Anti-corrosion protection of storage tanks and vessels

You cannot judge a tank by its shell: it may look fine while the steel at the bottom, on the roof and inside is already deteriorating. So we start the inspection with the bottom edge, the lower-course welds and the roof, and plan the protection zone by zone. DQS provides anti-corrosion protection of vertical steel tanks and steel vessels across Uzbekistan with its own crews.

Protecting a tank zone by zone

Bottom edge and shell-to-bottom weld

Water runs down the shell and stands on the projecting edge of the bottom (the annular plate) at the shell-to-bottom weld (the chime), with dirt collecting next to it — rust appears here earlier than higher up the shell. The underside of the bottom is inaccessible after assembly, so on a new tank it is protected before erection.

Lower courses, welds, supports

The lower courses suffer from splashes and damp at the base; on horizontal vessels moisture is trapped between the shell and the saddles. On weld beads, edges, nozzles and ladder supports the paint film comes out thinner, so welds and details are stripe-coated separately before the main coat.

Shell

We blast and prime the shell section by section so that clean steel has no time to flash-rust. In the morning there is dew on the shaded side, while the sunny side overheats during the day, so we check the dew point and steel temperature on each side. The topcoat is UV-resistant; we take the system and thicknesses from the design or select them for the conditions: dust, fumes from neighbouring plants, product heating.

Roof

Water stands in the sags of the roof plating, and from inside the roof is eaten away by condensate from the vapour space. We inspect weakened plating first: deep pits and through-corrosion are repaired before painting — a coating will not bring back lost steel.

Inside

The fastest to deteriorate are the bottom under the water layer and the band where the product level fluctuates. We provide internal protection for any medium and select the coating for the stored product:

petroleum products and process water — high-solids epoxy coatings in one or two coats;
drinking water — 100% solids epoxy materials approved for contact with drinking water and food;
moderate chemical exposure — epoxy coatings or polyurea;
severe chemical exposure — vinyl ester systems, including laminates, built as a “tank within a tank”.

Work inside starts once the tank has been emptied; if necessary, we do the cleaning and degassing ourselves. We also protect reinforced concrete tanks from the inside — see the examples in the project list below.

Chemical protection of concrete with vinyl ester resin reinforced with glass-fibre mesh:

Applying chemical protection to concrete: vinyl ester resin with glass-fibre mesh

Concrete walls and a column after chemical protection

Concrete walls and columns after chemical protection was applied

Passage between columns after chemical protection of the concrete

Concrete structure from inside: columns and walls after chemical protection

Chemical protection work on concrete surfaces

Access and permits

For work at height we have our own JLG 1350SJP lifts as well as certified industrial rope-access technicians. We choose the access method based on the tank height and on whether machinery can be placed inside the bund. In an operating tank farm the order of work is set by the client’s permit to work; we hold permits for work at high-hazard facilities.

Rope-access technicians painting a tank shell — Painting a tank shell using rope access

Acceptance: measurements by course and weld

surface profile — measured with a gauge before priming;
coating thickness — on each course and separately on welds and nozzles;
results — in a report for the client.

Warranty on completed work — up to 10 years.

From our projects

Unstable gas condensate tanks, Dzharkuduk, 2026

Client: LUKOIL Uzbekistan Operating Company. Internal protective coating of unstable gas condensate storage tanks:

surface preparation — abrasive blasting with copper slag to Sa 2½ per ISO 8501-1;
coating — two coats of Jotun Tankguard Plus, airless spray;
inspection — dry film thickness of 300 µm, meeting the client’s requirements for long-term chemical resistance.

Crew in protective suits at the vessel manway before internal work

Unstable gas condensate vessels at night

Vessel interior after coating, view of the manway

Inner surface of the vessel and manway after painting

Materials and equipment on site at night

Other projects

2025, Talimarjan TPP — 800 m³ reinforced concrete tanks (RVS-800), 10 units: sandblasting and protection of internal surfaces, Stacor Tankguard.
2024, MOF-3 — 20,000 m³ reinforced concrete process water tanks (RVS-20000), 2 units: sandblasting and protection of internal surfaces, Lastic Guard.
2023, Boysun Gas Processing Plant — 5,000 m³ and 20,000 m³ reinforced concrete process water tanks: sandblasting and protection of internal surfaces, Lastic Guard.
2022, Tashkent Airport fuel farm (SANEG) — TS-1 jet fuel tanks, four RVS-2000 and two RVS-5000: sandblasting, protection of internal and external walls, PPG.
2021–2022, Bukhara Oil Refinery — two 5,000 m³ TS-1 jet fuel tanks (RVS-5000): sandblasting, protection of internal and external walls, PPG.
2021, GTL Uzbekistan — 1,150 m³ and 300 m³ tanks (RVS-1150, RVS-300): sandblasting, protection of internal and external walls, Carboline.
2018, Turakurgan TPP — 21,000 m³ tank (RVS-21000): sandblasting, protection of internal and external walls, Jotun.

Free trial area: we will coat a section of your tank — you can assess the preparation and the result before signing the contract. Special offer: 15% off orders from 500 m².

Send us photos of your tank — the bottom edge, lower-course welds and roof — and tell us what it stores and when it was last painted: contact@dqs.uz, phone +998 90 978 10 00. We will assess the condition of the coating and calculate the cost.