Field Guide for Managing Iron Sulfide within Pipelines or Processing Equipment (for Corrosion Control and Operations Personnel)

The Field Guide for Managing Iron Sulfide (Black Powder) within Pipelines or Processing Equipment offers practical guidance for corrosion control and operations personnel in managing black powder within their pipeline systems or processing equipment.

This book was written for new corrosion control professionals and operations personnel, who are based at production facilities. It provides straightforward, practical guidance regarding what is “black powder,” and why it may be a concern, field tests to be conducted, follow-up laboratory tests that could be ordered, and an approach for using maintenance pigging, coupled with chemical treatments, to remove accumulations of “black powder.”

It begins with a discussion of what black powder is and identifies health and safety considerations associated with H₂S and the presence of black powder, identifying why there may be a concern.

The Field Guide presents field and laboratory tests typically used to identify the presence of iron sulfide, and then discusses maintenance pigging and/or chemical treatments for removing such particulates. Several case studies are also presented.