Abstract
There are currently three standard measuring techniques for characterizing deposit loadings within water side components of a power boiler. Two of these standard test methods are delineated in ASTM Standard D34831; the third method is delineated in NACE Standard TM0199-992. The mechanical and chemical solvent characterization methods were formulated in Japan, and adopted in the United States following the promotional efforts of Atwood and Hale3. ASTM D3438 was first codified in 1983, and was recently reaffirmed without alteration in 1999. During the 1990s, development of the glass bead blasting method (GBB) was sponsored by NACE as a potential and desired deposit loading characterization improvement and resulted in the publication of NACE Standard TM0199-99. In concert with the GBB development, a round robin test program of all three test deposit extraction test methods was conducted, and reported upon in Corrosion 97 Paper No. 4544 and also through NACE International Publication 7H1005. This round robin testing focused on collecting concentrated information on two select deposit laden tube samples. Collecting test information from a broader range of samples, and collecting a broader range of information using other deposit loading characterization approaches, would allow boiler operators to make more timely and economic deposit chemical cleaning decisions. Background and ideas on collecting this broader range of information to enhance boiler chemical cleaning decisions are presented in this paper.
