One of many activities during a 48-hour maintenance shutdown in the purification tower of a cotton fiber plant entailed cleaning, stripping and recoating a brown stock washer tank. The coating system in the tank, typically subjected to temperatures of 93°C (200°F), was failing and the carbon steel substrate had corrosive pitting. Industrial Materials & Services,Inc. (IMS), specializing in cotton and paper mill maintenance, was hired to strip and recoat. Facility engineers specified removal of the coating, a Near White, NACE No.2 (SSPC SP-10) surface cleanliness and a 75-125 micron (3-5mil) profile. The contractor, who was given ten hours to blast and coat the tank, chose to use Sponge Media TM abrasive over conventional abrasives due to the following process characteristics:
Protect

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