Flexible hoses are often used to temporarily transfer hydrocarbons and other process fluids to facilitate turnaround activities (clearing equipment, de-inventorying, purging, etc.) and transfer process fluids/products to rail cars and/or/or tanker trucks for shipment. Flexible hoses may also be installed within process piping systems to mitigate the effects of thermal expansion, vibration, or movement during normal operations. Some sites will maintain several flexible hoses to be used as needed in multiple services. Flexible hoses come in a variety of different construction materials and designs. Owner/users should have appropriate quality assurance systems in place to ensure that each different type of flexible hose is compatible with the process service in which it is used.
The 2016 Edition of API 574 Inspection Practices for Piping System Components includes a section on inspection practices for FLEXIBLE HOSES. Flexible hoses utilized in hazardous service should be individually identified, including appropriate service (chemical) limitations and acceptable operating conditions.
And yes, I know, API is mostly for refineries, but in the absent of a RAGAGEP that is specific to our flexible hose uses, this RAGAGEP can be the basis of our hose inspection process.
Generally, there are two (2) purposes for flexible hoses utilized in hazardous service: