Nace Sp0170 Pdf Site
Searching for "nace sp0170 pdf" is your first step toward ensuring the integrity of your refinery, chemical plant, or gas processing facility. This standard is not a recommendation; in many jurisdictions and corporate policies, it is a mandatory practice.
By obtaining the legitimate PDF from AMPP, reading it thoroughly, and embedding its requirements into your turnaround procedures, you will:
Action Step: Do not rely on a random download link. Go directly to the AMPP Store (store.ampp.org), search for "SP0170," purchase the official PDF, and integrate its wisdom into your asset integrity management system today.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not replace the advice of a qualified materials engineer or the official NACE SP0170 standard. Always consult the latest official document for complete requirements.
Corrosion waits for no one. A refinery shutdown is a vulnerable time for austenitic stainless steel equipment. Without the guidance found in NACE SP0170, you risk irreversible Stress Corrosion Cracking that could lead to costly repairs or, worse, safety hazards.
Whether you are establishing a lay-up procedure for a turnaround or investigating a failure, this standard provides the roadmap you need. Don’t rely on guesswork—get the standard, study the prevention methods, and protect your assets.
Looking for more resources on corrosion prevention? Check out our other guides on NACE MR0175 and API 570 inspection codes.
The NACE SP0170 standard is a critical technical document for the petroleum refining industry, focusing on protecting equipment from Polythionic Acid Stress Corrosion Cracking (PTA SCC) during refinery shutdowns.
Originally established in 1970 and most recently updated as NACE SP0170-2018, this Standard Practice (SP) provides specific mitigation methods to safeguard austenitic stainless steels and other austenitic alloys. Overview of NACE SP0170
The standard is titled "Protection of Austenitic Stainless Steels and Other Austenitic Alloys from Polythionic Acid Stress Corrosion Cracking During a Shutdown of Refinery Equipment". It is primarily intended for use by corrosion engineers, maintenance personnel, and inspection teams involved in refinery turnaround operations.
The current version, SP0170-2018, was published on September 10, 2018, by NACE International (now part of AMPP). Understanding PTA SCC
Polythionic Acid (PTA) forms when sulfide corrosion products (metal sulfides) or other sulfur species react with oxygen and water. This typically occurs during equipment shutdowns when the system is opened and exposed to the atmosphere.
The Risk: PTA can cause rapid, intergranular stress corrosion cracking in sensitized austenitic stainless steels.
Affected Equipment: Process units such as desulfurizers, hydrocrackers, and hydrotreaters are most at risk, though the standard applies to any refinery unit using susceptible alloys. Core Mitigation Methods in NACE SP0170
The standard outlines several primary strategies to prevent the formation of polythionic acid and the subsequent cracking:
Nitrogen Purging: Using dry nitrogen to exclude oxygen from the equipment's internal surfaces.
Alkaline Washing: Applying alkaline solutions (typically containing soda ash or sodium carbonate) to neutralize any PTA that might form.
Dry Air (Dehumidification): Maintaining a dew point at least 22°C (40°F) lower than the metal temperature to prevent the formation of liquid water.
Material Selection: Guidance on choosing resistant materials and specific fabrication practices. nace sp0170 pdf
Reactor Protection: Special considerations are provided for the unique challenges of protecting large reactor vessels during catalyst changes. Where to Find the NACE SP0170 PDF
As a copyrighted technical standard, official digital copies (PDF) must be purchased from authorized distributors.
AMPP Store: The official publisher's website offers the NACE SP0170-2018 for purchase.
ANSI Webstore: Provides a preview of the standard which includes the table of contents and foreword.
Accuris (formerly IHS Markit): Offers the standard in PDF and Print formats for immediate download. NACE SP0170-2018
I can’t directly retrieve or display the text of the NACE SP0170 PDF (it’s a copyrighted technical standard from the Association for Materials Protection and Performance). However, I can absolutely craft an interesting story around the experience of reading or using that document.
Here’s a short fictional narrative based on the real-world implications of that standard.
Title: The Four-Hour Fire and a Paragraph on Page 23
Marina Vasquez was a corrosion engineer, which meant she spent most of her time thinking about things falling apart. Metal rusting, pipelines thinning, bolts fusing into useless lumps of iron oxide. Her job was to slow down entropy.
Tonight, entropy had a name: NACE SP0170.
It was 11:47 PM. A single lamp illuminated her desk, casting long shadows over the 48-page document. She’d been staring at Paragraph 5.3.4 for two hours.
Her phone buzzed. It was Dave, the night shift manager at the Gulf Coast Refinery.
“Marina, we’ve got a problem,” he said, voice tight. “Hydrocarbon leak on the secondary flare line. The thermography shows a hot spot—right near the support saddle.”
She felt her stomach drop. “The saddle we inspected last quarter?”
“That’s the one. My guys are saying we should clamp it. But if that pipe shifts…” He didn’t finish. A shift in a flare line at 500°F with flammable gas could turn a repair into a funeral.
“Don’t clamp it,” Marina said, opening the PDF again. “I’m looking at SP0170 right now.”
Dave groaned. “That’s the coating standard? For underground piping? What does that have to do with a hot flare line in the air?”
“Everything.”
She scrolled to Section 6: Design of Coating Systems. The standard was famous for buried pipelines—how to wrap them, how to test for holidays (microscopic pinholes in the coating). But buried pipes weren’t her concern. It was the support saddle.
