【Ten Years of Rapid Development in Chemical Processing Equipment】Major breakthrough achieved in 2898-2025: Seamless alloy steel tubes for high-temperature quenching heat exchangers

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Let’s give praise and support to the achievements made in China’s chemical engineering technology and equipment; your participation in discussions is the greatest encouragement. **********************【Ten Years of Progress in Chemical Engineering Equipment】A continuously updated summary post is available – feel free to join the discussions: https://bbs.hcbbs.com/thread-3576046-1-1.html ***************** Recently, a seminar on the group standard for seamless alloy steel pipes used in high-temperature quenching heat exchangers (with the proposed domestic grade being 13CrMo4-5E), organized by the China Petroleum and Petrochemical Equipment Industry Association, was successfully held at Jiangsu Jiangguo Intelligent Equipment Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Jiangguo Co.”). Experts from organizations involved in the industry chain, both upstream and downstream, gathered together to conduct in-depth discussions on the key provisions of the standard. These efforts aimed to remove technical barriers to the standardization of this domestic superalloy material, helping China’s ethylene plant components to break free from reliance on imports and strengthening the foundation for the independent and self-sufficient development of the petrochemical industry. https://p3-sign.toutiaoimg.com/tos-cn-i-axegupay5k/de486801746348039989b51c5b702e2a~tplv-tt-origin-web:gif.jpeg?_iz=58558&from=article.pc_detail&lk3s=953192f4&x-expires=1766202215&x-signature=fOy9HxMDP4tTKe8sZe6nhy649PA%3D The standard’s drafting organizations cover the entire industry chain, including engineering design, equipment manufacturing, material production, and end-user applications: design firms such as China Global Engineering and Sinopec Engineering Construction take into account the actual operating conditions of ethylene plants to determine the appropriate performance criteria ； Jiangguo Co., Ltd. has proposed an optimization scheme for dimensional tolerances by taking into account the manufacturing and assembly processes of high-temperature quenchers ； Material companies such as Baoshan Iron and Steel improve the operability of inspection and testing methods based on large-scale production practices ； Owner entities such as CNPC’s Tarim Petrochemical Branch provide practical improvement suggestions based on long-term operation and maintenance, life-cycle cost control, and safety production requirements, thereby ensuring the scientific validity, suitability, and feasibility of the standards. As the \"core component\" of the high-temperature quench heat exchangers in ethylene plants, the performance of superalloy steel tubes directly determines the operational efficiency and safety stability of the plants. For a long time, such materials have relied on the imported grade EU standard 13CrMo4-5; their core technologies and supply channels are restricted by overseas sources, which has become a key bottleneck hindering the autonomy of China’s petrochemical equipment industry. This seminar conducted in-depth discussions on over 10 key topics, including the scope of the standards, normative reference documents, dimensional tolerances, and technical requirements, and reached important consensus, which marks a further clarification of the technical pathway for using domestic grades as equivalents to European standards. Jiangguo Co., Ltd. has taken the lead in making breakthroughs in this field. In December 2024, Jiangguo Co., Ltd., leveraging its technological innovation in being the first in China to apply domestically produced 13CrMo4-5 superalloy steel pipes in quenching heat exchangers, successfully completed the delivery of such heat exchangers for the 1.2 million tons per year ethylene production facility at the Dushanzi Petrochemical Plant, which is part of CNPC’s Tarim Petrochemical Division. This achievement provided valuable practical experience for the development of relevant standards. It is reported that the development of this group standard will fill the gap in relevant domestic standards; by standardizing production processes and unifying quality assessment systems, it will help to advance the overall improvement of manufacturing technologies for superalloy materials in China as well as promote the clustered development of this industry. The meeting resolved to accelerate the process of formulating and submitting standards for approval, with the goal of officially releasing them by June 2026. https://p3-sign.toutiaoimg.com/tos-cn-i-tjoges91tu/c32826dfbe3a32c5ba7a593c3b47c2db~tplv-tt-origin-web:gif.jpeg?_iz=58558&from=article.pc_detail&lk3s=953192f4&x-expires=1766202215&x-signature=Hs2dA47E922H3xhCaQ1hvFnwo3o%3D The successful holding of this seminar represents an important milestone in the process of making high-temperature alloy materials domestically in our country; it demonstrates the innovative capabilities of \"Made in China\" in the field of core materials for high-end equipment. With the introduction and promotion of the national group standard for 13CrMo4-5, China will completely break its reliance on imports for core materials used in ethylene plants. This will provide strong impetus for the high-quality development of the petrochemical industry and offer solid support for **energy security**. Next, the association will work together with participating organizations such as Jiangguo Shares to systematically incorporate experts’ opinions, continuously refine the standard text, and accelerate the process of submitting the standard for approval and its actual implementation.