Experience With Weld Overlay and Solid Alloy Tubing Materials in Waste to Energy Plants

Corrosive conditions in waste to energy boilers produce rapid wastage rates of traditional boiler tube materials. It is not unusual to see corrosion rates in the range of 1 to 3 mm/y (40–120 mpy) on carbon steel boiler tubes and occasionally corrosion occurs at even higher rates. In the mid1980’s there were several boilers that experienced corrosion failures of carbon steel waterwall tubes in less than 6 months of service (1,2). Because of this experience, it has become accepted that some type of corrosion protection is required for boiler tubes in refuse-to-energy boilers. Over the years, many different alloys have been evaluated to improve tube life in waste-to-energy boilers. The most successful materials used for corrosion protection are nickel alloys.