Two years ago, a rival engineer had specified a standard epoxy coating under the saddle. But SP0170, buried in a non-mandatory appendix most people ignored, had a footnote: “For elevated temperature service above 400°F, mechanical isolation is preferred over coatings alone.”
Dave’s clamp idea would crush the old, brittle coating. Moisture would wick under the saddle, and the pipe would start corroding from the inside out—invisible, undetectable, until it blew.
“Dave, listen to me. You’re going to lift the pipe. Not much. Just half an inch.”
“With what? A jackhammer?”
“With a set of SP0170-compliant isolation pads. They’re in the warehouse. Red box, top shelf. They’re fiberglass-reinforced with a 500°F rating. Slide them between the pipe and the saddle. No clamp. No metal-to-metal contact. No galvanic corrosion.”
Silence on the line.
“You’re telling me a four-page section on mechanical isolation just saved my flare line?”
“I’m telling you,” Marina said, finally leaning back, “that nobody reads the boring standards until something’s on fire. But the people who wrote SP0170 in 2017—they were thinking about this exact Tuesday night. They already saved your line. I’m just reading the instructions.”
At 3:00 AM, Dave texted her a photo. The pipe was lifted, the red isolation pads in place, the temperature reading steady. Beneath it, he wrote: “Next time, I’m reading the footnotes.”
Marina smiled, closed the PDF, and went to sleep. Entropy had lost again—because a corrosion engineer had bothered to open a document everyone else thought was just about paint on a pipeline.
If you'd like a real summary or key takeaways from NACE SP0170 (now often called AMPP SP0170), let me know—I can explain what it covers and why it matters in plain language.
NACE SP0170 (now managed by ) outlines essential, industry-standard practices to prevent Polythionic Acid Stress Corrosion Cracking (PTA SCC) in austenitic stainless steels and alloys during refinery shutdowns. It is primarily applied to high-risk units, including hydrotreaters and hydrocrackers. 1. Core Mitigation Methods
To avoid PTA SCC—caused by reaction between sulfur, oxygen, and water—the standard recommends: Alkaline Washing:
Neutralizing acidic environments with solutions like soda ash. Nitrogen/Dry Air Purging: Eliminating water or oxygen from the internal atmosphere. Material Choice:
Using stabilized or low-carbon steel grades to minimize sensitization. 2. Technical & Safety Guidelines
NACE SP0170 (Standard Practice) provides critical guidelines for the protection of austenitic stainless steels and other austenitic alloys from Polythionic Acid (PTA) Stress Corrosion Cracking (SCC) during refinery equipment shutdowns. ANSI Webstore Core Purpose and Mechanism
PTA SCC is a form of rapid intergranular cracking that occurs when sensitized austenitic stainless steels (those exposed to high service temperatures) are subjected to polythionic acids . These acids form when sulfide corrosion products (metal sulfides) react with oxygen and moisture Searching for "nace sp0170 pdf" is your first
—a common scenario when equipment is opened during a turnaround. Intertek Inform Key Mitigation Methods
The standard outlines several primary strategies to prevent the formation or impact of these acids: Alkaline Washing
: Neutralizes any formed acids using a soda-ash (sodium carbonate) solution. Dry Nitrogen Purging
: Excludes oxygen and moisture from the system, preventing the chemical reaction entirely. Dry Air/Dehumidification
: Maintains the atmosphere inside the equipment above the water dew point to prevent liquid water formation. Maintaining Heat
: Keeping equipment surfaces "hot" (above the dew point) during short outages to ensure moisture cannot condense. Intertek Inform Standard Details & Versions NACE SP 01 70 : 2012 - Intertek Inform
Table of Contents. 1. General. 2. Selection of Materials and Fabrication. Practices. 3. Dry Nitrogen Purging to Exclude Oxygen. 4. Intertek Inform
If SP0170 pertains to a specific aspect of corrosion prevention or control, ensuring you have the most current version of the document is crucial for compliance and best practices in the field.
Formerly known as RP0170, the full title of this standard is: “Protection of Austenitic Stainless Steels and Other Austenitic Alloys from Polythionic Acid Stress Corrosion Cracking During Shutdown of Refinery Equipment.”
While the title is a mouthful, the concept is straightforward. When refinery equipment (made of austenitic stainless steel) shuts down, the hot equipment cools. As it cools, it creates an environment where corrosive agents—specifically Polythionic Acid—can form and attack the metal.
This acid forms when sulfur-containing deposits (sulfides) react with oxygen and moisture. The result? Stress Corrosion Cracking (SCC). This isn't just surface rust; this is cracking that can compromise the structural integrity of your vessel in a dangerously short amount frame.
The specific standard SP0170 likely deals with a detailed methodology or protocol for a particular aspect of corrosion management. As an example, standards might cover:
To get the actual details of SP0170, downloading the PDF from the NACE website or contacting them directly would provide the most accurate and up-to-date information.
If you fall into one of the following categories, keeping a copy of NACE SP0170 handy is essential:
The standard is now managed by AMPP (Association for Materials Protection and Performance), formed by the merger of NACE International and SSPC.
IHS Markit / Techstreet: These are authorized resellers of technical standards. They offer the NACE SP0170 PDF in various formats, including multi-user licenses for corporate use.
AMPP Standard Package: If your work involves multiple standards, consider purchasing the "Petroleum and Chemical Industry Standards Package," which includes SP0170 along with MR0175, SP0107, and SP0208.