Inspection of the failure of SL-119 Saltwell Piping revealed two through-the-wall holes in the top center of the pipeline. The inspection also strongly suggests that the heat-tracing system is directly responsible for causing the SL-119 failure. Poor design of the heat-tracing system allowed water to enter, condense, and collect in the electric metallic tubing (EMT) carbon steel conduits. Water flowed to the bottom of the elbow of the conduit and corroded the elbow. The design also allowed drifting desert sand to enter the conduit and fall to the bottom (elbow) of the conduit. The sand became wet and aided in the corrosion of the elbow. After the EMT conduits corroded though, the water dripped from the corroded ends onto the top of the saltwell pipe, corroding the two holes in the top of the line.

Subject
Test methods, Water, Piping, Leaks, Tank farms, Inspection, Penetration, Mechanical failure, Heat, Carbon steel, Visual assessment, Wastes, Soil
Keywords:
carbon steel, corrosion, heat tracing, leak, pipe failure, S Tank Farm, saltwell
© 1995 Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP). All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of AMPP. Positions and opinions advanced in this work are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of AMPP. Responsibility for the content of the work lies solely with the author(s).
1995
Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP)
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