Saudi Arabia Chemical Plant Repair 3 Bar 300mm Stainless Steel Methanol Pipe Leak
Hamco Arabia use a SylWrap Pipe Repair Contractor Case to get a leaking 3 bar 300mm stainless steel methanol pipe back online within 30 minutes of their arrival at a chemical plant in Saudi Arabia, significantly reducing downtime and lost production for the site.
Site Chemical plant
Location Dammam, Saudi Arabia
Pipe Type 300mm stainless steel methanol pipe
Pressure 3 bar
Repair Type Leak Repair
Products Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape, SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage
Pipe Defect
Hamco Arabia are a leading name providing engineering, construction and maintenance services for the industrial sector in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf.
One of their specialisms is pipeline installation, maintenance and repair. They are part of the Sylmasta network as an approved installer and distributor of SylWrap pipe repair products in the region.
Hamco were contacted by a major chemical plant in Dammam where a leaking 3 bar 300mm stainless steel methanol pipe required urgent repair.
Because methanol is toxic and highly flammable, the pipe was taken offline as soon as it started leaking. Shutting down the system caused severe disruption to the production and operations at the chemical plant.
The pipe was fixed high up in the roof of a unit, making access difficult. Any repair materials had to be lightweight enough to reach the height of the pipe. They also needed to be easy to apply in a confined space.
SylWrap Solution
Hamco engineers from their nearby Dammama HQ rushed to the plant with a SylWrap Pipe Repair Contractor Case, containing a range of products able to fix six live leaks on pipe diameters ranging from 15mm to 300mm.
A scaffold tower had been erected to reach the pipe. It could be easily climbed by two Hamco engineers with the Contractor Case in hand. Once at the top of the tower, one 50mm x 4m Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape was taken from the Case and used to seal the leak.
Despite the space constraints, the two engineers were able to stretch Wrap & Seal to its 300 percent maximum by passing the tape between themselves underneath the pipe.
As it was wrapped, the tape amalgamated to itself to form a solid rubber band containing pipe content. One 50mm x 4m Wrap & Seal applied to a 300mm pipe offers maximum pressure resistance of 4 bar – more than enough to withstand the 3 bar operating pressure of the system.
Had Hamco wanted to increase the safety factor of the repair, they could have applied another tape on top. A second 50mm x 4m Wrap & Seal would amalgamate to the first in the same way, building a repair with resistance to 8 bar.
The methanol pipe was then reinforced with SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage. The bandage was activated with water and wrapped and smoothed around the repair area. Within minutes, it cured to form a rock-hard, impact resistant sleeve over the tape.
Outcome
Once SylWrap HD had fully cured, the system connected to the pipe was turned back on. No methanol was leaking, indicating the repair made had been a total success.
Hamco had successfully sealed the leak in under 30 minutes from when they arrived at the site.
Follow Up
The chemical plant were so impressed with the speed of repair and reduced downtime, they have asked Hamco to supply them with more Sylmasta pipe repair and refurbishment products for use at this site and other facilities across Saudi Arabia.
Products Used
Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape
Self-amalgamating tape forms solid rubber band to contain pressurised pipe leaks
SylWrap HD Bandage
Composite wrap sets rock-hard to strengthen repairs by forming a rock-hard protective sleeve
Pipe Repair Contractor Case
Easy-to-store Case containing enough Wrap & Seal and SylWrap for multiple repairs
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