Nalco ACT 52214 Safely Reduces

Corrosion in Pharmaceutical Plant

Situation
A pharmaceutical facility in Puerto Rico
uses steam in their HVAC, dehumidification, sterilization and pharmaceutical
manufacturing processes.
Steam and condensate treatments were
problematic due to high alkalinity in the
make-up water. Alkalinity breaks down
in the boiler to form carbon dioxide,
which is released into the steam where
it turns into corrosive carbonic acid.
High levels of amine products were
needed to neutralize all of the carbonic
acid and properly protect the system
from corrosion. However, amine feed
to steam is regulated by OSHA for
humidification, and additionally, by the
FDA, when steam is used in the
manufacturing of pharmaceutical
products. Amine demand exceeded the
regulatory limits at times, meaning that
insufficient product was being fed to
effectively control corrosion. Total iron

levels, a good measure of condensate

corrosion, was routinely greater than
1400 ppb. Due to the high corrosion
rates, there were numerous pipe
failures and fouled steam traps
resulting in costly repairs.
Being a pharmaceutical plant, the
customer was also concerned about
the implications of having amine
contaminate their environment.
Reactive amines such as those used in
neutralizing amine or filming amine
products have the potential to react
with pharmaceutical ingredients,
intermediates and finished products
via contact with amine in the air,
steam or condensate.
Nalco Company developed Nalco
ACT 52214, a revolutionary condensate system corrosion inhibitor that
addressed those needs (Figure 1).
In addition to being highly effective,
Nalco ACT contributed no taste,

Total Iron in Returned Condensate

Total Iron (ppb)

Nalco ACT Program

Neutralizing
Amine
Product

30-Apr

17-May

Figure 1 Due to regulatory restrictions, it was difficult to feed enough neutralizing amine to
combat corrosion in this system. Use of Nalco ACT 52214 reduced total iron levels dramatically
of in a matter weeks.
Nalco Company
1601 West Diehl Road
Naperville, Illinois 60563-1198
www.nalco.com
Nalco ACT, NALCO and the logo are Registered Trademarks of Nalco Company
2005 Nalco Company All Rights Reserved 3-05

(Continued on Reverse Side)

Case Study CH-616

odor nor reactive amines to their final

product or their manufacturing
environment. Comprised of food
industry ingredients, Nalco ACT is safe
to handle and environmentally friendly.

Performance
A two-month evaluation of the Nalco
ACT 52214 program at the pharmaceutical plant showed significant
reduction in condensate system
corrosion. Figure 1 shows that total
iron levels dropped dramatically within
just a few weeks of using Nalco ACT.
In addition, filter pad test results
showed corrosion rates had been
reduced to low, non-detectable levels
(Figures 2 and 3).

Results
As shown in Figure 1, the pharmaceutical plant was able to reduce total iron
concentrations nearly 100% using
Nalco ACT, compared to the levels
experienced with the old, conventional
amine-based treatment program.
Additional benefits:
The old treatment contained highly
alkaline, neutralizing amines. These
can be potential human and environmental hazards. The need to use
neutralizing amines was eliminated.
Because the active ingredients in
Nalco ACT contain no amines or
VOCs, no reactive amines or other
VOCs could be introduced through
direct steam contact, humidification
or contact with condensed steam.
The new Nalco ACT program
contributed no odor nor taste to
the pharmaceutical end product.
It was easy to feed enough Nalco
ACT to provide corrosion control,
unlike the neutralizing amine
product.

Figure 2 Before using Nalco ACT,

insoluble iron was high with neutralizing
amine treatment, indicating high
corrosion in the system.

Figure 3 Corrosion was reduced

to undetectable levels using Nalco
ACT 52214.

Return On Investment

Nalco ACT greatly reduced the amount

of system corrosion and iron returned
to the boiler. The effect on the operation allowed condensate return to
increase from 50% to 65%, and increased cycles from 10 to 15. This
resulted in energy and water savings of
$24,000, and reduced maintenance
costs by $16,000. Not only is the
customer plant more efficient, but the
manufacturing environment is safer due
to the value of the Nalco ACT program.

Before being introduced to Nalco ACT

52214, the pharmaceutical company
was faced with two choices. One
choice was to purchase and install
dealkalization equipment ($40,000
investment + operation and maintenance costs) that would help improve
the performance and costs of the
neutralizing amine-based treatment
program. A second alternative was to
continue to feed a marginally effective
neutralizing amine program. Nalco
offered a third choice an opportunity
to change to a revolutionary, new
condensate treatment that would
protect their equipment investment at
a reasonable cost without the capital
expense (or on-going operational
costs) associated with a dealkalizer.
The customer chose Nalco ACT.

ROI = 100 x

ROI = 100 x

Regulatory Approvals
Nalco ACT 52214 is approved for use
in pharmaceutical plants under OSHA
PEL Regulation 29CFR and FDA
regulation 21CFR covering steam
system additives. Nalco ACT is consistent with the ISPE Baseline Pharmaceutical Engineering Guide recommendations, is GMO free and carries ISEGA,
USDA, NSF and Kosher approvals.

Incremental Savings Incremental Investment

Incremental Investment
$24,000 + $16,000 $3200
= 1150%
$3200