Every half hour, all parameters of the cleaning process had to be checked in the mobile laboratory on site. During the three-day operation, Lobbe employees worked around the clock in shifts. When all analysis values were within the specified range, the goal was achieved. Now the plant could be put back into operation and run effectively. This was also in the interest of the environment, by the way, because the substances that TOTAL and other refineries recycle in their production processes are nothing other than resource conservation. Good for the climate, good for the environment as a whole.
Chemical industrial cleaning is based on the principle of cleaning parts of a production plant or complete production plants with a cleaning solution precisely adapted to the contamination. Heat exchangers, tanks, boilers, piping systems, columns or entire production plants can be made operational again with chemical industrial cleaning. This service covers a range of very different tasks:
To cover all areas of application, Lobbe works with mobile equipment that can be flexibly adapted to the specific requirements on site - right up to the use of external heat exchangers to heat the cleaning solutions and can be removed from the work area immediately after the work is completed.
Classic cleaning processes in the industrial service sector (e.g. high-pressure water cleaning) are often associated with a high level of preparation and post-processing, disassembly and assembly work. Especially for complex plant systems, chemical industrial cleaning offers a decisive advantage: plant components do not necessarily have to be dismantled. Without time-consuming disassembly or assembly work, the equipment is quickly available again, and downtimes are reduced to a minimum. Thanks to a closed circuit of cleaning solution and product residues, the release of gaseous or liquid pollutants can be almost completely avoided. If gaseous pollutants are produced, they are extracted directly from the circuit and cleaned from the exhaust air stream by means of high-performance gas scrubbers.
Particularly in the case of plant decontamination prior to opening or product-specific deposit removal, it is important to use a cleaning solution that is optimally adapted to the problem. Before the actual work begins, the experienced Lobbe team takes samples. In Lobbe's own laboratory, various chemical approaches are tested for their effectiveness. In this way, problem-solving begins long before on-site use - in the laboratory. Only when the right chemical composition of the cleaning solution has been found is the assembly of the mobile plant begun.
The mobile equipment also includes the mobile laboratory for success control. In this way, all parameters that enable an assessment of the cleaning progress are checked on site.The effectiveness of the cleaning solution is checked at close intervals. If all important process parameters are within the specified target range, the cleaning process is complete. To protect the metal surfaces of pipelines, heat exchangers or tanks, inhibitors are added to the cleaning solution (acid) during ablative cleaning processes (pickling). The effectiveness of these inhibitors is essential for safe and quality-compliant work and is also ensured by on-site laboratory controls.
Lobbe offers a special industrial chemical cleaning process for plants in which butadiene is processed. The intermediate product for rubber synthesis reacts uncontrollably in contact with oxygen to form so-called "popcorn". This "wild" polymer can cause damage to plant components over large areas. Hot passivation is the method of choice for initial commissioning of butadiene plants, after plant openings for shutdowns or other cleaning services where oxygen penetrates the system or corrosion (rust formation) cannot be prevented, in order to create material surfaces that are inert to popcorn formation.
Lobbe is a medium-sized, family-run company in the technical services sector based in Iserlohn. The successful company comprises the areas of industrial services and waste disposal. Nationwide, Lobbe has 2,700 employees at 58 locations and currently has 138 trainees. Lobbe generates 360 million euros annually (as of 2020).
Lobbe Entsorgung West GmbH & Co KG/
Lobbe Industrieservice GmbH & Co KG
Sabine Günther
Public Relations
Stenglingser Weg 4 - 12
D-58642 Iserlohn
Phone: +49 23 74 - 504 - 349
Fax: +49 23 74 - 504 - 353
sabine.guenther@lobbe.de
www.lobbe.de
Phone numbers
+49 2371 4340
+49 800 00 562 23
+49 1805 600 500