Lined Pipe in Wyoming

Wyoming's soda ash plants supply about nine-tenths of the natural soda ash made in the United States, and that is only the start of the state's process chemistry. Six refineries, the nation's largest helium plant, in-situ uranium recovery in the Powder River Basin, a nitrogen complex at Cheyenne and a fleet of scrubbed coal-fired stations all move hot alkaline liquor, acid, caustic, amine, brine or scrubber slurry through pipe. Marspec Technical Products fabricates the PTFE-, PVDF- and polypropylene-lined pipe spools and supplies the lined fittings and valves that service needs, with spools shipping to Wyoming from Fairhope, Alabama.

Send us a drawing or a line list, or call (251) 625-4949 and contact us online to start a quote.

The Trona Patch and the chemistry of soda ash

Four mining and refining operations in Sweetwater County, west of Green River, pull trona ore from the Wilkins Peak beds at depths of 800 to 2,200 feet and convert it to soda ash and sodium bicarbonate. The surface plants calcine the ore, dissolve it in hot water, clarify and filter the liquor, crystallize sodium carbonate monohydrate and dry it. Hot, saturated, alkaline liquor scales and corrodes steel, bicarbonate slurries abrade it, and the mine water, brine and sulfuric acid used for pH control attack it from the other side of the pH scale. PTFE-lined pipe gives the Trona Patch a flanged steel line that resists the full swing from acid to strong alkali and is easy to pull apart for cleaning. Lined diaphragm valves handle the slurries, PTFE-lined plug valves serve there too where some scoring of the sleeve is acceptable, and lined strainers protect the pumps.

Sour gas, helium and six refineries

The LaBarge field in southwest Wyoming produces gas that is mostly carbon dioxide with hydrogen sulfide and under one percent helium, and the Shute Creek plant that treats it is the largest helium plant in the country, responsible for roughly a fifth of the world's supply, while sending hundreds of thousands of tons of carbon dioxide a year to enhanced oil recovery. Acid gas removal, sulfur recovery and carbon dioxide dehydration at a plant like that run wet acid gas, rich amine and sour condensate through pipe that must be lined or made of alloy. The state's refineries at Sinclair, Casper, Cheyenne, Evanston and Newcastle handle alkylation acid, spent caustic, amine, sour water and demineralizer regenerants, and the Cheyenne and Sinclair plants together make several hundred million gallons a year of renewable diesel, with acid degumming and caustic neutralization of the feed oil up front.

Uranium, nitrogen and coal power

Wyoming holds the largest known uranium reserves of any state. In-situ recovery operations in the Powder River Basin pump oxygenated water and sodium bicarbonate through the ore body, strip the dissolved uranium onto ion exchange resin at the surface, elute the resin with a chloride and bicarbonate brine, precipitate yellowcake with hydrogen peroxide and dry it. Lixiviant, eluate, peroxide and the acid used to adjust pH are all lined-pipe media, and the liner keeps the product free of iron. At Cheyenne, a nitrogen complex produces ammonia, nitric acid, ammonium nitrate, urea and diesel exhaust fluid, with industrial ammonium nitrate going mostly to the Powder River Basin coal mines around Gillette and Wright. Nitric acid, ammonium nitrate solution and hot urea liquor are harsh services. The coal-fired stations at Point of Rocks, Kemmerer, Glenrock, Wheatland and Gillette scrub flue gas with limestone slurry, which usually runs in rubber-lined pipe, and treat boiler feedwater with sulfuric acid and caustic, a common lined-pipe job.

What we ship to Wyoming

Custom lined spools in 1/2" through 12" sizes and lengths up to 20 ft, with PTFE, PVDF or polypropylene liners in carbon steel or 304 and 316 stainless housings, are built to your isometric. The matching lined pipe and fittings, elbows, tees, reducers, laterals, flanges and instrument tees, conform dimensionally to ANSI B16.5 and interchange with any flanged lined system.

We supply lined valves in every common pattern: PTFE- and PFA-lined ball, plug and butterfly valves for isolation, lined diaphragm valves for slurry, lined check valves and lined sampling valves. Our piping accessories include lined strainers, lined expansion joints, PTFE spacers, spectacle blinds and sight glasses, and we also offer solid PTFE pipe and other products for high-purity or small-bore lines.

Cold-weather lines

At 6,000 feet in Sweetwater County or on the high plains at Cheyenne, an unheated line of 50 percent caustic, urea liquor or ammonium nitrate solution will solidify. We supply clamp-on steam heaters, electric heat tracing and heat-transfer compound engineered for lined pipe so the fluid keeps moving while the liner stays within its rated temperature. The details are on our temperature maintenance page.

Built to the standards in your spec

Our lined pipe and fittings comply with ASTM F1545, and lined fittings are welded to ASME B31.3 by welders certified to ASME Section IX. Every lined pipe spool and fitting receives a minimum 10,000-volt spark test, and we bring more than half a century in the plastic-lined piping industry to each order. Liner selection, vacuum ratings, temperature limits and flange torque values are posted on our technical details page.

Serving Green River, Casper, Cheyenne and the Powder River Basin

We ship nationwide from Fairhope, Alabama, with custom spools built to order for plants in Green River, Rock Springs, Casper, Cheyenne, Sinclair, Rawlins, Gillette, Kemmerer, Evanston, Newcastle, Torrington and Lovell. Call (251) 625-4949 or contact us online and tell us what the line carries, how hot it runs and what size and rating you need.

FAQ: Lined Pipe in Wyoming

Is lined pipe suitable for hot soda ash liquor and bicarbonate slurry at a Green River trona plant?

PTFE-lined pipe handles saturated sodium carbonate liquor across the temperature range of the monohydrate process, and it is what we recommend and quote; abrasive sodium bicarbonate slurry goes in PVDF-lined pipe within velocity limits, and polypropylene is available for cooler lines where a specification calls for it. Lined diaphragm valves are the usual choice where slurry is present, and lined plug valves are used too, accepting that solids can score the sleeve.

What do you recommend for nitric acid and ammonium nitrate solution at the Cheyenne nitrogen complex or a mine explosives depot?

PTFE is the liner of choice for nitric acid at the concentrations and temperatures used in nitrogen plants, and it is unaffected by ammonium nitrate solution. We can also supply PVDF-lined spools where the service and temperature permit.

Can lined pipe carry lixiviant and eluate at a Powder River Basin uranium ISR plant?

Yes. Bicarbonate lixiviant, chloride brine eluate, hydrogen peroxide and dilute acid are all compatible with PTFE liners, and lined steel gives you a rigid, flanged, pressure-rated line that will not add iron to the yellowcake circuit.

How do you deal with freezing lines at a Wyoming plant in winter?

We size clamp-on steam heaters, electric heat tracing and heat-transfer compound to the liner's temperature limit, so caustic, urea and ammonium nitrate lines stay fluid through a Wyoming winter without overheating the plastic.