Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, Vol. 38, Nos.

11–12, 2002

TECHNOLOGY

CLADDED STEEL FOR THE OIL AND GAS

INDUSTRIES

S. N. Polyanskii and V. S. Kolnogorov

The fluids are corrosive for the plant in almost all areas of oil and gas processing. In connection with the exploita-
tion of offshore drilling zones and wells in deep seas, oil and gas have become more corrosive, with high concentrations of
H2S, CO2, and chlorides, as well as elevated acidity, pressure, and temperature. This requires materials with elevated tough-
ness and corrosion resistance.
Basic factors in choosing equipment materials:
• avoiding environmental pollution by the oil; and
• increasing the working life and reducing the cost.
Cladded steels provide an economical solution while maintaining a high level of corrosion performance. The
cladding layer may be stainless steel, Inconel, titanium, or zirconium. There are three groups of basic steels for the oil indus-
try, which have various applications: making pipes, making pressure vessels (σu = 350 MPa), and making structures of min-
imal mass such as offshore platforms.
We now consider the main ways of making cladded steel.
Hot Rolling. This is the most economical and most widely used process. About 80% of cladded sheets are made by
this method. Hot pressing has been used to make bimetallic tube blanks.
There are two ways of assembling the packages for hot rolling: symmetrical (sandwich) and unsymmetrical. In both
cases, the edges are welded with vacuum-type joints. The package has previously been flushed with a neutral gas and a vac-
uum set up (0.67 Pa). The design of a single unsymmetrical packet is simplest and enables one to produce cladded sheets over
a wide range of thicknesses and dimensions with minimal thickness variations in the cladding layer.
The leader in making cladded sheets is Voest Alpine (Austria). Dimensions of sheets: width up to 3.8 m, length up
to 18 m, minimum thickness of cladding 1.5 mm. It is possible to supply large (welded) sheets. Voest Alpine foresees
advances in making bimetallic sheets as involving reduced thickness in the cladding and increased strength in the basic layer.
Particular attention is being given to the heat treatment of these bimetallic sheets, vacuum-tight package welding,
and the response of the bimetal to corrosion. The cladding may be of standard stainless steel, nickel alloy, special alloys, cop-
per, or copper–nickel alloys [1].
Bimetallic sheets are not made at all for stockpiling. All sheets are produced on a project basis. The product is cer-
tified by the firm of TUV (specification VdTUV 1264).
The method of rolling evacuated packaged packages is rather complicated and does not allow one to produce thin
sheets. The NKK Corporation (Japan) has introduced a new method of making thin cladded sheets by hot rolling, with thick-
nesses of 4–6 mm, cladding thickness 1–2 mm, width up to 1800 mm. On customer request, the sheets are supplied in rolls
or cut sizes. The joint strength is 170–220 MPa, which exceeds the specifications in the standards and allows the material to
be used in most cases.
A major advantage of thin bimetallic sheets is that they can replace titanium sheet as widely used in making small chem-
ical vessels. Another promising use is in jackets for offshore drilling plant, bridges, food-storage vessels, and linings of chimneys.

Joint-Stock Company VSMPO. Translated from Khimicheskoe i Neftegazovoe Mashinostroenie, No. 11, pp. 48–51,
November, 2002.

0009-2355/02/1112-0703$27.00 ©2002 Plenum Publishing Corporation 703

 TABLE 1

Cladded sheet manufacturing method

Parameter Hot rolling Explosive Explosive welding
thick thin welding followed by rolling

Dimensions, mm:
total thickness >10 4–6 10–400 (1–700) 14–40
cladding thickness >1,5 1–2 1–30 (60) 2–3
width 3800 1800 4500 2500
length 18000 Roll 11600 10000
Adhesion strength, MPa 220–280 170–220 124–310 ≥140
(up to 550)
Joint continuity Corresponds to standard SEL 072
Production volume, ton/yr 80000 – 10000 –
2
(Voest Alpine) 50000 m /yr
Relative production volume, % 80 – – –
Manufacturing firms Voest Alpine NKK Nobelclad Greusot Loire
NKK (Japan) (France), Ind (France)
Preussage Stahl Dinamit Nobel AG
(Germany) (Germany)

Fig. 1. Microstructure of interface in welded metals.

