Diffusion Coatings for Corrosion-Resistant Components in Coal Gasification Systems

Heat-exchangers, particle filters, turbines, and other components in integrated coal gasification combined cycle system must withstand the highly sulfiding conditions of the high-temperature coal gas over an extended period of time. The performance of components degrades significantly with time unless expensive high alloy materials are used. Deposition of a suitable coating on a low-cost alloy may improve its resistance to such sulfidation attack, and decrease capital and operating costs. The alloys used in the gasifier service include austenitic and ferritic stainless steels, nickel-chromium-iron alloys, and expensive nickel-cobalt alloys. During this period we tested coated alloy coupons under conditions designed to mimic the conditions in the filter unit after the high-temperature heat recovery unit (HTHRU). The filter unit is another important area where corrosion has caused unscheduled downtime, and the remedy has been the use of sintered metal tubes made of expensive alloys such as inconel. The objective of our test was to determine if those coatings on 400-series steel that were not able to withstand the harsher conditions of the HTHRU, may be sufficiently resistant for use in the filter unit, at the reduced temperatures. Indeed, most of our coatings survived well; the exceptions were the coated porous samples of SS316. We continued making improvements to our coatings apparatus and the procedure began during the last quarter. As a result of these modifications, the coupons we are now producing are uniform. We describe the improved procedure for preparing diffusion coatings. Finally, because porous samples of steel in grades other than SS316 are not readily available, we also decided to procure SS409 powder and fabricate our own sintered porous coupons