A lot of products that are engineered for the petrochemical industry have much wider applications and uses. Pipe flanges and pipe fittings, for example, are not just used in pipelines for petroleum or chemical products, but can also be used for other more mundane applications such as pipelines for pumping water. It is not the type of fittings that are unique but the type of materials they are made from.

Water (unless it is sea water) is a far less corrosive medium than a lot of chemicals that are transported. Therefore for most simple applications it is possible to use cast iron or even plastic pipelines. However more corrosive elements as used in the petrochemical industry require a tougher material, and this is where the specialist stainless steels such as duplex and super duplex come into their own.

However, there are applications where even water can require a stronger material, and that is where high temperatures and pressures come into play as may be experience in boilers and heat exchangers. At Chemipetro we manufacture a special range of tubes for such applications.

Although boilers are used in heating systems heat exchangers have a much wider application. Basically, they are used where it is required to alter the temperature of one medium by transferring heating or cooling from a second medium. The two liquids (like oil and water) must never mix and are kept segregated by running in different pipelines. This process is used a lot in the chemical and food processing industry when it is necessary to heat up a medium during a manufacturing process or to chill another.