Ferralium® 255 plate was used with notable success as the retrofit lining, 1/4" thick, of horizontal absorber vessels at Duke Energy's Gibson Station, chosen for its mechanical properties, corrosion resistance and cost after on-site testing.
The site
Gibson Station is Duke Energy's largest power plant, a five-unit facility built between 1976 and 1982. Unit 5 is co-owned by Wabash Valley Power Association and Indiana Municipal Power Agency. All five units have sulfur dioxide scrubbers.
How Ferralium® 255 plate was used
A wet magnesium-enhanced limestone flue gas scrubber was built to reduce SO2 emissions at the stack outlet to comply with federal regulations. The unit went into operation in 1982 with carbon steel absorber vessels lined with an inorganic calcium-alumino-silicate gunite-type lining reinforced with carbon steel wire mesh. Cracking and erosion of that lining led to the decision to replace it, and after an economic assessment a metal alloy liner was installed.
Ferralium® 255 plate was chosen on the basis of its mechanical properties, corrosion resistance and cost, after testing various alloys in racks installed in an absorber at the power station. After 3 years of testing there was no sign of pitting or erosion.
