Paper Mill Saves $250,000 per Year with ChemTreat Mill Water Corrosion Treatment Program

The Problem

A paper mill in the Southern US uses clarified river water for mill process and utilities systems.

In 2018, ChemTreat replaced a zinc/phosphate dispersant program to improve mild steel corrosion rates and help the mill meet its environmental goals. The replacement program saved the facility over $100,000 in annual treatment costs.

In 2020, the mill approached ChemTreat regarding their decades-long issue with a high copper failure rate in HVAC units using mill water for cooling. The issue cost the mill approximately $400,000–$450,000 per year in equipment replacement, efficiency loss, and cleaning costs.

The Solution

The local ChemTreat engineering service team partnered with ChemTreat R&D, analytical lab, technical staff, and product management to troubleshoot the copper corrosion issue and design a custom treatment program suited to the mill’s needs.

The following plan was implemented over an 18-month period:

• Copper corrosion coupons installed in the mill water to measure baseline corrosion rates without treatment.
• ChemTreat’s lab analyzed the failed copper taken from several HVAC units to investigate the corrosion process.
• ChemTreat’s R&D conducted an extensive laboratory evaluation, testing different corrosion inhibitors at different operating conditions. CL4132 was selected based on its superior cost-effective performance over other treatment options.
• A continuous copper corrosion probe was installed to measure system corrosion rate and correlate copper corrosion to pH, conductivity, ORP, and temperature. Mill water temperature was found to the dominant factor influencing mill water copper corrosion.
• A pilot site was set up on site to confirm the efficacy of the new treatment. Over a six-month period, CL4132 was tested under all mill water conditions to confirm dosage rates and the resulting copper corrosion levels.

The Results

After the application of CL4132, mill water copper corrosion control is the best ever documented at this customer site.

Since applying ChemTreat’s treatment product, the mill has maintained copper corrosion rates at the desired range, saving $150,000 in annual operational costs.

Mill water corrosion now meets the defined key performance indicators. Savings associated with both ChemTreat’s mild steel and copper corrosion treatment programs resulted in a $250,000 annual reduction in total cost of operation for the mill.  

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_{Results are examples only. They are not guaranteed. Actual results may vary.}

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