The NKK Corporation is the leader in providing a system of supplies for the entire range of hot-rolled steel prod-
ucts cladded with titanium, ranging from thin sheets to thick ones (Table 1).
Explosive Welding. To join materials that form undesirable intermetallide phases, one can use explosive welding,
and a titanium-steel combination constitutes 90% of the total production by explosive welding. Cladding by that method
began to develop in the 1960s, and the production volume has now attained 10000 ton/yr. Many pressure vessels and heat
exchangers made in that period are still in use today.
In 1985, an international association was set up by leading producers of explosion-welded cladded metal (IEMA).
Full members of the association are Asahi Chemical Co (Japan), Dupont Fetaclad, Dynamite Materials Corporation, Explo-
sive Fabricators Div (USA), and Nobel Explosif France (France).

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 Fig. 2. Relative reduction in cost of sheet cladded by explosive welding
(Grade 1 (5 mm) of steel ASME SA516 Grade 70) in comparison with cost
of sheet from Grade 2 alloy.

Fig. 3. Examples of cladded components made by the firm of Klad.

A major advantage of explosive welding is that there is only a slight temperature rise in the welding zone, so the
mechanical and other properties of the welded metals are unaltered. The interface has a corrugated form (Fig. 1). The wave
morphology is dependent on the welding parameters.
Cladded sheets for tube panels give a substantial economy at thicknesses over 30 mm, while those for pressure ves-
sels do so at thicknesses more than 20 mm. The IEMA data indicate that the saving from using sheets of thickness 50 mm
exceeds 50% (Fig. 2).
Explosive welding provides semifinished products, flat and cylindrical (tubes, cones, and so on) in the form of disks
also and bases of vessels. The method is not used in making three-dimensional curvilinear surfaces (valves).
A very large producer of cladded sheets, the firm of Nobelclad, makes components of width up to 4.5 m and length
up to 11.6 m; cladding thickness 1–30 mm, base layer 10–400 mm (Table 1). Maximum mass of any component 40 tons,
maximum area 34 m2.
The pairs of metals are selected on the basis of strength and toughness.
Grade 1 titanium (technically pure titanium Vt1-00) is used for the cladding or else an alloy with a similar yield point
(Grades 11, 17, and 26). One can also use stronger alloys such as Grades 2 and 12. When strong titanium alloys are used, it
is necessary to insert an intermediate layer of Grade 1 titanium.
The base layer is a fine-grain steel similar to steel ASTM A516 (Russian analogs are steels 22K, 20GS, and 09G2S).
Heat treatment at 538–635°C is given to the cladded sheets to improve the toughness of the joint boundary.
Roller working of the cladded sheets to give cylindrical shapes or bases is done at room temperature or with heat-
ing to 538–621°C.
Bases are pressed at temperatures not more than 815°C with minimum heating time.
Explosion-welded cladded materials are used in the following industries: chemical, petrochemical, refining, power,
and paper, where they are employed for making reactors, vessels, pipe inserts, autoclaves, and so on.
Explosive Welding Followed by Hot Rolling. The cost of explosive welding is directly related to the area, so it is
more economical in making sheets to combine it with hot rolling.

