The U.S. is on pace to become a net exporter of energy resources in the coming years due to increased domestic production of oil and natural gas. In fact, the U.S. recently became the world’s leading producer of natural gas, according to British Petroleum.

The net result is that fuel prices have dropped, making cars cheaper to drive and homes cheaper to heat. Consumers are not the only ones benefiting from increased supply. Because of advanced drilling methods and rising production levels, the impact for refineries has grown as well. Much of the trouble existing in the energy industry lies in its inability to refine and transport resources at a fast enough pace to catch up with demand. This means more refineries need to be built to filter and transform crude oil into usable energy sources.

However, due to the nature of chemicals and contaminants present in refineries and petrol plants, commercial HVAC systems can become clogged and corroded to the point where their essential functions are prohibited. This poses a major problem for an industry already under heavy state and federal safety standards and environmental regulations, because if the performance of a plant’s HVAC system is inhibited, then the overall health of workers present could be impacted and the quality of the refined product could be compromised.

Coating coils can help
One of the biggest issues with HVAC units in refineries and industrial buildings is that coils can become susceptible to high levels of corrosion much more quickly and severely under harsh environments. The amount of chemicals, excess gases and extracted materials allow for a greater possibility of coils breaking down to exposure of these harmful contaminants.

To solve this issue, companies frequently turn to coil coating to make sure evaporator coils and water coils do not get significantly damaged. CED Engineering notes that 40 percent of equipment failures in industrial settings can be traced back to corrosion. To prevent these types of failures, a thin coating – usually less than 1mm thick – is applied to coils. Once coils are coated, they are much more durable and can better withstand severe conditions inside refineries.

Rahn Industries provides a full lineup of spray and immersion/bake protective coating products for coils and HVAC parts. These types of coatings include: epoxy resin with titanium dioxide, aluminum impregnated polyurethane, water-based acrylic resigns and phenolic, with each having a temperature range of minus 67 degrees to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Rahn coating products are hydrophobic and designed to resist chemicals and corrosion in severe duty industrial plants.