MECHANICAL CLEANING SERVICES

INTRODUCTION
Quest Integrity NLD B.V. is based in
Vianen and was formerly known as
Turbinate International B.V. Quest
specializes in mechanical decoking of
furnaces, process lines and transfer lines
from 2” to 30” using pigging technology.
Pigging uses a pressure-driven water
flow to push a cleaning pig through the
coils and clean the system.

Quest also develops, manufactures and

maintains our own pump units,
equipment and pigs. The knowledge
Quest has acquired hereby, enables us
to provide high quality service on site as
well as in the preliminary phase of any
job. This experience makes Quest
Integrity very successful in manufacturing
custom made equipment to decoke or
inspect non piggable furnaces such as
catalyc reformers and furnaces with
manifolds. Quest is also capable and
willing to advice on making adjustments
to a furnace in order to make it piggable.
To guarantee a safe, fast and total
cleaning of installations Quest integrity
presents a highly motivated, experienced
and qualified crew. With this crew, our
equipment and our years of experience
we can ensure that every job we do will
be successful.

Quest integrity NLD BV is VCA*

certified.
PIGGING  By cleaning two passes at the
Pigging is a safe and swift method for same time valuable time can be
cleaning systems with the best possible saved
results. Other cleaning methods often  In case of an engine or system
involve high risk for the installation and
breakdown the job can be
crew while results are not always
finished by the other engine.
satisfactory. Those other methods often
use high pressure, extremely high Quest Integrity NLD BV offers full service
temperatures, compressed gasses or on site. The TSC-Unit is equipped with
even “controlled” fires and explosions. the latest technology and the involvement
Also very aggressive chemicals are still in the cleaning process of the refinery can
being used in the process of cleaning be reduced to a minimum. Your
pipelines, in spite of the damage to the installation will be under the control of our
environment these chemicals cause. capable crew. On request our crew can
Pigging, on the other hand does not use work in day and night shifts, reducing the
high pressure or high temperatures to down time of the furnace to a minimum.
clean a system. Mostly the water

pressure lies between the 3 and 15 bar

and the water we use is at ambient THE CLEANING
temperature. This shows that pigging is a After attending the safety instructions and
safe way to clean an installation. Also arranging the work permit Quest is ready
pigging has proven to give the most to connect the pigging equipment on the
satisfactory results. This makes pigging refinery. Launchers, temporary bends,
the best solution for cleaning valves and hoses are connected at the in-
installations. and outlet flanges of the concerning
furnaces. A connection to the fire water
system is made and the drain for the
HOW WE WORK wastewater is set up from the TSC-unit to
Our tools enable us to clean two passes the sewer.
at the same time. Our Twin System
Cleaning Unit is equipped with two When all of the above is done, we will
centrifugal pumps and 450 hp engines start the engines of our TSC-unit and the
which are monitored by two independent actual pigging process begins. The first
registration-systems. These systems can step in this process is filling the system
be used independently in order to clean with water. Our crew will monitor this
two different passes. This system has filling process closely to check on any
two great advantages: leakage. When the entire system is filled
up a flow test will be performed.
The pressure is set at 10 bar and the the coil, water polluted with coke particles
amount of water that flows through the will enter our TSC-Unit. Due to this
system is measured (m 3/h). This flow test pollution the water looks black. This black
is done for two reasons: water indicates that the cleaning pig is
working and is removing cokes from the
 It gives an indication of the tube walls. The black water will not be
amount of pollution in the reused in the pigging process, the clean
system; water can and will be reused.
 It functions as the first of two
When after several runs the water is
measurements to determine the
getting cleaner, the pig will be replaced
flow improvement. After the
by a new or larger pig. This will be
cleaning process a second flow repeated until the size of the pig is equal
test will be performed. to the internal diameter of the coil. As
long as the water coming into the unit is
After the flow test a tracer pig is pushed
black when the pig returns, the coil still
through the coils. This pig is made of a
contains cokes. When a pig, with the
high density foam. The tracer pig will
same internal diameter as the tube does
detect any obstacles, for example thermo
not bring back any black, polluted water
welds or orifices which have been left in
and the pressure recorders indicate a
place, in the coil before a regular cleaning
steady line, the coil can be considered
pig is launched. This tracer pig also gives
clean. To remove the last pieces of loose
an indication about the degree of
debris from the tubes, a tracer pig will be
pollution. The tracer pig will show signs of
pushed through the system one more
friction damage when the coils are
time. Then the pass is finished and the
heavily polluted.
second flow test can commence. This
second flow test will record the flow
When the tracer pig has travelled through
improvement as result of the cleaning.
the entire system, and we can be sure
When the flow test is done our crew will
that there are no remaining obstacles in
remove our equipment from the system
the system, the first cleaning pig is
and the refinery will have access to their
launched. This first pig is monitored
system again. On request the coils can
closely to localize possible problem areas
be purged after the pigging by Quest as
in the system. Our pressure recorders
well.
record an unsteady line when the pig
passes very polluted areas. When the
cleaning pig comes close to the end of
WASTEWATER TREATMENT tank. The second pump is used to pump
The contaminated pigging water is lead out the water after the sedimentation
through a rough strainer (5mm) stranding towards the sewer or another designated
into the settling tank on our TSC-Unit. area.
From this tank the remaining water is
lead through a stand-pipe to the process FILTER UNIT
drain of the refinery. Only the dirty water Mechanical decoking by pigging is a
is led towards the sewer, the other water proven method for a high quality
gets reused. At the end of the job the cleaning. During the pigging a firm
coke settlement can be removed from our amount of waste water is produced. As
TSC-Unit with one of the client’s vacuum an extension on the pigging services
trucks. Quest developed a 40ft filter unit allowing
us to re-use this pigging water and
hereby reducing the amount of waste
water.
Especially in cases were stainless steel
furnaces are pigged with soda ash
solution the effluent plant can be affected
by high quantity of soda ash affecting the
micro system of the waste water
treatment.

SETTLING TANK
Although the pigging unit is equipped with
an on board settling tank, still cokes
particles are lead to the sewer. To reduce
the amount of cokes particles entering
the sewer even more Quest can deliver a
settling tank. The settling tank is a 20ft
container placed on a chassis. The tank
is divided into 4 sections to enable the
cokes in the polluted pigging water to
settle. The settling tank is equipped with
two air driven membrane pumps. One
pump is used to suck the polluted pigging
water out the pigging unit into the settling
EXTENDED FURNACE DEWATERING adjustments for the refinery. If you have
AND DRYING any furnaces from which you believe they
When it is important to have a really dry can't be pigged, please contact us and
furnace or pipeline after the pigging or perhaps we can help you to make this
any other type of work, Quest offers an unpiggable furnace piggable.
extended dewatering and drying service. For specific information please contact
For this service we can supply a large
compressor equipped with air dryer and Quest Integrity NLD.
perform a dew point measurement to CONTACT
verify the result. We hope we have provided you with the
all the information you need and we look
UNPIGGABLE? forward to working with you in the future
Furnaces with manifolds or catalyc again. If you have any questions after
reformers (platformers) are often reading this report do not hesitate to
addressed as non piggable as there are contact us.
no direct in- or outlet flanges available.
Quest specializes in developing and Quest Integrity NLD B.V.
constructing special spool pieces for Kamerlingh Onnesweg 3
such manifolds. By constructing a custom 4131 PK, Vianen
made ‘pig introduction system’ Quest The Netherlands
made it possible to clean and inspect this Tel: +31 (0)347 320 140
type of furnaces. Now furnaces with www.questintegrity.com
manifolds can be pigged without mayor