01
The Challenge
Coke laydown inside process tubes forced decoking roughly every nine months, with the hot spots and non-uniform heat flux that drive coking also shortening tube life. The goal was to determine whether Emisshield could reduce or eliminate coking.
02
What Was Applied
Emisshield was applied to the exterior of Incoloy process tubes, prepared in accordance with the relevant NACE guidelines. Coking was measured across feeds against uncoated tubes to establish a coking index.
03
Why It Worked
Coke forms fastest at the hottest point on a tube. A coated tube exterior evens radiant absorption around and along the coil, lowering peak wall temperature. See Production Increase, run length.
04
Summary of Results
| Metric | Uncoated | Coated |
|---|---|---|
| Coking index | Baseline (varies with tube metallurgy) | Dramatically reduced |
| Decoke interval | ~9 months | 30+ months |
| Heat flux | Hot spots, non-uniform | Uniform |
| Coke character | Baseline | Lower volume, smaller, granular, easier to remove |
| Performance duration | 7+ years |
Improved uniform heating reduced hot spots and non-uniform heat flux; the coke that did form was lower in volume and easier to remove, cutting maintenance cost and downtime.