Abstract: The corrosion of water cooler is a common challenge for petrochemical plants, which is related to the safe and stable operation of the plants. This paper summarizes the corrosion mechanism of water coolers, introduces the coating anti-corrosion system of water cooler established by SINOPEC grounded in the industry standard SH/T 3540, and discusses several related hot issues covering the influence of coating anti-corrosion on heat transfer efficiency, the application of coating anticorrosion in petrochemical plants, and the application of coating anticorrosion on the oil & gas side of heat exchangers. Coating anti-corrosion is still the main anticorrosion means of water coolers in petrochemical plants, and the goal of more environmental protection and longer service life should be pursued.

Key words: petrochemical plant, water cooler, coating anti-corrosion, painting