Case Study Overview

Site Petrochemical plant
Location Saudi Arabia
Repair Type Leak repair and reinforcement
Defect Snapped nozzle in a 1500mm seawater cooling pipe

Repair Products

Sylmasta AB Original Epoxy Putty,
SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage

Case Study PDF

Case Study Details

Seawater cooling systems allow water taken from the sea to be used for the cooling of machinery and other processes in industrial plants and factories. They are particularly useful in warm, arid countries where groundwater is scarce.

The petrochemical plant were extracting from the Red Sea. A nozzle on the 1500mm diameter main line supplying the cooling system had snapped off from the flange, causing a jet of pressurised water to shoot 5 metres into the air from a 50mm hole.

When this seawater returned to ground, it saturated the surface of the pipe. This had caused visible external damage, discolouration and mould to form. The petrochemical plant were concerned over a potential catastrophic weakening of the line.

Losing so much water also had a serious impact on the efficiency of the cooling system. The plant therefore decided to call in a maintenance team to attempt to fix the problem as a matter of urgency.

The supply line was shut off whilst the repair took place. The application began by securing the hole left in the pipe by the snapped nozzle with a plug made from PTFE.

To create a watertight seal around the PTFE plug and fix it in place permanently, the nozzle was then encompassed using Sylmasta AB Original Epoxy Putty.

AB Original is a smooth-setting putty capable of bonding to all materials, including wet surfaces. It has a two-hour work time, allowing for more careful application without the worry of premature curing.

This longer cure time is particularly useful in hot climates such as Saudi Arabia, where higher ambient temperatures make epoxy putties set faster.

Further reinforcement of the exposed top of the plug and the surrounding AB Original was provided by SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage. SylWrap HD is a composite wrap with a water activated resin which sets rock in hard in minutes.

Seven layers of SYL412HD Bandage were wrapped and smoothed around the nozzle, creating an impact resistant outer layer. It completely sealed the hole, forming a repair easily capable of withstanding the pressure the cooling system operated at.

When the pipe was put back into service, the engineers noticed during their inspection that the pipe around the nozzle had indeed been weakened, as the petrochemical plant suspected.

Although no major leaks were present, the surface could be seen bubbling with air and water. The engineers therefore decided to reinforce the entire area of pipe underneath the nozzle by wrapping the 1500mm diameter with four layers of SYL616HD Pipe Repair Bandage.

SylWrap HD cured to form a thick, rock-hard robust shell encompassing the pipe and strengthening the weakened outer wall. The line was now well protected from external damage or future breaches.

Completing the repair of the nozzle and the reinforcement of the line took less than three hours, after which the seawater cooling system was able to operate at full capacity once again.

Products Used

AB Original Epoxy Putty Stick
Epoxy putty with a long cure time which bonds underwater and to wet surfaces

SylWrap HD Bandage
Composite repair wrap reinforces weakened pipework by creating a robust outer shell

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