Chemical Process Safety (PSM/RMP)

Pressure Test gone bad! (Tank Launched)

On January 26, 2006, a factory in Brazil witnessed a significant accident during a pneumatic pressure test involving a tank and pipework. The incident occurred because blind flanges were not used to isolate the pipework connected to the tank. Instead, only the valves were closed. This oversight led to the possibility that one or more…...

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Comparison of Pressure Vessel Inspection Requirements in Refrigeration Industry

Comparison of Pressure Vessel Inspection Requirements in the Refrigeration Industry Code Type of Inspection Component Description Inspection Remediation Inspection Frequency IIAR 109 (1997) All pressure vessels If signs of more than mild corrosion should inspect further by a professional engineer or ASME inspector (4.3.5) None listed – Annual ammonia safety check (5.2) – Thorough inspection every 5 years (5.3) IIAR 110 (1993) Including…...

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Comparison of Piping Inspection Requirements in Refrigeration Industry

Comparison of Piping Inspection Requirements in Refrigeration Industry Code Component Description Inspection Remediation Inspection Frequency IIAR 109 (1997) Uninsulated Pipe (4.7.4)   Examine for corrosion Clean pipe down to bare metal and paint with rust preventative paint. “Badly corroded pipe should be replaced.”  (4.7.4) – Annual ammonia safety check (5.2) – Thorough inspection every 5 years (5.3)  …...

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Corrosion Rates and Remaining Life/Fitness for Service

Source Corrosion Rate or Degree of Corrosion Remaining Life or Fitness for Service Application API 570 Long-term (between last and initial inspections):   (use corrosion rate resulting in shortest remaining life) Piping Short-term (between last and previous inspections): Piping and Vessels NBIC – 23 a) calculated from data collected by owner or user on vessels in the same…...

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OSHA’s position on Hydrostatic Relief Valves and Ammonia Refrigeration Processes

Below is OSHA’s official position on the need for hydrostatic relief valves in an Ammonia Refrigeration process.  This is a bold move on OSHA’s part as the Ammonia Refrigeration industry and their trade groups have consistently stated that a “trained operator” is better than a hydrostatic RV. (emphasis added by me)… Membership Required You must...

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How does OSHA and EPA define “retail establishment” in regards to their “exemptions” from PSM/RMP

Retail facilities are exempted from PSM requirements.  At first glance, it appears this is a pretty broad exemption, as the standard just states. This section does not apply to:1910.119(a)(2)(i) Retail facilities; But as I wrote about last month, not all retail facilities selling a PSM Highly Hazardous Chemical (HHC) in the USA are exempt. In…...

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EPA’s RMP and Program 3 NAICS #’s

As we have discussed before, the EPA broke down its RMP rule into three (3) programs, and each program has criteria that will place the process in one of the three. However, the one criterion that confuses some businesses is how the EPA used the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) to qualify a process…...

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Catastrophic Failure during pneumatic pressure test

Jan 26, 2006  – An accident occurred in a factory in Brazil during pneumatic pressure testing with air from pipework around a tank.  There were no blind flanges placed to isolate the pipework to the tank; only the valves were closed. Probably one or more valves failed or were not closed as the tank underwent…...

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Emergency Quench Systems for Polymerization Events

Imagine taking a snowball and rolling it down the side of Mount Everest. As the ball rolls down the mountain, it gets bigger and faster. If we can stop it early in its travel down the mountain, BEFORE it gets to BIG and FAST, we can save the town at the base of the moutain…....

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Understanding why “bonding and grounding” may not be enough protection when handling non-conductive flammable liquids

In the world of flammable liquids processing, we have two (2) types of flammable liquids: Members can read all my articles on how these flammable liquids get classified as “conductive” vs. “non-conductive. This post is to explain HOW and WHY the traditional “bonding and grounding” used in the transfer of flammable liquids may be inadequate…...

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