Corrosione

Corrosion damage and periodic inspections on

pressure devices and lifting equipments
F. Giacobbe, M. Platania, A. Sili, A. Iacino, A. Corso

This paper deals with requirements for service safety conditions of pressure devices and lifting equipments,
according to the European and Italian Standards. Periodic controls and inspections are necessary to check
corrosion damage and determine residual life, as showed for some significant case histories. As concern as
pressure device, hydrogen induced cracking phenomena in steel walls of a demister, utilized to enhance the liquid
droplets removal in a vapor stream, were detected by ultrasound measurements. The measured defect sizes
were put in comparison with the required limits to verify if this device can be maintained in service. About lifting
equipments, two different corrosion mechanisms were examined by detecting defects and measuring residual
plate thickness: crevice, due to aggressive environment, at the interstitial of steel plates overlap in a welded and
bolted joint of a gantry crane; lastly, crevice and corrosion fatigue of steel rail and plate in a double girder shipyard
bridge crane, that was exposed for some decades to the daily aggressive action of direct solar radiation and sea
salt, detrimental for the coating layer. In these two cases both defects size and plates thickness were considered
with the aim of indicating treatments and restoration procedures of damaged components.

Keywords: Corrosion - Test and inspection - Non destructive testing - Environment and safety -
Hygiene in workplace - Plant and equipment

INTRODUCTION In this work some cases of inspections on corrosion

damaged devices are examined and discussed on the
In lifting equipments, defined according to the UNI ISO basis of the Italian Laws [7][11].
4306-1 Standard, corrosion may occur on structures or
ropes and chains used for loads slinging and lifting [1]. Requirements for service
Pressure devices, vessel and tube, designed to store liquid The European Directive No 89/655 and its subsequent
or gas at different pressure and temperature (Pressure amendments provide for the adaptation requirements
Equipment Directive 97/23/EC - implemented in Italy of devices just put in service. This is the minimum
with the Legislative Decree No 93/2000), may be affected technological level of security that employers must provide
by heavy stress state [2]. Moreover an irreversible and to assure workers safety [6].
progressive decay of their properties, detrimental for For pressure devices, the Ministerial Decree No. 329/04
structural stability [3][4]. Therefore manufactures, in order imposes requirements (controls and inspections) to verify
to protect workers, are required to choose materials and the permanence of the essential safety conditions set out
protection systems more suitable to maintain sound the by the Legislative Decree No 93/00 (Pressure Equipment
above mentioned devices during service; moreover users Directive - PED) during construction. Pressure equipments
are required to set up suitable systems of control and have to work in safe conditions, even if pressure,
inspection [5]. temperature and environmental conditions change.
In practice lifting equipments with a carried weight higher The Ministerial Decree No 329/04 provides (articles 4
than 2000 N and vessels or pipes with internal pressure and 6) for devices verification before their startup. In the
higher than 0.5 bar must be verified according to the case of chemical and physical environmental conditions
current standards. favorable to corrosion, it is necessary to highlight the
solutions adopted to prevent and control the deterioration
F. Giacobbe, M. Platania processes. Obviously users must take account of any
INAIL – Territorial Department of Messina (Italy) requirements specified in the use and maintenance
manual. Moreover the above said regulation requires, in
A. Sili
order to control the stability level of devices, to check
Department of Electronic Engineering, Chemistry and their integrity periodically every ten years. This check is
Industrial Engineering - University of Messina (Italy) based on non-destructive tests (eg. visual examination and
A. Iacino, A. Corso thickness measurement by ultrasound) [7].
Concerning periodical retraining (art. 10 comma 3), the
Senior structural engineer
verification frequency should be changed in a restrictive

