The corrosion behavior of activated MDEA solution was investigated in the background of CO2 bulk removal in ammonia plant, Kermanshah, Iran. The visual inspection reports demonstrated a consistentpattern of damage at the tubes’ entrance of lean amine air-cooled heat exchanger, made from carbonsteel. To provide information on the corrosion in tubes, a series of experiments was carried out at 85◦C,with different combinations of CO2loading (0.02, 0.25 and 0.6 mol/mol) using electrochemical tech-niques, weight loss coupons, chemical analysis, and surface analytical techniques. Results showed thatthe dominant process was the effect of erosion corrosion. It seems that impinging particles remove thesemi-protective layer of FeCO3on the carbon steel surface, resulting in continuous exposure of freshmetal surface to the corrosive environment, and a higher corrosion rate.
