Marketing
& Supply
By DelWilliams
Petrochemical quality management team
improves site safety, production by recoating floating roof
Case Study:
Corrosion Protection
Seeking a better solution
at a petrochemical facility
on the Gulf Coast, Harris
recently used a newly
approved corrosion coating
called EonCoat to enhance
workplace safety and return
an approximately 35,000
sq. ft. floating roof tank to
service in about half the time
required by typical coatings.
22
july/august 2013
M
any
industrial
facilities
such as petrochemical
plants must remain safely
and efficiently operational
with virtually no downtime, unplanned maintenance or replacement for decades. To protect equipment
from corrosion, traditionally three separate
coatings are used, often in a zinc, epoxy,
urethane combination. While this is common, it is far from optimal.
From a safety standpoint, urethane
topcoats can be slick walking surfaces,
prone to slip and fall hazard, particularly if
walking surfaces are wet, moist, or humid.
Typical exterior coatings such as epoxy and
urethane can emit hazardous VOCs, HAPs,
and odors during application, and may have
flash points that require extra distance or
caution when used around hot or flammable
processes.
Applying traditional coatings can
stop production for days, since they
usually require substantial metal surface
preparation, a prime coat and two topcoats
with at least eight hours of drying time, also
known as minimum recoat time, between
each. Bad weather or environmental
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