This month’s (February 2019) Plumbing Engineer magazine featured an article discussing insulation engineering considerations. The general topics covered are the major points that need to be addressed: (a) the basics (b) history of thermal insulation (c) how heat transfer works and (d) applicable codes and standards. This makes it a great reference article. An expert with ACS Engineering & Safety pointed out a nonlinear issue that he has experienced with thermal insulation and the primer used on carbon steel: conditions in which the coating chemically reacts with the material it is insulating at the temperature range of 100-140 F (metal surface temperature). This was the situation that he discovered for causing corrosion on a vessel used in oil refining at a petrochemical plant.
