TPT July 2015

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July 2015 59
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ZI les Bosses - 26800 etoIle-sur-rhône - France
tél : 33 (0)4 75 57 50 70 - Fax : 33 (0)4 75 57 50 80
INNOVATIVE ORBITAL SOLUTIONS
range of closed heads,
open heads, tube to tube
sheet and spécial heads
adapted and robust for
ansite orbitaling
Portable orbital inverter
with full parameter tracking
160a-200a-300a
V A L C O M . f r
Tube cleaning
to enable IRIS
inspection
INTERNAL Rotary Inspection System (IRIS) is the
inspection technique of choice for asset owners requiring
accurate inspection reports. For IRIS to be performed
correctly the tubes must be cleaned to bare metal, which
can be a challenge when cleaning is completed using
traditional techniques.
A Canadian refinery was concerned about its CCR
platformers’ VCFE tube integrity, as traditional contractors
that used water jetting/chemicals could not achieve IRIS
inspection standards. The site needed to accurately
determine tube wall thickness to anticipate asset life.
A capex replacement of these multi-million dollar heat
exchangers looked inevitable. 100 per cent of the 1,434
tubes per exchanger had to be cleaned to production
standard and ten per cent of tubes had to be highly polished
to IRIS standard. Deposits with the tubes were found to be
gummy, hydro-carbon scale.
The small 18" diameter man way/nozzle, located on the
side of a fully welded header at right angles to tube sheet,
was accessed using bespoke remote technology developed
by UK-based Tube Tech International. The tubes were
drilled, descaled, polished and inspected to production
standard. A remote control IRIS Standard tube polishing
technology was then applied from top down. This technique
is also capable of inspecting vertical tubes of 65 feet (20m)
upwards. A guaranteed IRIS inspection standard was
achieved first time and both CCR platformers were cleaned
simultaneously within the client’s timeframe.
Commenting on the success of the contract, the
turnaround block coordinator said: “I think you have made
your mark here and you left a great good impression with
the PI group and the right people in the PI group who
want to use you in future – especially for IRIS. When you
do IRIS testing and you do it the first time and there is no
rework then there is no added cost, whereas onsite in the
past we had to clean and re-clean and re-clean, and it’s not
only the cost of the cleaning company, it’s the cost of all
the other resources that are supporting that activity. So it
all compounds. Although the outset costs were higher than
your typical incumbent, the overall cost is cheaper because
of less re-work and less compounding costs from other
resources.”
Tube Tech International – UK
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