Affected

Failure Mode Cause/Factors
Thermal Fatigue Cyclic stress caused by
cracks variations in temp, Stress
concentrations (notches,
sharp corners, weld toes) &
Startup & SD
Recommendation to prevent Inspection & Monitoring Apperance of damage Material Affected Unit/EQP
best by Design & operation- VT, MT & PT & Form of single or multipe All materials De-superheater, coke
blend grinding of weld external SWUT for cracks initiate on the drum shell & drum
profiles & smooth transition, non-intrusive surface-wide, dagger skirt, water wall tubes
controlled rates of heating & inspection shaped, transgranular & at the header
cooling, dissimilar materila s filled with oxides connection, steam
thermal expansion actuated soot blowers
considered, slip spacers
should be slip in steam
generating EQP, drain lines
should be provide on soot
blowers to prevent
condensate.

Brittle Fracture Residual or applied Stress Select materials with low susciptible vessels Straight & non-branching CS & low alloy Old steel(before 1987)
& lower fracture temp operation & controlled should be inspected cracks, no shear lip or steels Autorefrigeration units
toughness, embrittling chemical composition, heat for pre-existing flaws. localized necking,no such as methane,
phase, stress concentration, treatment & impact test Inspn is NOT normally plastic deformation, ethane/e, propane, or
Steel cleanliness & grain verification.Cotrolled used to mitigate brittle cleveage. butane. Alkylation
size, thicker material operationg conditions, fracture. units, Olefin units, ,
section, startup, SD or startup & SD controlled polymer plants,
hydrotest/tightness testing temps, periodic inspection, storage bullets.
PWHT

Fatigue Fracture Cyclic Stresses & its frequency Best by Design to reduce stress VT for vibration check. Beach marks emanating from All engineering Cock drums, auxiliary
(Mechanical either from mechanical levels & its frequency. PT, MT & SWUT for the crack initiation site, Clam alloys boilers, quench nozzle,
Fatigue) loading or thermal cycling, cracking. Shell type finger print, wave rotating shafts on
Geometry, stress level, number marks. centrifugal pumps &
of cycles & material properties, compressors, small bore
stress concentrations, LOP piping , pressure
reducing stations due to
vibration
Galvanic Dissimilar metals joined
Corrosion together in a suitable
electrolyte not insulated, large
cathode to anode area can
accelerate corrosion
Creep At Elevated Temps in
prolonged time & stress &
susceptible material, coarse
grained material. This is a time
dependent deformation
Corrosion Fatigue Combined affects of cyclic
(is a fracture) loading & Corrosion, material,
corrosive environment, cyclic
stress & stress raisers, thermal
stress, vibration or differential
expansion & stress
concentration points
Best by Design, avoid different VT & UTTG
alloys intimate contact, coating
(more noble material to be
coated), adequate insulation.
Careful selection of chemistry
for low alloy material, higher
PWHT temps, careful design &
fabrication to avoid stress
concentrators, Controlled
operation procedure, avoid
fouling/deposits on tubes.
select corrosion resistant
material, coatings/inhibitors,
minimize galvanic couple, feed
water & condensate chemical
control, fab & welding stress
reduced by PWHT, grinding
weld contours smooth, startup
slowly, boiler water chemistry
control
Generalized loss in thickness, All metals except Heat Exchangers if tubes
crevice, groove or pitting most noble material is different from
corrosion. metals the tubesheet and/or
baffles. Buried P/lines,
ship hulls & electrical
transmission support
towers
A combination of initially creep voids at the All metals & Heater tubes in fired
techniques VT, UT, RT, grain boundaries & later alloys heaters, tube supports,
EC, PT or WFMT on fissures & cracks revealed by hangers & other furnace
welds of CrMo alloys, scanning electron internals. HAZ at nozzles,
dimensional microscope. VT examined for pipe TEE joints & high
measurements(strap or Bulging, blistering, cracking, stress areas & long seam
go/no go gauge) & sagging & bowing on heater welds on catalytic
replication. Destructive tubes. reformer reactors, weld
sampling & joining dissimilar
metallographic materials.
examination.
UT, MT, WFMT- Cracks are transgranular as in All metals & Rotating EQP, deaerators
deaerators, Boiler SCC but not branched & alloys & cyclic boilers.
waterwall tube at a multiple parallel cracks filled
buckstay by UT or with oxide.
EMATS.
Wet H2S Damage Blistering or cracking of CS and
(Blistering/HIC/SO low ally steel in wet H2S
HIC/SSC) environmentPH, H2S level,
contaminants, Temp, material
properties-hardness, steel
making, applied or residual
stress level, increasing H2S
partial pressure.
Alloy cladding & coatings. Wash Field sampling of the Hydrogen blisters appear as CS & low alloy Refinery where wet H2S
water injection to dilute HCN free water phase, check bulges on the ID or OD of steels environment present,
concentration, HIC resistant weld seams & nozzles, surface not often welds & hydroprocessing units,
steels, Limiting the hardness of VT, WFMT, EC, RT or pipe. HIC occur wherever heat exchangers &
welds through preheat & ACFM, SWUT, AET for blisterining & laminations coolers, Hard weld, HAZ,
PWHT, corrosion inhibitors, monitotoring determine present. SOHIC & SSC often Relief valve springs,
Control PH of the water phase. crack depth crack seen on weldments. compressor shafts
growth, grinding out the
crack

