PLANT WATER REQUIREMENTS

An indispensable part of the correct maintenance of the production lines is the professional management of the plant water.
Frigosystem recommends entrusting a company expert in water treatment, maintenance and periodic verification of all its values.
The duration of the components relating to the water system is significantly affected by the quality of the plant water used.

“POOR QUALITY PLANT WATER CAUSES DAMAGE”

Checking intervals for chemical parameters of plant cooling water:

Open circuits: verification of water values once per week.
Close circuits: verification of water values once per month.

Consequences due to incorrect parameters and possible solutions:
Ph-value to low: acid corrosion, melting of the protective layer of the hydraulic pipes.
Ph-value to high: limestone and calcium carbonate deposits in the hydraulic system.
Solutions: increase the pH value with the addition of trisodium phosphate or sodium hydroxide or lower the pH value (not often relevant) with ascorbic acid.

Conductivity to high: can strongly facilitate and speed up corrosion phenomena (a conductivity value lower than 100μS/cm significantly reduces corrosion).

Hardness to high: creation of deposits in the hydraulic system, in its components and on the surface of various utilities.
Solutions: reduce water hardness and conductivity, use water softening equipment (such as ion exchangers or reverse osmosis systems).

O2 content
Too high oxigen content: Oxygen corrosion! A corrosion inhibitor is strongly recommended in case the oxygen content cannot be lowered (<0.02 mg / l).
Solutions: check if the system water is properly sealed (e.g. plastic pipes that allow the diffusion of oxygen, open tanks, etc.) and that the expansion vessels are correctly sized and filled with nitrogen.
Water filtration: particles present in the water facilitate corrosion caused by erosion and wear-out the fittings and parts of the hydraulic system.

Water temperature (for cooling water!)
Temperature to low: creation of condensation on the components with consequent increase in the risks of corrosion and electrical short circuits.

If the results of the water analysis do not correspond to the values listed below, adequate chemical products and/or additives must be used.
Generally the use of a corrosion inhibitor is strongly recommended.

FAILURE TO RESPECT THE QUALITY OF WATER AND FAILURE TO OBSERVE THE PLANT WATER REQUIREMENTS, LEADS TO A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE OF DEFECTS ON THE UNIT'S COMPONENTS
AND PRODUCTION INACTIVITY TIMES.

DEFECTS OF THE COMPONENTS CAUSED BY FAILURE TO COMPLY THE PLANT WATER REQUIREMENTS ARE EXCLUDED FROM THE GENERAL WARRANTY OF THE MANUFACTURER.

PLANT WATER

SPECIFICATIONS AND CHEMICAL DATA FOR A CORRECT SUPPLY:

-    pH-value:    9 - 10,5
-    Conductivity:    < 1500 µS/cm
-    Hardness:    7-/- 8,4 °f (= 1,5 mmol/l alkaline earths Ca2+ + Mg2+)
-    Oxigen content:    < 0,2 mg/l
-    Fe content:    < 0,5 mg/l
-    Chloride:    < 200 mg/l
-    Sulfate:    < 325 mg/l

Filtered water (filter mesh size 100 μm), free of algae and solid residues.

Recommendations: the use of inhibitors like corrosion preventives, hardness stabilisators and algae pesticides is recommended.