APPNOTE02

ApplicationNote
CorrosionMonitoringinAmineUnits

Aqueous mixtures of alkanolamines and/or AmineUnitCorrosionIssues

alkylalkanolamines (amines) have been used in
There is already a significant amount of information in
regenerable processes to remove acidic contaminants,
literatureoncorrosioninamineunits3.Theamineitself
usuallyhydrogensulfide(H2S),carbondioxide(CO2)and
isnotcorrosive,butcorrosionispromotedbyentrained
mercaptans, from liquid hydrocarbons and process gas
acid gases, higher concentration of corrosive species,
streams for over 60 years1. This activity is driven by
higher temperatures, corrosion on heat transfer
either product specification necessary for sale or by
surfaces, higher velocities and HSASHeat stable amine
avoidanceofenvironmentalemissionpermits.
salts.
Amineunitsareanessentialpartofrefineryoperations
Corrosion in a rich amine circuit is increased by high
anduseoneoftheprimaryamines,i.e.MEA,DGA(the
acid gas loading. Acid gas flashing disturbs the FeS
most reactive amines), or secondary amines, i.e. DEA,
protectivefilms.Acidgasesbreakingoutofthesolution
DIPA, or tertiary amines, i.e. MDEA, TEA. Their
causeacidattackswhenthereisahighvelocityandhigh
importanceisincreasingasrefineryfeedsbecomemore
temperature and when the pressure is too low to
sourandsulfurlimitsofrefineryproductsarelowered.
suppressvaporization.Alsoitisimportanttoavoidtoo
A poorly operated amine unit can result in high amine
lowalevelofH2Sintheleanamine,asasmallamount
losses, poor unit reliability, amine solution
ofH2Sishelpfulinproducingaprotectivesulfidefilm.
contamination,offspecificationproductsandincreased
operating costs to the refinery. Plant economics are Heatstableaminesalts(HSAS)formfromstrongeracids
negatively impacted by the loss of revenue due to whichcancomeinfromthefeedsystem.Thepresence
unplanned,corrosioncausedplantoutagesandthecost of HSAS reduces acid gas removal capacity, lowers pH,
forrepairofcorrosiondamage2inamineunits. increasesconductivity,dissolvesprotectivefilmsand

TypicalCorrosionMonitoringLocations

Figure1.TypicalcorrosionmonitoringlocationsinAmineunitofgasprocessingplant
2 CorrosionMonitoringinAmineUnits
causescorrosion.Velocityacceleratedcorrosioncauses
erosion by dirty amine solutions containing solid
particulateswhichremovetheprotectiveFeSlayer.
Corrosion in the overheads of the regenerator takes a
different form from that occurring elsewhere in the
amine unit. H2S, NH3 and HCN are important factors
thatareinvolved,whichcancausecorrosionsincethey
remove sulfide scales. Conditions are more aggressive
whentreatingstreamsfromcokers,visbreakers,FCCUs
andhydroprocessors.
Hence it is essential to evaluate the effectiveness of a
corrosion control program and establish operational
constrain/limits by using online corrosion monitoring
systemsinamineunits.
Online Corrosion Monitoring Scheme in Amine
Unit
In todays market where losing 50 MMSCF of natural
gasproductioncancostupwardsof$400,000perdayin
downtime4, it is critical for these units to be online as
much as possible. A rigorous corrosion monitoring and
inspection program that includes online and near real
time monitoring can significantly contribute to
maximizinguptimebyminimizingfailuresandreducing
inspection frequencies. Significant savings can also be
realized through optimizing utility consumption within
theunit.
Onlinecorrosionmonitoringcanquicklyhelpdefinethe
optimal lean acid gas loading windows which can
prevent wasting steam by regenerating an amine
solution further than required. An online corrosion
monitoring system integrated with a plant process
control system will allow corrosion data to be viewed
along with other operational and process parameters
forearlydetectionofcorrosioneventsandtheabilityto
manage the corrosion rates by finetuning of the
process.
Inanamineunit,corrosionisusuallymostseverewhere
thegasesareabsorbedordeabsorbedfromrichamine
solutions where temperature, flow and turbulence are
important considerations5. The areas of highest
MetalSamplesCompany
152MetalSamplesRd,Munford,AL36268
Phone:(256)3584202Fax:(256)3584515Email:msc@alspi.comInternet:www.metalsamples.com
AdivisionofAlabamaSpecialtyProducts,Inc.Copyright2015
corrosion potential are the reboiler and its overhead
piping,hotleanaminepiping,lean/richexchanger, hot
rich amine piping, stripper and stripper overhead
systems.
Along with coupon systems, corrosion monitoring with
MS2500E/MS3500E Electrical Resistance (ER) and
MS2500L/MS3500LLinearPolarizationResistance(LPR)
technology are the most commonly used for online
monitoringontheseprocessunits.MetalSamplesultra
high resolution CorrVelox ER technology is the latest
addition to measure even the minute changes in the
corrosionrate.
Since the amine system is a water based system,
electrochemical methods such as MS2500L/MS3500L
LPRsystemsarewellsuitedtoonlinemonitoringinthe
liquidphaseareasoftheplant.However,inareasofthe
reboiler,continuedpresenceofaliquidphaseisnotso
obvioushenceelectrochemicalprobescanbecomevery
erraticandessentiallynonfunctional.Inthesecases,itis
desirable to implement ultrahigh resolution CorrVelox
electrical resistance technology. However, in amine
systems,itispreferabletouseLPRtechnologywherever
suitable because it immediately measures change in
corrosionrates.
Metal Samples also provides expert services to design
custom probes that will suit specific applications and
canassistengineeringandinstallationteamstoensure
a smooth implementation of the system. Once
implemented,MetalSamplessupport,forthepurposes
of data evaluation, validation and integration with the
sitecontrolsystem,helpsuserstorealizethemaximum
value and benefit from the corrosion monitoring
program.
References:
1. SidneyF.Bosen,TheDowChemicalCompany,CausesofAminePlant
CorrosionDesignConsiderations
2. Nielson, R.B. et ai, "Corrosion in Refinery Amine Systems",
CORROSION95, Paper No. 57 1, (Houston, TX: NACE International,
1995).
3. European Federation of Corrosion Publications, NUMBER 46, Amine
unitcorrosioninrefineries,J.D.HarstonandF.Ropital
4. Pilar Quiroga, Marta Castillo, Russell D. Kane, and Vishal Lagad,
"Improving Reliability on Amine Units with OnLine Corrosion
Monitoring & Modeling", CORROSION2008, Paper No. 08421, (NACE
International,2008).
5. R.V.Comeaux,TheMechanismofMEACorrosion,APIProceedings,Vol.
422(III),1962,p481489.L.R.