Erosion High velosity & turbulent
abrasive flow & corrosive
environment
Design changes in shape,
geometry & material selection.
Use corrosion resistant alloys
and/or alternating the process
environment to reduce
corrosivity, harder alloys,
hardfacing, increasing walll
thickness,
VT, UT or RT for metal localized thickness loss in the All metals, alloys piping bends, TEEs &
loss, corrosion coupons form of pits, grooves, gullies, & refractories reducers, downstream of
& online corrosion waves & valleys, a directional valves pumps, blowers,
monitoring electrical pattern impellers, agotators, HEX
reistance probes, IR scan tubing, nozzles, slurry
to detect refractory loss piping
on stream.

Mechanical Accidental Impact, Vehicle

Damage impact, struck by falling
objects, Projectiles, rough
handling during transport

Pitting Corrosion Damage of passive protection
coating & accumulation of
debris or deposits & high
concentration of Cl, elevated
temps, PH Value, Increase in
O2 content in the BFW
Proper material selection e.g. VT, RT, sampling of BFW Localized form of corrosion SS, Ni Alloys, Al
SS316 with molybdenum than by which cavities, pits or alloys
SS304, higher grade of alloys, holes are produced in the
Control O2 level by injecting O2 material
scavenger in BFW, Control PH,
Cl concemtration & Temp, CP
and/or Anodic protection,
routine sampling to check level
water chemistry, Agitation of
stagnant fluid
CO2 Corrosion CO2 dissolves in water to form
carbonic acid(H2CO3).
Carbonic acid may lower the
PH & may promoote General C
or Pitting C of CS. Partial
pressure of CO2, PH & Temp.
SCC Combined action of tensile
stress, temp (above 60 degree)
& an equeous Cl environment,
PH, O2
Corrosion inhibitors, Vapor
phase inhibitors, increasing
condensate PH above 6, Use
300 series SS, 400 series SS &
Duplex SS
Use resistant materials of
construction. When HPT use
low Cl content water & dry out
throrughly & Quickly. Coatings
under insulation, PWHT
Check areas of Localized thinning and/or CS & low alloy BFW & Condensate
turbulance & pitting corrosion, grooving steel system, regenerators in
Impingement & root of CO2 removal plants, shift
welds. VT, UT & RT, converters in the
Monitor water analysis hydrogen plants
(PH, Fe), check operating
conditions.
PT or Phase analysis EC Surface breaking cracks occur All 300 series SS 300 series SS piping & PV
& UT. from the process side or components, water-
externally under insulation. cooled condensers,
Cracks have many branches & crude tower O/H
craze-cracked apperance, condensers, boiler drain
cracks have brittle lines , bellows &
apperance. Instrument tubing