Seawater systems
Seawater Valve systems are used in a variety of industries including; desalination,oil & gas, FPSOs, coastal process plants, power stations, LNG loading and unloading facilities and, of course, shipping.
In such industries seawater is primarily used for cooling systems. It is also used for fire fighting, desalination and water injection in offshore oil production facilities.
Corrosion problems in seawater systems is well documented
and has been subject to detailed studies over many
years.
Corrosion in valves will be faster where cast iron or steel valves with non ferrous piping are used (2 to 3 years). Higher salinity, velocity and to a lesser extent higher temperatures can accelorate the corrosion process..
Nickel aluminium bronzes have been established for many years as having an excellent reputation for corrosion resistance in seawater environments when comparing corrosion properties such as general corrosion, pitting, crevice corrosion, erosion corrosion, cavitation, stress corrosion cracking, corrosion fatigue and galvanic corrosion against austenitic and duplex stainless steels.
Nickel aluminium bronze competes successfully on cost linked with corrosion properties giving a far greater life span of the valve making NAB an ideal choice for sea water solutions.