Blog

Facility maintenance professionals play a critical role in preventing corrosion within industrial settings, employing a range of proactive strategies to safeguard infrastructure and equipment. Upstream and downstream oil and gas, industrial manufacturing, wastewater treatment plants, among many other production facilities must all have a plan in place to delay the impact of corrosion's harmful effects.

Imagine a 50 year old municipal water tank. It’s only been five years since it was last coated, but for some reason the paint is already starting to fail. Rust can be seen spotting all over the tank’s exterior. If we were to do a forensic style analysis on the surface of the tank and the flaking paint chips, we’d most likely see that poor surface preparation is to blame for the failure.

When rust, corrosion and coating system failure became apparent on pipes in the filter galleries of the Lafayette Utilities Systems (LUS) water treatment plant, a rehabilitation plan was developed. One of the most important aspects of this plan was to prepare the carbon steel surfaces and create the proper anchor profile for the new coating system. Depending on the severity of the rust and corrosion on various pipe sections, the specifications called for either near white metal blast cleaning or commercial blast cleaning.

Surface Preparation (or Surface Prep for short) is the process of cleaning and readying surfaces for new coatings. Due to varying attributes and performance characteristics of the many coating types, surface preparation requirements can also be unique from project to project. As a result, it’s very important to always read the coating specification and all coating technical data sheets.

Corrosion is everywhere - from a speck of rust on a bridge’s bolt to the advanced chemical erosion of a process pump, to blistering paint on a building’s structural steel, fences, and railings. When coatings fail and metal components oxidize, property and infrastructure risk further damage. Corrosion weakens metal from the outside in - untreated metal can rust away completely, leaving behind gaping holes.

Every manufacturing facility and production plant around the world have tanks on their property. These tanks contain a number of different things - some tanks contain liquids like water used for cooling, while others store waste from the manufacturing process. Some tanks hold finished product in the form of liquids or gas. All tanks are built to meet specifications created to prevent tank ruptures. Unfortunately, a tank can perfectly conform to design specifications and still be affected by corrosion and coatings failure. Over time corrosion can lead to structural or tank wall failure creating both an environmental and safety impact.