Sheaves: A Growth Contaminant in Hydrocarbon Systems

The deleterious effect of particulate contamination on the performance of dirt-sensitive hydrocarbon systems has long been recognized. To cope with this problem, industry has expended considerable energy in devising test methods, developing cleaning techniques, improving processes, and establishing contamination controls. In recent years, the resulting improvement in system cleanliness, fluid cleanliness, and analytical techniques has allowed detection of a whole new family of previously-masked contaminants ~ the chemical “growth” products. Increased stagnant storage time has now brought to light still another of these growth contaminants -- “sheaves.”

This paper describes the physical characteristics of these dendriform crystals, identifies their origin, discusses their potential effect on system performance, and presents possible corrective actions.