1400 tes/day & COz removal system is carried out in Bentiold lution (27-29% Potassium carbonate) with 1-2% DEA fied as a CO2 absorption promoter. Vanadium (0.3- Q git is added as a corrosion inhibitor -abpsorption tower operates at apressure of 26 barand exit temperature up to early 1987 was about 75°C. in irch 1987 @ process change made to improve plant ciency rosuted inthis temperature being raised to ‘80 and 85°C. At the time this proposed change ‘fers checked out with ourmetallurgists/vessel engineers. YJ? did not foresee a problem gure t shows diagrammatically the line which runs Ggtween the top (ex) af the COz absorber and the thanator feed heater, C304. Line details are as follows. & = 0.406m (16") diameter 9.525mm (98") wall 120m (400’) long Material APISL. Grade B, normalised (carbon ’ steel) ‘Gess Relief ~None line = ~ 30.8 bar g (RV402) ature = 80°C, 7085 Fluid - Synthesis Gas ViEWLOOKING NORTH MECC CEES CER HISTORY OF EVENTS: On 22/9/87 a leak was discovered at Point A (see figure 1 and picture 1), PICTURE 1 The defect appeared ta be a 0.15-0.18m (6-7 inches) long semi-continuous jagged crack running longitudinally along the line at the nine o'clock position. ‘The leak was significant and the plant was shut-down on 23 September to cut out a 2.5m (8 foot) long section up fo the buttweld onthe upstream bend. Cracks were found in the butt weld, some orientated circumferentially, butthey proved to be shallow and were ground out. ‘The section of pipe that was removed was split and the inside of the pipe showed severe multiple cracking, The orientation of the dozens of fine cracks which were found was principally longitudinal with some tendency towards, a 45° plane also (see picture 2).flercecececcececeeececcs eceeceeece PICTURE 5 ‘The Plant was recommissioned on 22 March 1988. LIKELY MECHANISM. The carbonate/bicarbonate system is know fo cause general corrosion and stress corrosion of carbon steel and because of this vanadium is added as a Corrosion inhibitor andito keep the potential of the steel outside the cracking range. A proportion of the vanadium must be in the V5+ oxidation state, but due to the normal operating conditions of the system favouring the formation of the reduced state, V4+, Some oxidationisneeded.Intheearly years doping with potassium nitrite was done, but more recently the V5+ oxidation state has been maintained by aeration. The recent major cracking found in line PG404 (APISL Gr B, 16" x 0.375" w/t) was caused by stress corrosion cracking characteristic of that produced by carbonate/ bicarbonate system. Some solution carry over must therefore have occurred. Microscope examination of the cracks showed that secondary corrosion of the cracks had not occurred. From this it was concluded that cracking had been initiated relatively recently and could nothave been due tocanditions present overthetullifeof the plant.