Failure of austenitic stainless steels and superalloys at high temperatures

• Main Author: Seow, Siow Liang.
• Other Authors: Zhou, Wei
• Format: Theses and Dissertations
• Language: English
• Published: 2008
• Subjects: DRNTU::Engineering::Materials::Metallic materials::Alloys; DRNTU::Engineering::Materials::Mechanical strength of materials
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/13399
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Steam reformer tubes in service are exposed to high temperatures in the range of 800°C to 1200°C. Premature failures of the tubes are well known to be a persistent engineering problem in the oil refining industries. Between 1975 and 1989, Singapore Refining Company suffered frequent failures of the reformer tubes, and this lead to the refinery "shutdown" for repair or replacement of the damaged tubes at astronomically high costs. The primary objective of this project was to determine the possible causes of the failures for various failed components, including the reformer tubes and the olet. Understanding of the causes would help to find remedial methods and help to prevent recurrence of the problem.