Investigation of corrosion sequence in the overhead pipeline of H2S stripper column through CFD models

The corrosion mechanism of the overhead pipeline of the H2S stripper tower was studied by macro examination, metallography, SEM and EDS analysis. The primary reason for the corrosion is the unsuitable material selected for the inhibitor injection pipe. In a H2S + HCl + NH3 + H2O environment, first dew point corrosion occurs. Then oil and gas erosion corrosion causes the injection tube to perforate and break, which directly alters the flow pattern and temperature in the overhead pipeline. Eventually, the tube is broken by erosion and acid corrosion. A computational fluid dynamic tool has been used for the simulation of the multiple phases inside the corroded pipe. The numerical simulation proves our conclusion of the development of corrosion in multiple locations.

Automated summary

The corrosion mechanism of the overhead pipeline of the H2S stripper tower was studied using various methods, revealing that the primary cause of corrosion is the unsuitable material selection for the inhibitor injection pipe. By examining the corroded pipe, it was found that dew point corrosion and oil and gas erosion corrosion contributed to the perforation and breakage of the injection tube, leading to erosion and acid corrosion of the pipeline.