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Memorie

way, if the manufacturer requires, in the use and hydrogen induced cracking in pressure vessel, the hoop
maintenance manual, a lower range of time between stress effects are enhanced by the results of atomic
two controls, assuming possible corrosion phenomena. diffusion inside steel.
Devices that undergo corrosion have not to be excluded Frequently in metallic carpentry of lifting equipment
from periodic re-qualification (Article 11 paragraph 1, corrosion process becomes faster due to specific surface
point a). conditions observed close to interstices, joints or other
According to the Legislative Decree No 81/08, zones where geometry makes difficult the oxygen supply
supplemented by the Legislative Decree No 106/09, (crevice); in other cases corrosion fatigue phenomena also
employers must comply with safety requirements (Article occur as a result of cyclic stress applications (corrosion
70); in addition, such devices must be used in accordance fatigue).
with regulations transposing the EU Directives and, if
required by the Annex VII, they must be periodically verified Case A - Hydrogen induced cracking in a vessel
with the prescribed frequency, in order to check the actual Hydrogen Induced Cracking (HIC) can be ascribed
conditions of conservation and efficiency. to hydrogen atoms diffusion inside steel from a H2S
In particular, employers, as also required by the Art. 71, wet environment. Diffusion takes place also at a low
paragraph 8, of the above said Decree, shall ensure that: temperature if it is assisted by a concentration gradient.
a) Devices, whose safety depends on the installation Hydrogen, combining into molecules, gives rise locally to
conditions, must be inspected, after installation and very high pressure. In particular hydrogen diffusion inside
before commissioning, moreover after every assembly steel causes damage through different mechanisms, such
in a new site or in a new plant position, in order to as step wise cracking (SWC) [12], that, as shown in fig. 1, it
ensure a proper installation and a good service [8]. is a failure mechanism characterized by cracks that follow
b) Devices exposed to conditions that can cause paths of lower resistance and interconnect each other.
deterioration resulting in dangerous situations must be A demister, a device often fitted to vapor liquid separator
submitted to: 1) periodic inspections with frequencies vessels to enhance the removal of liquid droplets entrained
determined according to the directions provided by in a vapor stream, has been examined. It consists of a
the manufacturers, or by standards of good practice, steel vessel closed by two convex funds, with the following
or, in absence of the latter, derived from codes of design data: pressure 7 bar, temperature 90°C; fluid:
good practice; 2) overtime controls to ensure the hydrocarbon + water steam; material: ASTM 516 Gr. 70
maintenance of good safety conditions, whenever steel; thickness: 10 mm). The rules for design, fabrication,
occur exceptional events that can have detrimental and inspection of pressure vessels are provided by a
effects on safety of commissioned devices, such as specific standard [13].
repairs, accidents, natural phenomena or prolonged In the considered device, non-destructive testing,
periods of inactivity [9]. performed according to the Phased-Array ultrasonic
c) Control actions referred in a) and b) are addressed to method, showed the presence of defects inside material
ensure a good state of preservation and efficiency with and allowed their positions and sizes evaluation [14].
the aim of maintaining devices in safety conditions Many indications of defects were found in the vessel mid-
during service. Controls must be performed by a thickness. Due to their morphology, these defects can be
competent staff [10]. ascribed to SWC, that results in cracks breaking through
Methods for performing periodic checks are set down the vessel internal surface (fig. 2).
in the Annex II of the Ministerial Decree April 11th, 2011 Technical assessments were performed according to the
[11]. API 579-1 and ASME FFS-1-2007 Standards, with the
Results of additional investigations, carried out in aim of verifying if defects are acceptable or not. Pressure
agreement with technical standards, have to be highlighted equipments with structural deteriorations are allowed to
in the case of periodic inspections concerning mobile work, thanks to the Fitness For Service (FFS) procedure
cranes and bridges supported on motor-driven carriages. [15][16].
These inspections are addressed to identify any faults, The damaged vessel was studied according to the Level 2
defects or anomalies, that are produced during service of of Part 7 “Assessment of Hydrogen Blistering and Hydrogen
devices working for over 20 years, and to determine the Damage Associated with HIC and SOHIC”, because there
residual life during which these devices can still operate are defects appearing on surface.
safely with any new nominal weights. For vessel verification, the following assumptions were
made:
a) the most critical defect was studied, namely the
CASE HISTORIES one having the maximum size between all (in the
circumferential or longitudinal direction, or along the
Metals can be subjected to various types of corrosion, thickness);
including stress corrosion due to the simultaneous effects b) the studied defect was assimilated to an ellipse
of mechanical stress and environmental aggressiveness or oriented along the thickness in the longitudinal
to other particular conditions. For example, in the case of direction, assuming the maximum measured depth as

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 Corrosione

Fig. 1 – Stepwise cracking due to

hydrogen diffusion inside an ASTM
A 516 Gr. 70 steel plate.
Fig. 1 – Frattura progressive dovuta
alla diffusione di idrogeno all’interno
di una lamiera d’acciaio ASTM A 516
Gr. 70.

