Gemini Corrosion Services has developed what is understood to be a ground-breaking coating process for the inside of pipework used by the oil and gas industry.
The revolutionary system, based on thermally-sprayed aluminium, was developed in-house by the north-east firm, which is based in Montrose and Aberdeen.
The new method adds a protective internal layer to fight corrosion which has been and remains one of the most significant and most intractable challenges faced by the upstream sector.
According to Gemini’s chairman, Ian Guthrie, corrosion disrupts production and is ultimately very expensive.
“Pipework is the most basic element in the oil and gas industry,” Guthrie told Energy. “Businesses spend millions to ensure that the pipeline is sound and does the job it is built to do in channelling materials. The metalwork is unusually vulnerable to deterioration.
“Well-established and routine coating processes have been in place for many years to protect the exterior of pipes. But finding a reliable and cost-effective procedure that can safely coat the inside of a pipe has been a far greater challenge.”
The challenge has less to do with coating materials than the technology needed to achieve a reliable result.
Guthrie: “I am very pleased that we have at last identified a trustworthy technical solution. This ground-breaking method of applying thermally-sprayed aluminium will guarantee that coated pipework will remain intact for at least 25 years.”