Chemical Industry

FRP inside the chemical plant

FRP tanks, including process tanks, vats and underground storage tanks, have several advantages besides corrosion resistance, they are comparatively light and have the potential to be monolithic in construction. Other applications include reaction vessels, exhaust ducting, scrubbers and towers, chimney stacks, gas accumulators and electrostatic precipitators. Pipework in a chemical plant is commonly manufactured from FRP. In a plant, the pipes may run overhead, underground or even under the sea for several kilometres.

Vinyl ester-based FRPs are used in many applications and have replaced much of the rubber-lined steel construction. One of the first applications by BASF was in production equipment for chlorine in its chemical plant in Ludwigshafen (Anon. 1994). Conditions are very corrosive with both chlorine and water present. By fabricating the ducts and cell covers from FRP, the lifetime was increased from 6 to 8 years. Scrubbers are also made from FRP and are 35 m high and 9.5 m in diameter and have been in operation since 1988. In the incineration plant, stacks and scrubbers operate at 100 °C. All pre-cleaning tanks at Ludwigshafen are fabricated from FRP. The water being treated produces sulphur dioxide that condenses inside the covers forming acid. This acid destroyed the concrete lids and these have been replaced by FRP lids that have been in use for over 20 years and their strength has reduced by only 20%.

FRP has become the material of choice for handling saturated salt brine and depleted brine recycle systems in chlor-alkali production. Brine feeding pipes are usually fabricated from glass/vinyl esters whereas depleted chlorinated brine requires a modified glass/vinyl ester for the higher temperatures. However, if the brine contains high quantities of sodium hypochlorite solution, the FRP must be lined with a fluorocarbon (Anon. 1991). The production of chlor-alkali requires high-purity-saturated brine solutions free of any metal-ion contamination. Hence, FRP components (piping, tanks, etc.) are the preferred non-metallic materials for construction for these installations (Nelson 1988, Talbot 1990).

Plasticon Projects offers various solutions for the chemical processing industries, including major processing plants for organic and inorganic chemical producers, petrochemical components, industrial gas producers, producers of plastic, rubbers, fibres or resins, paint and coating producers, producers of caustic soda, chlorine and carbonates. Plasticon Composites International Contracting specialises in supplying process and storage equipment for these industries. Its customers include several major chemical plants. The experienced, qualified and multilingual staff of Plasticon Projects can supply, install and maintain equipment on site anywhere, anytime.

Our experience is at the disposal of chemical processing industries in various regions all over the world. Our products are highly resistant to severe chemical fluids or gases, enabling our customers to operate in highly corrosive environments.

Chemical Industries we serve

• Petrochemical
• Chlorine plants (chloralkali process)
• Pulp & paper
• Sulphuric acid plants
• Fertiliser plants (nitrogenous and phosphatic)
• Chemical logistics
• Pharmaceutics & cosmetics
• Plastics & elastomers

Quality and experience

Our experienced and multilingual team of engineers and technical support specialists assists customers in the early planning and design stages. The end result is an engineered system that reduces lifecycle costs. Furthermore, Plasticon Projects recommends periodic upgrades and maintenance to ensure the optimum performance of composite systems in extreme environments. To minimise downtime and avoid unplanned disruptions.

Plasticon Projects offers the following services

• Engineering
• Manufacturing
• Installation
• Inspections
• Refurbishments
• Preventive maintenance
• Facility upgrades
• Repairs

Chlor Alkali segment

Plasticon Projects has created a well-developed and complete offer especially for the Chlor Alkali industry. In different regions of the world Plasticon Projects has executed projects at existing and new plants with state-of-the-art process equipment.