Pressure Vessels Field Manual

Common Operating Problems and Practical Solutions

Maurice Stewart, Oran T. Lewis

• Publisher: Gulf Professional Publishing
• Year: 2012
• Print ISBN: 9780123970152
• eBook ISBN: 9780123973009
• Topic: Technology & Engineering
• Subtopic: Industrial Design
• Index: Technology & Engineering

The majority of the cost-savings for any oil production facility is the prevention of failure in the production equipment such as pressure vessels. Money lost through lost production far outweighs expenses associated with maintenance and proper operation. However, many new engineers lack the necessary skills to effectively find and troubleshoot operating problems while experienced engineers lack knowledge of the latest codes and standards. The fifth book in the Field Manual Series, the Pressure Vessel Operations Field Manual provides new and experienced engineers with the latest tools to alter, repair and re-rate pressure vessels using ASME, NBIC and API 510 codes and standards.- Step-by-step procedure on how to design, perform in-shop and in-field inspections and repairs, perform alterations and re-rate a pressure vessel- How to select the appropriate vessel specifications, evaluate associated reports and determine allowable stresses- Calculations for stresses in pressure vessels- Select the appropriate materials of construction for a pressure vessel- Design pressure vessels using the ASME Code Section VIII, Division 1 and 2 to best fit the circumstance

1

History and Organization of Codes

Overview

This chapter discusses the following topics:

Use of pressure vessels and equipment

History of pressure vessel codes in the United States

Organization of the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code

Updating and interpreting the code

ASME Code stamps

Organization of the ANSI/ASME B31 Code for Pressure Piping

Some other pressure vessel codes and standards in the United States

Worldwide pressure vessel codes

ASME Code, Section VIII, Division 1 versus Division 2 and Division 3

Design criteria, ASME Code, Section VIII, Division 1

Design Criteria, ASME Code, Section VIII, Division 2

Welding criteria, ASME Code, Section IX

ASME Code, Section I, Power Boilers

Additional requirements employed by users in critical services

Use of Pressure Vessels and Equipment

Process vessels are used at all stages of processing oil and gas

Initial separation

Processing, conditioning, and treating

Storage

Pressure vessels are made in all sizes and shapes

Less than an inch and greater than 150 feet in diameter

Buried in the ground or deep in the ocean

Most are positioned on the ground or supported on platforms

Internal pressures

Less than 1 inch water gauge pressure or greater than 300,000 psi

Normal range for monoblock construction is between 15 to 5000 psi

ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code

Specifies a minimum internal pressure from 15 psi

May require special design requirements at internal pressures above 3000 psi

Any pressure vessel that meets all the requirements of the ASME Code, regardless of the internal or external design pressure, may still be accepted by the authorized inspector and stamped by the manufacturer with the ASME Code symbol

American Petroleum Institute (API) storage tanks

May be designed for and contain no more internal pressure than that generated by the static head of fluid contained in the tank

History of Pressure Vessel Codes in the United States

In the late 1800s and early 1900s, explosions in boilers and pressure vessels were frequent

Firetube boiler explosion on the Mississippi River steamboat Sultana on April 27, 1865, resulted in the boat sinking within 20 minutes and killing 1500 people

Firetube boiler explosion in a shoe factory in Brockton, Massachusetts, in 1905 killed 58, injured 117, and did $400,000 in property damage

Another explosion in a shoe factory in Lynn, Massachusetts, in 1906 resulted in death, injury, and extensive property damage

Massachusetts governor directed the formation of a Board of Boiler Rules

First set of rules approved in 1907

The code was three pages long!

In 1911, the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Committee was established to perform the following functions:

Formulate minimum rules for the construction of boilers

Interpret the rules when requested

Develop revisions and additional rules as needed

In 1915, the first ASME Boiler Code was issued:

Titled “Boiler Construction Code, 1914 Edition”

Beginning of the various sections of the code, which ultimately became Section I, “Power Boilers”

In 1925, the first ASME Code of Pressure Vessels was issued:

Titled “Rules for the Construction of Unfired Pressure Vessels,” Section VIII

Applied to vessels over 6 inches in diameter, volume over 1.5 ft³, and pressure over 30 psi

In 1931, a joint API-ASME committee was formed to develop an unfired pressure vessel code for the petroleum industry

In 1934, the first pressure vessel code for the petroleum industry was issued, and for the next 17 years, two separate unfired pressure vessel codes existed

In 1952, the two codes were consolidated into one, titled “ASME Unfired Pressure Vessel Code,” Section VIII

In 1968, the original code became Section VIII, Division 1, “Pressure Vessels,” and another part was issued, which was Section VIII, Division 2, “Alternate Rules for Pressure Vessels”

ANSI/ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code is issued by the ASME with the approval by the ANSI as an ANSI/ASME document

ANSI/ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code has been established as the set of legal requirements in many countries of the world

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Table of contents

• Cover image
• Title page
• Table of Contents
• Copyright
• 1. History and Organization of Codes
• 2. Materials of Construction
• 3. Materials Selection for Pressure Vessels
• 4. Mechanical Design of Pressure Vessels
• 5. Fabrication, Welding, and In-Shop Inspection
• 6. In-Service Inspection by Nondestructive Examination (NDE)
• 7. Repair, Alteration, and Re-rating
• Index