Background

SSI have invested in a new pickling line to produce up to 1 million tons of steel, which is located at its Hot Strip Mill facility in Bang Saphan, Prachuapkhirikhan district. SSI is one of the largest investors and produces of Steel in Thailand.

Operating Conditions

Steel pickling lines by their nature use highly corrosive acids to “pickle” the steel prior to further treatment. As well as the pickling line, general areas around the line including chemical storage and loading areas are subject to exposure to hot concentrated acids. The process used at SSI is the HCl pickling process.

Corrosion Protection

The area surrounding the pickling line, including floor process areas, sumps, drains and channels were all protected from acid vapours and solutions. Areas where the HCl and other process chemicals are stored including loading and unloading areas where protected from chemical attached by suitable systems

System

Conventional coating systems are not suited for long term protection to the extreme requirements of hot concentrated acids used in the pickling line and associated areas. At SSI project the concrete areas were protected using a vinyl ester glass reinforced base layer and a glass flled vinyl ester top coat.

Areas where heavy traffc was present such as loading and unloading areas were protected by a glass reinforced vinyl ester membrane and acid proof tile system bedded and jointed in vinyl ester mortar.

Project Details

Location	Prachuapkhirikhan, Thailand
Project	Pickling Line
Owner	Sahaviriya Steel Industries Public Company Limited
EPC	SSI
Date	2003
Work	Concrete Areas
System	Tile & Vinyl Ester Lining
Area	3,000 m2
Value	US$ 255,000