- 31 October 2005 -
Resurgence in corrosion-resistant
composites
FRP has a long history of combating the multiple factors
of corrosion. Now, clean air standards in the US are revitalising
applications in the power market, involving ‘supersized’
components. Vicki P. McConnell investigates this recent industry
trend.
 |
750 tonnes of FRP were used
in this flue gas chimney and duct components at this
power plant in Germany. (Picture: DSM.) |
NEARLY A decade ago, in the September
1996 issue of Reinforced Plastics, Dr Frank Cassis
of FAC Associates wrote an article titled 40 Years of Growth
for Corrosion Resistant Composites. At least one of his obser-vations
still rings true today: “The world is a mass of corroding,
obsolete and inadequate sewage and water-supply systems, wastewater
treatment plants, bridges and shoreline pilings that are proven
applications for corrosion-resistant glass reinforced plastics.
This kind of work will not stop, and the use of composites
will continue to be dramatic.”
Perhaps the most dramatic aspect of the US corrosion market
today is its parallel to economic and industrial fluctuations.
Dick Walsh, chairman of the Corrosion Control Committee of
the American Composite Manufacturers Association (ACMA), comments
that heavy industry – except for the power and waste/water
treatment segments – has been shrinking for nearly 20
years stateside, which has limited the potential for new large-volume
FRP opportunities.
“The actual market for FRP in corrosion is around US$250
million,” he says. “The potential market for corrosion
in all materials is probably on the order of $30 billion,
but how much of it could be captured by FRP remains unknown.”
Chaun Trenary, power market manager for Ershigs Inc, of Bellingham,
Washington, USA, agrees with Walsh.
“In flue gas desulphurisation (FGD) systems, which are
central to the operations of utility companies’ coal-fired
power plants, major construction has been minimal in the US
for two decades,” he states. “Recently, pressure
is resulting from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s
Clean Air Interstate Rule that requires states to reduce sulphur
dioxide (SO2) emissions from 2003 levels on the
order of 57% by the year 2015. So power producers, under the
affected states’ emission budget plans, are racing to
handle that clean up.”
“This will create opportunities for volume FRP sales
in the near term,” he assesses. “The Energy Policy
Act of 2005 provides funding and incentives for more coal-fired
power plants, so this may create FRP volume opportunities
in the long term.”
Even with a prevailing metal mentality in the power industry,
Ershigs’ experience in installing FRP in FGD systems,
such as extremely large-diameter chimney liners, ducting and
absorber vessels, has demon-strated the superior properties
of composites for handling SO2 emissions. This
is especially true in comparison to expensive, high nickel
alloys. Ershigs has been designing and constructing custom
FRP products since the early 1960s, and has built FRP chimney
liners since the 1970s, which are still in service.
This is an extract from a feature which will be published in full in the November 2005 issue of Reinforced Plastics magazine. The complete article will be available at www.sciencedirect.com shortly.
Reinforced Plastics © Copyright 2007, Elsevier Ltd, All rights reserved.