How to deal with scale formation on the water side of the tube bundle in petrochemical water coolers?
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The figure below shows the gasoline water cooler in a petrochemical refinery. During its operation over the past year, significant amounts of scale and microbial sludge accumulated. The operating conditions were a temperature of 30–50 degrees Celsius, a pressure of 0.8 MPa, with circulating water as the medium. How can this problem be solved in such a situation?
This post was last edited by qugd on 2019-11-10 at 19:50. There is not only scaling but also corrosion; from the photos, there is a small amount of sludge as well. In other words, the quality of this recycled water treatment does not meet the standards. The hardness and alkalinity of the water may be too high, leading to scaling; or the amount of scale inhibitor used may be insufficient or inappropriate. The pH of the water may be low, and the amount and type of corrosion inhibitor are inappropriate. Additionally, an insufficient amount of fungicide or inadequate flow rates in certain process stages lead to the growth and attachment of a small amount of microorganisms.
The circulating water flow rate of the heat exchanger is insufficient
In addition to strengthening the supervision of circulating water quality and improving it； If possible, a closed cooling water system can be established (using demineralized water as the cooling medium).
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The water quality problem needs to be solved. Water treatment facilities can be installed on a per-device basis
First, consider the issues of water quality and water flow rate... Once these two problems are resolved, then we can look at the so-called corrosion issue
One is that the flow rate of the water cooler might be too low； Second, there may be issues with the quality of the circulating water. It is recommended to increase the water flow rate and improve the quality management of the circulating water system; considering applying an anti-corrosion coating to the tube bundles could help reduce the impact of corrosion on them.
There’s a material leak; it seems like the biofilm has come out as well