A major plant upgrade to the ammonia refrigeration machinery room was completed in September 2019. This upgrade included new: compressors heat exchangers pressure vessels pressure piping controls The refrigeration system was in operation for 3 months and on January 4, 2020, @ 0800 the shift engineer observed a reading of 12 ppm on the ammonia […]
This is OSHA’s PSM (1910.119) Inpsection Activity for their 2020 Fiscal year (October 2019 through September 2020). I have broken down the data by # of Citations, # of Inspections, Penalty $’s, and NAICS Industry Classification. As you can see, OSHA issued 195 citations from 50 inspections for a total of $1,806,072 in fines. Here
Way back in February 2016 I introduced many of you to ISA-RP12.12.03, Standard for Portable Electronic Products Suitable for Use in Class I and II, Division 2 for the first time and I received many e-mails, texts, and phone calls about those 2016 posts. Although the posts were speaking to smaller electronic devices, most notably “fitness
This is awesome. Cavitation has been the end of many pumps in my career and the causes of some significant LOPC events, but to see it be created and watch it in clear pipes and pumps is the way to learn. This short video should be in every operator’s training!!
No, the employer is not required to include findings and recommendations from the facility siting study report in the same PHA worksheet or recommendations log to comply with 29 CFR § 1910.119(e)(5) and 29 CFR § 1910.119(e)(7).
As I always say, we can not discuss MOC and PSSR as if they are separate systems… they go hand in hand 99% of the time. That is what I want to discuss: how a PSSR requirement defines how we manage our MOC system. We have discussed many times there are ONLY TWO (2) occasions
Buckle up buttercup… the political winds in DC are shifting and with this comes “opportunities” – man how I hate politics! For those of you who may have thought that the RMP Amendments from the final year of the President Obama administration were long gone – THINK AGAIN! On Friday (12/4/20), the U.S. Court of
On the plate heat exchanger, a machined nut backed off on the flange bolt that holds the gasket in place. This caused part of the gasket to blow out resulting in ammonia (NH3) to leak into the machine room. The machinery room alarm was activated. Upon inspection, the following failures were found:
This draft guidance document is intended to clarify to the public regarding existing pipeline safety standards. The contents of this document do not have the force and effect of law and are not meant to bind the public in any way, but pipeline operators must comply with the underlying safety standards. (emphasis by me)
In the recently released Internation Fire Code (IFC) 2021 edition, the newly designated Section 608 – Mechanical Refrigeration, the code references IIAR 2, 6, 7, 8, and 9 when the refrigerant used is anhydrous ammonia (NH3). The 2021 edition still has many of the long-time requirements that will apply to NH3 systems, such as “emergency
NFPA 497, Table 4.4.2. has become my “go-to” source for chemical-physical property data for my flammables (along with the SDS). Although they use Celsius rather than Fahrenheit, and this drives me crazy just because I am “old school”, this table is instrumental for understanding the “Group” your flammable gas/vapors belong to! In the 2021 edition
All new or modified chlorine piping systems must undergo pressure testing to verify the integrity of the piping (see section 11.4 for leak testing). ASME B31.3 (13.2.8 ), Process Piping testing requirements, should be applied as a minimum standard. There are three (3) types of acceptable testing methods: hydrostatic testing, pneumatic testing, and the alternate
