Titanium Alloys for Chemical and Petroleum Plants and Systems
Background
Titanium was first used in chemical plant in the mid-1960’s. Its outstanding resistance to corrosion in oxidising chloride environments, sea water and other aggressive media were rapidly established. In several processes titanium was the first and only choice for effective plant performance and acceptable levels of life cycle cost.
Performance of Titanium in Various Chemical Environments
Today as shown below titanium is more widely used. Costs of material and fabrication have both stabilised and titanium equipment, properly designed can compete with most of the more common but usually less effective corrosion resistant alloys.
Table 1. Process media where titanium’s oxide film is stable (within operating boundaries).
Environment | Performance |
Chlorine and chlorine compounds | a. Moist chlorine gas |
Other halogens | a. Bromine; moist gases, aqueous solutions and compounds |
Water | a. Fresh water, steam |
Oxidising mineral acids | a. Nitric |
Inorganic salt solutions | a. Chlorides of such minerals as sodium, potassium, magnesium, calcium, copper, iron, ammonia, manganese, nickel |
Organic acids | a. Acetic |
Organic chemicals (with moisture or oxygen) | a. Alcohols |
Gases | a. Sulfur dioxide |
Alkaline Media | a. Sodium hydroxide |
Fabrication Costs
Fabrication costs for titanium pressure vessels are surprisingly lower than for some other widely used corrosion resistant alloys.
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