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 In Japan and Germany, hot rolling is used with steel–titanium sheets made by explosive welding. The hot rolling tem-
perature is 680–750°C. Sheet thickness after rolling 14–40 mm, cladding thickness 2–3 mm. The adhesion strength is not less than
140 MPa. However, that method cannot give the required mechanical parameters in the steel, so the sheets have restricted use.
In [2], a new technology was proposed for making bimetal sheets by hot rolling of slabs welded by explosion. The
distinctive feature is that a flat boundary joins the cladding to the main metal as a result of the explosive welding. This
required the development of a new explosive with a detonation speed of about 1800 m/sec. The absence of waves and vor-
tices eliminates any discontinuity in the joints or defect generation centers. The slab contains an intermediate layer, while the
cladding is titanium or zirconium. The areas of the rolled products are not more than 6 m2.
A cladded tube combines the properties of expensive corrosion-resistant materials with the strength, plasticity, weld-
ability, and low cost of carbon steel. Cladded unjointed tubes are made by explosive welding or hot isotatic pressing (Seamet
method). In some cases, use has been made of welded bimetallic tubes made from blanks generated by hot rolling of evacu-
ated packets or by explosive welding. The main condition in choosing the method is that one should obtain a metallic bond
between the cladding and the base metal.
One of the leading firms specializing in making pipe fittings is Klad in the USA, and since the early 1990s, it has
produced fittings and flanges from cladded materials (Fig. 3). The firm asserts that their products represent a prompt response
to market demand, and upgrading existing designs does not require any changes in the design documentation [3].
The standard length of tubes as supplied is 12 m, outside diameter 152–915 mm, wall thickness 12–36 mm, thick-
ness of corrosion-resistant layer 2–3.3 mm. A method has been developed for monitoring the cladding thickness with ultra-
sound. It is possible to supply pipes of length 16 m (outside diameter 406 mm) or 25 m (outside diameter 152 mm). The sav-
ing from using tubes of diameter 152 mm or more is 50% [4].
The main users are the oil, gas, petrochemical, and chemical industries.
Up to the year 2000, six firms had received certificates from the firm of TUV for making cladded metal (Table 1).
The basic quality criteria are the continuity and strength of the joint together with the geometrical dimensions. The continu-
ity of the joint is monitored with ultrasound. In particular, the very large power construction company ABB monitors the con-
tinuity of cladded sheets for making tube plates automatically by a method in accordance with the standard HTDM 605508.
The permissible area of poor contact is less than 50 cm2. Under standard SEL 072, there are seven classes of joint continu-
ity quality. The classes are regulated in accordance with the use of the cladded sheets. The level of the mechanical properties
determines the shearing strength of the joint (not less than 140 MPa), while the plasticity is evaluated in lateral bending (bend-
ing angle not less than 180°).
This company has introduced a method of testing bimetallic sheets in accordance with the VdTUV 1264 specifica-
tion, where one evaluates the quality of cladded sheets made by explosive welding from steel–titanium components.
The cost of a steel–titanium bimetal sheet made by explosive welding (Fig. 2) is such that making a sheet of thick-
ness 30 + 5 mm costs about 50% of a titanium sheet 35 mm thick. The cost of the explosive working is determined by the
area and by the thickness of the cladding layer, but it does not exceed 50% of the total cost, including that of the metal and
other materials.
The distinctive corrosion resistance of titanium and its alloys corresponds in an ideal fashion to the requirements of
the petroleum and chemical industries. The high initial cost of plant employing a steel cladded with titanium is completely
offset by the reduction in working costs and the increase in working life. In many forms of plant, these bimetal structures are
the sole materials having the necessary combination of mechanical properties and corrosion resistance.
Steel–titanium combinations are quite widely used in the oil and gas industries. Steel–titanium sheets have been used
for tube plates (up to 2000 a year), vessels for liquefying and transporting natural gases, reactors, autoclaves, condensers, and
so on. One-third of the oil and gas separators and transport vessels for oil and gas products are made with steel–titanium
sheets themselves produced by explosive welding.
A characteristic example is steel–titanium material used for purifying terephthalic acid. Reactors for making the acid
require particular corrosion resistance at high pressures (2.4 MPa) and temperatures (250°C) at low pH. Even slight corro-
sion substantially affects the quality and characteristics of the polyester product. Titanium is corrosion-resistant in that medi-
um. Novel designs of reactors with titanium cladding were developed in the 1970s. There are over 200 such reactors now in

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use in the USA. The reactor diameters are up to 8 m, wall thickness 50–100 mm, cladding 2–3 mm. Grade 1 technically pure
titanium is used for the cladding, while A516 Grade 70 carbon steel (Russian analog steel 22K) is the base steel. The cost of
such a reactor is half that of a titanium design.
Conclusions
Steel–titanium bimetal materials are of great value in offshore platforms. Oil and gas pipelines based on cladded
pipes have been operated successfully since the mid-1970s, mainly in shelf areas of oil and gas extraction. It is forecast that
there will be a further increase in the use of cladded metal in oil and gas pipes on account of tightening specifications from
environmental protection agencies and from changes in the composition of the media (elevated acidity, hydrogen sulfide pres-
ence, carbon dioxide, and chlorides).
The cladding material can be chosen to optimize the corrosion resistance as well as the costs of manufacturing and
servicing the plant.
Extending the manufacture of welded and unwelded bimetallic pipes requires support for the production of a com-
plete range of pipeline equipment from such materials. Bimetallic sheets and tubes are used as blanks. Explosive welding
allows one to clad directly components close in dimensions to the finished product.
Ongoing improvements are being made in the technology for producing cladded plates and pipes, as well as items
made from them. There is ongoing extension of the range of cladded blanks and components, including advances in the pro-
duction of pipes from cladded metal. For a long time, cladded metal, in particular steel–titanium, has been used in the power
and chemical industries. The applications of cladded steels are constantly extending.

REFERENCES

1. Stainless Steel World (April 2000), pp. 19–21.

2. Stainless Steel World (Jan/Feb 2001), pp. 25–29.
3. Stainless Steel World (Jan/Feb 2001), pp. 19–21.
4. Stainless Steel World (Jan/Feb 1997), pp. 22–25.

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