Deaerator tanks, the vessels
that control free oxygen and other dissolved
gases to acceptable levels in boiler feedwater,
are subject to a great deal of corrosion and cracking.
Several years ago, there were numerous incidences
of deaerator tank failures that resulted in
injury to personnel and property damage losses.
Since that time, organizations such as the
National Board of Boiler and Pressure Vessel
Inspectors and the Technical Association of the
Pulp and Paper Industry have issued warnings
to plant operators, and these warnings have
resulted in the formation of inspection programs
for evaluating the integrity of deaerator tanks. As
a result, many operators have discovered serious
cracking. The following example illustrates the
problem