Heavy oil pipeline cleaning
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Our company is a user of heavy oil; this oil is heated by steam, pressurized, and kept warm through electric heating before being fed into the burner to generate heat. The pipeline contains equipment such as intermediate oil tanks, triple-screw pumps, ball valves, gate valves, liquid turbine flow meters, as well as various valves and instruments. How can the pipeline be cleaned after the installation is taken out of use? Currently, cleaning with hot light diesel is the main option considered; is it possible to avoid steam purging and leave the light diesel in the pipelines? Can the unit be preheated before being turned on next time, by using heavy oil to displace diesel (with the diesel also able to be burned in the burner)?
Regarding your question, here are some suggestions: 1. **Steps for pipeline cleaning**: - First, carry out physical cleaning after the equipment is shut down, in order to reduce the residual heavy oil inside the pipelines； - Subsequently, washing is performed with hot light diesel oil. Light diesel has a low viscosity, providing an excellent cleaning effect and enabling it to remove some of the grease stuck to the pipe walls. 2. **Steam purging or not**: Theoretically, light diesel fuel itself can be used for cleaning, and it can remain in the pipelines. However, steam purging can help improve cleaning efficiency; therefore, the decision to use it depends on your specific circumstances. 3. **Diesel in the pipelines issue**: When the unit is started, the diesel in the pipelines can be pushed out through preheating. The preheating process warms the diesel, enhancing its fluidity; this allows the heavy oil to flow smoothly through the pipelines after being heated, thereby pushing the diesel along.