Chemical cleaning onshore

Cape Environmental's highly experienced qualified chemists, chemical engineers, project managers and trained operatives solve issues and deliver customised chemical cleaning and decontamination services, particularly to the oil, gas and power generation industries. We use a wide range of cleaning agents and chemicals, including our own proprietary formulations.

  

We use our chemical cleaning expertise on the following types of unit:

 

Oil industry

Pipe flow software helps us ensure optimum circulation for maximum surface contact and cleaning. We own and operate all necessary plant to provide:

• Chemical cleaning and pipeline pigging: soda ash washing to remove polythionic acids, and foam chemical cleaning of fin fans, with waste acceptable to refinery WWTPs
• Liquid phase decontamination: using proprietary chemicals to remove organics from pipes, vessels and exchangers
• Vapour phase decontamination: removes oil, gas, LEL, H2S, benzene and hydrocarbon deposits in a single application.

Power generation industry

We have undertaken the majority of chemical cleans on HRSGs and in-service boilers in the UK. We supply experienced manpower for both day and night work, as well as all necessary plant and equipment, and can arrange effluent treatment and transportation.

Pre-commission cleaning: we offer a specialist team to advise on and provide effective, integrated chemical cleaning for the boiler and associated pipework in new build power generation plants. Our previous experience on new build HRSG’s includes hydrotesting all HRSG and balance of plant pipework. Cape DBI has carried out pre-commission cleaning on CCGT gas lines including pigging new various diameter gas lines from the receiver station to scrubber vessels before the compressor modules. In some cases hydrolasing was utilised to throroughly clean intercompressor pipework before being dried by foam pigging or air blowing. Other clients have also requested cleaning of lines by installing specially designed bursting/rupture discs and pressurising with dry air or utilising remote operated quick release valves which we also supplied.

Hydrolasing has also been used on steam lines to remove deposits on new build and existing power stations as a belt and braces approach prior to steam blowing. Cape DBI have also provided and installed large bore temporary pumps and heavy duty plastic pipework to take demin water to boilers for filling/flushing and transport flushing waters to effluent pits, tankage and cooling towers etc.

In-service cleaning: the deposit of materials during commission and operation will cause a reduction in productivity. Our in-house specialists analyse your requirements, identifying the correct chemicals, pressures, temperatures, flow rates, flushing regime and passivation processes, to develop the right method to deal quickly and efficiently with all deposits/contaminants and ensure the system is in a clean condition prior to use.

Cape Environmental have used a variety of chemicals to clean HRSG’s including surfactant/HF process and the one stage citric acid method. Detailed high velocity flushing is required before and during some of the processes to maximise cleanliness and the effluent can either be stored in 700 cubic metre Cape Environmental supplied tanks or lined effluent pits prior to neutralisation/treatment and disposal of effluent onsite. A Cape Environmental mobile bioreactor can degrade high COD and ammoniated waste to meet local environmental constraints for disposal of effluent to sewer or river.

Hydrotesting: all planning, manpower and plant for hydrotest work on new-build HRSGs. This includes all temporary pumps, pipework, water holding tanks, chemicals (ammonia/oxygen scavenger), temporary boilers, high pressure pumps, high pressure pipe plugs, certified pressure gauges/relief valves/chart recorders. Also responsible for designing recirculation systems including vent hoses, pipe manifolds and all flexible pipework back to the water holding tank/temporary boiler to recirculate and heat water to above 22°C for the hydrotest to take place.

Cape Environmental can also offer sigma froth flushing, silenced steam blowing and air blowing services (including computer design and fabrication) to the worldwide power industry.