This article outlines the procedure to evaluate the fitness-for-service of corroded buried pipe, and explains what CC N-806 covers … and what it does not cover. What are the Damage Mechanisms in Metallic Buried Pipe? The inspection of a buried metallic pipe, after years of service, can reveal that the pipe has little if any […]
This article describes an integrated study of thermal-hydraulic and structural loading of bounding piping systems, to establish an operating envelope, screening criteria, and rules of good design practice to protect piping systems from damage caused by valve closure water hammer. Introduction In many cases of operation or flushing of piping system, it is necessary to […]
Many years ago when I first started my career in a rotating equipment maintenance organization, I was spending the day with a senior metallurgist, which was part of my orientation process as a new technical employee. He was well known to not have the best “bedside manner” and it was clear he was not thrilled […]
Note: This blog is a continuation from the previous article from Becht Engineering, “Shaft Fatigue Failures – Part I”. It is suggested that the reader review “Shaft Fatigue Failures – Part I” before proceeding with this article. Click Here to view Part I. Before getting into the calculation methods, first a quick refresher on high […]
Achieving “State Special” designation for a pressure vessel can require a fair amount of effort in documentation development. This process is warranted – for example – when a company wants to move a pressure vessel from one facility for operation in a facility located in another state, or when they purchase a used vessel located […]
Refrigerated Liquefied Storage Tanks have been used for over 60 years in the industry. A significant number of these tanks store liquefied Propane and Butane, Ethylene and LNG and Ammonia. The stored fluids are at atmospheric pressures with temperatures which range from -45 F to -270 Failures of refrigerated tanks have been quite infrequent over […]
There are numerous challenges that Inspectors and Reliability Engineers face when developing Risk Based Asset Integrity Plans, such as: Identifying the applicable Damage Mechanisms Picking the correct Failure Mode(s) Determining the Probability of Failure Deciding how to mitigate risks to acceptable levels Industry documents give some guidance (i.e. API-571, API-580) but not the whole picture. […]
Integrity management of piping systems involves functional testing, inspection and maintenance of components which are identified as “safety critical”. Typically, these component types include control valves, isolation valves, pressure relief valves and instrumentation – but exclude check valves. However, recent incidents involving check valve failures have resulted in fatalities, equipment damage and toxic releases. These […]
The world of reliability is shifting from a calendar based approach to a smarter, risk-based approach in the hydrocarbon production and refining world. The leadership teams are now expecting a risk-based program in place for minimizing the HSE (Health, Safety and Environment) and economic consequences as much as possible. Some states have mandated the use […]
Every Refinery whether small or big, isolated or a part of a larger group generally has practices to improve reliability of operations. However, refineries who are known to be world class performers have well defined Reliability Management Systems (RMS) which focus on improving equipment reliability for piping, pressure vessels, rotating equipment, electrical distribution system, instrumentation […]