Fig. 2 – Ultrasound measurements performed by the Phased-Array method with linear scanning. B scan is the
sectional view and C scan is the plan view. According to the colored scale, the measured crack was 43.5 mm
long, 35.2 mm wide and has a depth of 4.8 mm with a wall thickness of 9.4 mm.
Fig. 2 – Misure con ultrasuoni effettuate con il metodo dell’allineamento di fase con scansione lineare. La scansione B è
effettuata sulla sezione, la scansione C è nel piano. Secondo la scala a colori, la cricca è lunga 43.5 mm, larga 35.2 mm
ed ha una profondità di 4.8 mm con uno spessore di parete di 9.4 mm.

the minor axis and the maximum longitudinal length as Defect deep Defect length
the major axis; [mm] [mm]
c) vessel was subjected only to the action of the internal
Most critical
pressure; 2,4 84,7
defect size
d) there were no secondary loads;
e) there were no other causes that could promote the Defect limt size 4,8 414,5
defects growth (eg. sulfide stress cracking, fatigue,
etc.). Table 1 - Most critical defect size and limit size in
Calculation, carried out following the API 579-1/ASME FFS- comparison.
1-2007 code, gave the possibility to assess the pressure Tabella 1 – Dimensioni più critiche del difetto in confronto
vessel stability according to defects [17]. The examined con i valori limite.
device can be considered stable with respect to the
defect sizes indicated in the non destructive test report, During the propagation stage, in addition to general
performed according to the Phased-Array technique. corrosion, an accelerated corrosion can be observed in
Therefore, as specified by the Art. 12, Paragraph 2, of the correspondence of interstices.
Ministerial Decree 329/04, devices can be maintained in An asymmetric gantry crane (lame), dating back to 1970,
service (Tab. 1). installed in a power plant and serving two groups of Rankin
cycle turbo-alternator, was examined. It was located near
Case B – Crevice in a crane located in a power plant the steam generator, not more than 250 m from the sea,
Crevice is a corrosion mode typical of interstices, joints and used only during the turbo-alternator scheduled
or other zones where geometry makes difficult the oxygen maintenance. Photographs of the bolted and welded steel
supply. Two stages can be distinguished: initiation and joint affected by crevice are given in fig.3.
propagation. During the first one, generalized corrosion The simultaneous presence of combustion fumes from
takes place near the interstices when the protective layer boiler and sea salt made the environment very aggressive
of metal (paint, zinc plating, passivating agents) begins to against the coating layer, favouring the onset of steel
be damaged; here corrosion proceeds roughly uniformly. corrosion. Moreover bolts caused crevice phenomena:

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Memorie

Fig. 3 – Gantry crane with indication of the joint affected by crevice.

Fig. 3 – Gru a ponte con indicazione del giunto affetto da crevice.

Fig. 4 – Corrosion damage

in a bridge crane: crevice
(A) and corrosion fatigue (B)
Fig. 4 – Danneggiamento per
corrosione in un carroponte:
crevice (A) e corrosione fatica
(B).

corrosion developed in the interstitial at plates overlap, Case C – Corrosion fatigue in a shipyard bridge crane
when enamel coating became damaged due to the The third case presented is a double girder bridge crane,
combined effects of atmospheric agents. which dates back to 1972, installed at a shipyard. This
The joint was mechanically cleaned and subjected to crane, used during boats hauling and launching, was
magnetic particle testing and thickness measurements by installed on overhead rails near the water edge. This
an ultrasonic thickness gauge. equipment was exposed for some decades to the daily
The magnetic inspection showed no evidence of significant aggressive action of direct solar radiation and sea salt,
defects both in weld and heat affected zone. In particular, detrimental for protective coating. In this case both crevice
the few detected defects, mostly linear, are all less than 2 and corrosion fatigue occurred in correspondence of welds
mm long. between rails and sheets of the main girders, made of UNI
The EN ISO 23278-2009 “Magnetic particle examination EN 10025:1995 steel.
of welds” Standard sets the parameters recommended Figure 4 shows two images of the bridge crane, where
for the acceptable defect level in weld and in metal close corrosion damages of steel are visible at the interface
to it. In this case, due to surface and weld conditions, a between rail and upper surfaces of the girders sheets.
level of acceptance equal 2 was considered appropriate, These damages consist of flaking (A), due to crevice, and
which corresponds to a limit length L ≤ 3 mm for linear cracks, due to corrosion fatigue (B).
indications and to a limit length d ≤ 3 mm for non-linear The carriage movement caused bending fatigue stress
indications [18]. in rails: consequently a triaxial stress state occurred
Thickness measurements of plates showed a significant at the welding points between rail and horizontal sheet,
reduction (up to 50% of the original value) only in the crevice exceeding locally the fatigue limit of steel that underwent
zone at the plates overlap: here corrosion damage was an accelerated corrosion process.
characterized by oxidation and plate swelling; far from this Preliminarily the damaged areas in fig. 4 were cleaned first
zone, plates underwent a thickness reduction of about 6% mechanically and then with lacquer thinner, in order to
in areas where the lack of protective paint occurred. This remove all traces of the enamel layers. Magnetic particle
thickness reduction was less than the limit (10%) prescribed testing and thickness measurements by an ultrasonic
by the standard Therefore a deep mechanical cleaning, thickness gauge were performed. The detected defects
followed by a passivating treatment with suitable products were within 2 mm long, with mutual distances of the same
(rust converter) and by a subsequent coating with inorganic order of magnitude.
paint (enamel), are the only recommended treatments. With reference to the EN ISO 23278-2009 Standard, for

