Composite Repairs for ASME VIII Div I Vessels

I appreciate your problem. Ideally, you should shut down this process and get an R-stamp shop make properly welded repairs. But we live in the real world, especially in remote locations where repair talents are not always on hand quickly.

If the leak consists of some small crack or defect in the vessel shell, you MIGHT be able to use a center punch to peen the adjacent area, thereby pushing metal toward the crack and stopping the leak. This is a crude fix, but it may block the escape of H₂S for a short time until you can make legitimate repairs. But this is only a very temporary emergency measure. Within a short time, you will really need to execute a proper repair.

The 1-2 bar does not suggest the possibility of rupture. More likely this is a previously undetected tiny defect, or the result of corrosion. If it is corrosion, it will only get worse over time, so you must schedule a genuine repair effort, and not rely on the stopgap suggested here. Solve the immediate problem as well as possible, but proceed promptly to do it right.