As the seasonal change approaches, water treatment specialists around the world will be getting ready to start up their HVAC cooling systems for the summer or shut them down for the fall. Many others will simply continue the normal operation of process cooling towers and heat exchangers at power plants or manufacturing facilities. However, this season, Cortec® encourages everyone to stop following standard procedures and start putting Cortec® VpCI® Technology to work instead! Here are some reasons why.
Achieve successful layup
The usual way to lay up an evaporative cooling water system—whether for an extended maintenance shutdown or seasonal layup—is to turn it off and forget about it. This gives corrosion the opportunity to form and cause serious problems with clogging, leakage, and premature repairs or replacement after startup. For these situations, nothing compares with the convenience and efficiency of the Cooling Loop Gator® and the Cooling Tower Frog®. These two powerful blends of VpCI® contact and Vapor phase Corrosion Inhibitors are able to reach and protect even recessed and interior cavities inside the cooling system.
The Cooling Loop Gator® can be added directly to the cooling water and circulated for 12-24 hours to leave behind a good protective film on the metals inside the tower. At the end of the treatment period, the cooling system can be drained or left at a high water level, depending on one’s dry or wet layup preference. After application, all valves and openings should be closed for up to 12 months of protection. The Cooling Tower Frog® is a water-soluble pouch of VpCI® corrosion inhibitors. It should be added directly to an empty cooling water system, slitting the pouch open to release corrosion inhibiting vapours, then sealing all openings to the equipment. The Cooling Tower Frog® can be used for seasonal, short-term, or long-term dry layup. At the end of the layup, the cooling tower can be refilled as normal. Cooling Tower Frog® will simply dissolve in the makeup water—no removal required.
System cleanliness and efficiency
During operation or standby, open-loop cooling water systems can be protected from corrosion, scale, and sludge buildup with VpCI®-646, a liquid concentrate for use in open-loop cooling water systems. It offers comprehensive protection for all types of metal in the system: ferrous metals, yellow metals, aluminium, and stainless steel. It has the added advantage of corrosion inhibition in the vapour phase, which is especially helpful for protecting metals in the headspace while the asset is on standby.
VpCI®-647 is another multi-metal corrosion inhibitor option. While initially developed to be a replacement for chromate, VpCI®-647 is also an excellent alternative to many traditional water treatment products where fouling problems associated with poor feed control are an issue. It contains a multi-component blend of chemistries that work together to maintain a clean system and excellent heat transfer efficiency. VpCI®-647 can be used in open-loop cooling water systems up to 167 °F (75 °C).
Something different this year
Protection of open evaporative cooling systems is important, but too often neglected. Cortec® VpCI® helps water treatment specialists depart from the norm to take advantage of superior layup technologies and unique operational chemistries. Learn more about how to protect open evaporative cooling water systems with Cortec® VpCI® on Cortec Corporation’s website.
