Silver Bullet Controls Corrosion
Corrosion in condenser water is a complex issue. The corrosion rate depends on water chemistry,
microbiological activity, as well as flow rate and velocity inside the system and the metals
involved in the system. Each cooling system is unique, as is the makeup water serving each
system, which is why Silver Bullet Water Treatment recommends the analysis of baseline water
samples of the makeup water and the tower water before any Silver Bullet system is installed.
Silver Bullet is able to control corrosion rates through high cycles of minerals such as calcium.
Increasing calcium and other minerals in water through increased cycles makes water less
corrosive to system piping. If high cycles cannot be achieved due to low mineral content of the
makeup water, a corrosion inhibitor is recommended.
The Cooling Tower Institute recommends less than 5 mils per year of corrosion on mild steel
and less than 1 mil per year for copper. As water treated by Silver Bullet works to keep calcium
off the walls and suspended in solution, the water remains less reactive than chemically treated
water and within accepted corrosion rates at levels as low as 0.5 mil/year on mild steel and less
than that on copper. Based on corrosion coupon analysis reports from numerous installations,
Silver Bullet has demonstrated the ability to stay well within the industry’s accepted corrosion
rates as well or better than traditional toxic chemical treatments. In real world applications, we
typically see a 90% reduction in mild steel corrosion rates and a 40% reduction in copper
corrosion rates versus traditional chemical treatments.
Hydrogen peroxide is an oxidizer and, accordingly, the potential for corrosion is inherent. The
generation of trace amounts of hydrogen peroxide is a tertiary reaction generated by the Silver
Bullet, and the amounts involved typically do not exceed 3 ppm.
Standard accepted practice for measuring corrosivity of water in cooling systems is with the use
of coupon racks, and Silver Bullet Water Treatment encourages the use of coupons in racks with
adequate flow control to ensure proper exposure to system water.
NACE’s Paper 397 concluded that at levels of 3ppm, liquid hydrogen peroxide can be
satisfactorily controlled with corrosion inhibitors. JNB Laboratories’ 2010 Cooling Tower
Peroxide Corrosion Study Report for Alcatel-Lucent Technologies was based on coupons
exposed to system water containing shot fed hydrogen peroxide at residuals ranging from 40 –
50 ppm for 358 day without any corrosion inhibitors. Their study showed corrosion rates of
1.05 mils per year on mild steel and 0.09 mils per year on copper. US Peroxide notes that for
diluted solutions of hydrogen peroxide (< 1%), Perry's Chemical Engineering Handbook
indicates corrosion rates of less than 0.5 mils per year.
Because the Silver Bullet’s patented technology creates a corrosion buffering environment by
increasing the cycles of calcium in the condenser water, any potentially corrosive effects of
trace amounts of residual hydrogen peroxide are immediately offset.
[email protected]
www.SilverBulletCorp.com
10515 E. 40th Ave. Suite 116
Denver, CO 80239
Silver Bullet VS Other Biocides
Copper Corrosion Coupons mil/yr
0.035
0.03
Tris
nitro propanediol
0.025
DBNPA
(2,2-dibromo-3nitrilopropionamide)
0.02
0.015
Chlorine dioxide
0.01
0.005
0
Silver Bullet
Tris
nitro propanediol
DBNPA
Chlorine dioxide Silver Bullet
Resources:
ASTM International, Volume 03.02, 2014
Cooling Tower Insitute, Standard 140, 2000
JNB Laboratories, Alcatel-Lucent Murray Hill Corrosion Report, 2007 - 2010
NACE International, Paper 397, 1997
US Peroxide, Corrosivity of H2O2 When Injected into Process Water, 2009
[email protected]
www.SilverBulletCorp.com
10515 E. 40th Ave. Suite 116
Denver, CO 80239