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 Corrosione

the examined case a level of acceptance equal 2 was REFERENCES

considered appropriate, corresponding to a limit length L
≤ 3 mm for linear indications and to a limit length d ≤ 3 mm [1] ISO 4306-1, “Cranes - Vocabulary - Part 1: General”,
for non-linear indications [18]. 2007
Thickness measurements of sheets showed a significant [2] Directive 97/23/EC of the European Parliament and of
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zones, where the limit prescribed by the standard is equal laws of the Member States concerning pressure equipment
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On the basis of these results, a radical restoration was Books, Tulsa - Oklahoma, 1986
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epoxy paint and finally a rubber finishing, with the aim of tra manutenzioni, verifiche e controlli, Ambiente & Sicurezza
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[6] Directive 89/655/EC, “Use of work equipment.
Minimum safety and health requirements for the use of
CONCLUSION work equipment by workers at work”, 1989
[7] Ministerial Decree No. 329 of 2004.12.01, “Regolamento
In this paper a specific case of hydrogen induced cracking recante norme per la messa in servizio ed utilizzazione delle
in a pressure device and two cases of corrosion in lifting attrezzature a pressione e degli insiemi di cui all’art.19 del
equipments, due to crevice and corrosion fatigue, were decreto legislativo 25/02/2000, n. 93”, Gazz. Uff. Suppl.
examined. The inspection procedures considered were N°22 del 28 gennaio 2005
referred to the current standards and regulations. [8] OSHA Instruction Pub 8-1.5, “Guidelines for Pressure
Concerning with pressure equipments, before their start Vessel Safety Assessment”, 1989
up, thickness measurements must be performed in order [9] Francesco Taurasi, “Verifiche periodiche - guida alla
to check for any deviations from project data. Then, after
gestione delle attrezzature”, Ambiente & Sicurezza sul
about 4-6 years (in the case of petrochemical industries,
Lavoro, January 2012
this period coincides with the plant shutdown for the
[10] Howells, M. Sitar, B. and Reames, M., “Method for
scheduled maintenance), equipments must be visually
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inspected and thickness measured again. These tests are
Patent App. 11/072,546, 2006
used to determine corrosion rate and evaluate residual
[11] Ministerial Decree of 2011.04.11, “Disciplina delle
life. If degradation is more than 30% of the corrosion
modalità di effettuazione delle verifiche periodiche di cui
allowance provided by the designer, it is fundamental to
all’All. VII del decreto legislativo 9 aprile 2008, n. 81. nonché
repeat, by the tenth year, thickness measurements. These
i criteri per l’abilitazione dei soggetti di cui all’articolo 71,
investigations can be performed in advance to the time
comma 13, del medesimo decreto legislativo”, Gazz. Uff.
defined by the standards, that require a maximum time limit
of 10 years for damage controls. It is worth considering Suppl. Ordin. N°11 del 29 aprile 2011
that the Italian regulations devolve to manufacturers the [12] API 571, “Damage Mechanisms Affecting Fixed
definition of shorter period, when the utilized materials are Equipment in the Refining Industry”, American Petroleum
subjected to an accelerated degradation, due to working Institute, 2003
and environmental conditions. [13] EN 13445, “Unfired pressure Vessel”, 2002
As regards lifting equipments verification, the main [14] EN 16018, “Non destructive testing - Terminology -
regulation is certainly the recent Legislative Decree Terms used in ultrasonic testing with phased arrays”, 2011
No. 11/2011 that rules what provided by the Legislative [15] API 579, “Recommended practice for fitness-for-
Decree No 81/2008, paragraph 11 - Art. 71, implemented service”, American Petroleum Institute, 2000
by the subsequent Legislative Decree No 106/2009. [16] API 579-1 ASME FFS-1, “Fitness-for-service”, American
This regulation specifies the frequency of “periodic Petroleum Institute, 2007
verifications” addressed to “assess the actual state of [17] F. Giacobbe, et al., “Maintenance engineering: case
conservation and efficiency in order to assure safety”. In study of fitness for service assessments”, International
this regard, considerable relevance has the establishment Conference On Engineering Design, ICED11, 2011
of “additional investigations” aimed at “identifying possible [18] EN ISO 23278, “Non-destructive testing of welds.
faults, defects or anomalies, that are produced using Magnetic particle testing of welds. Acceptance levels”, 2009
equipments working for over 20 years”, and - particularly [19] ISO 9927-1, “Cranes - Inspections - Part 1: General”,
important - the determination of “residual life during which 2009
equipments can still operate safely with any new nominal
loads”. Lifting equipments must be submitted to the
controls listed in the ISO 9927-1 Standard [19].

