PLANT MANAGEMENT
REINVENTING PRIMER F
Advanced primer converts rust into a protective layer and can be applied by any method, without the need to sandblast first
or chemical plants, chemical tank farms and refineries, atmospheric corrosion of steel is a continual concern that can require re-priming
and re-painting every few years to prevent safety issues and the premature replacement of costly infrastructure. Industrial primers represent a critical foundation for paints and coatings in harsh environments. However, they have certain limitations and have historically been unable to effectively deal with the eventual formation and future recurrence of rust. Traditional primers only encapsulate rust until the paint/primer is scratched, chipped, or breached and moisture and oxygen migrate under the film, allowing the corrosion to spread. As a result, facility maintenance personnel or contracted coating applicators must repeatedly use costly, time-consuming and environmentally hazardous surface preparation methods such as sandblasting to prepare surfaces to be primed and repainted. However, not all environments can withstand the impact of sandblasting, which can damage critical surfaces and may be impractical for reaching hard-to- access areas such as cracks and crevices. Sandblasting is also expensive and time- consuming, and even poses its own safety risks to applicators and the environment. Now, however, more advanced primers
have been formulated that set a higher performance bar in corrosive environments. Tese reactive primers go beyond encapsulating rust to instead convert it to a protective material (iron phosphate) to minimise the risk of further corrosion. Te chemical bond provides superior adhesion, high corrosion protection and eliminates under-film corrosion. Te rust conversion formulation also
differs from prior technologies by using a non-toxic, ultra-low VOC water-based acrylic polymer solution that can be applied with minimal surface preparation and
22
www.engineerlive.com
without the need for sandblasting of steel substrates.
PRIMER PITFALLS ALLOW CORROSION One of the main reasons that petrochemical facilities are so susceptible to corrosion is that traditional primers have serious deficiencies in this area. “We have found that the typical primer and topcoat needs to be replaced in a harsh chemical facility environment every couple of years,” says Dave Marzano, owner of Maxim
Contracting, a New Jersey, USA-based industrial and commercial contractor. “Tere are not many products out there that will stop the rust.” A common failure of primers is not sufficiently protecting against under- film corrosion. “A primer must first form an effective chemical bond to the metal substrate,” says Martin Lawrence, Managing Director of New Jersey-based NanoRustX, a supplier of advanced primer technologies. “Without this, rust promoters such as oxygen and humidity will creep
Tank before coating
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52