La Metallurgia Italiana - n. 6/2014 51

Memorie Corrosione

Danneggiamento per corrosione e ispezioni

periodiche in apparecchiature in pressione
ed attrezzature di sollevamento
Parole chiave: Corrosione - Collaudi e controlli - Pprove non distruttive - Ambiente e sicurezza - Igiene lavoro -
Impianti e attrezzature

Le sollecitazioni di esercizio e le condizioni ambientali possono causare fenomeni corrosivi importanti nelle
attrezzature di lavoro determinandone il degrado progressivo e generando situazioni di pericolo per persone e cose.
Secondo la legislazione vigente sulla sicurezza dei luoghi di lavoro, i datori di lavoro devono sottoporre le attrezzature
a verifiche periodiche, al fine di valutare le conseguenze del degrado in termini di ulteriore esercibilità. In linea
generale, le attrezzature di sollevamento con portata superiore ai 2000 N ed i recipienti o le tubazioni con pressione
superiore ai 0,5 bar devono essere sottoposti a verifiche periodiche. Il legislatore, al fine di garantire il mantenimento
nel tempo dei requisiti di sicurezza, ha imposto sia controlli periodici interni all’azienda che attività di verifica a cura
di soggetti abilitati, titolari del servizio per la conduzione della prima e delle successive verifiche, da condursi con
cadenze periodiche in funzione del livello di rischio associato alla tipologia di attrezzatura.
Nel presente lavoro sono stati esaminati i requisiti di apparecchiature in pressione e di attrezzature di sollevamento,
previsti dalle vigenti disposizioni legislative, in relazione ad alcuni fenomeni corrosivi, valutando le conseguenze sulla
loro ulteriore esercibilità in condizione di sicurezza.
E’ stato considerato il caso di cricche indotte da idrogeno nelle pareti di acciaio di un demister, un recipiente in
pressione utilizzato per effettuare l’abbattimento di gocce di liquido all’interno di una corrente di vapore, effettuando
misure ad ultrasuoni per valutare le dimensioni dei difetti e confrontarli con i valori limite imposti dalle norme.
Per quanto riguarda le attrezzature di sollevamento, sono stati esaminati due differenti casi di corrosione, valutando
le dimensioni dei difetti e misurando lo spessore residuo delle lamiere interessate. Sono stati presi in esame i
fenomeni di crevice negli interstizi presenti nelle zone di sovrapposizione delle piastre di acciaio, in un giunto saldato
ed imbullonato facente parte di una gru a cavalletto, e, in ultimo, gli effetti del cervice e della corrosione - fatica nelle
rotaie e nelle lamiere d’acciaio di una gru a ponte, installata in un cantiere navale ed esposta per alcuni decenni
all’azione aggressiva della radiazione solare e della salsedine, dannosa per lo strato di verniciatura. Nei due casi
esaminati sono state misurate le dimensioni dei difetti e gli spessori delle lamiere, al fine di indicare trattamenti e
procedure di ripristino dei componenti danneggiati.

52 La Metallurgia Italiana - n. 6/2014