Incorporating fire safety into plant design takes on two fundamental goals: to prevent the occurrence of fire and to protect the initially uninvolved piping and equipment long enough for operations personnel to perform their duties and for emergency responders to get the fire under control. While it is impractical to completely eliminate the potential risk of an accidental fire in a complex process-plant facility that is expected to handle and process hazardous chemicals, it is reasonable to assume that certain aspects of design can be incorporated to reduce that risk.... http://www.che.com/processing_and_handling/liquid_gas_and_air_handling/piping_and_tubing/Piping-Design-for-Hazardous-Fluid-Service_5721.html
Containing fugitive emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) is a challenge to the chemical process industries (CPI). It has been estimated that these industries account for half of all fugitive emissions, and 60% of these emissions are the result of valve stem leaks. In addition to environmental benefits, effectively containing these emissions can yield significant operational and economic benefits and avoid punitive penalties for non-compliance with regulatory standards. If cap-and-trade or carbon-tax programs become law, then reducing emissions below mandated levels could yield carbon credits or reduced tax liabilities. Overall, emission reduction improves operating efficiency and creates a safer, more productive workplace.
This article describes how to effectively seal valve stems, including leak detection and repair (LDAR); various types of sealing solutions, their advantages and limitations; performance standards and testing; and proper installation.
Despite the prevalence of pressure vessels in the chemical process industries (CPI), a clear understanding of the basis-of-design responsibilities involved in designing, fabricating and repairing such a device remains elusive. Vessel users are responsible for providing all necessary data to ensure the manufacturer can design and fabricate a pressure vessel in full compliance with the ASME Pressure Vessel code.... http://www.che.com/processing_and_handling/liquid_gas_and_air_handling/tanks_and_vessels/Decoding-Pressure-Vessel-Design_5726.html
Steam reforming of natural gas at petroleum refining facilities is the predominant means of producing hydrogen in the chemical process industries (CPI). Because hydrogen needs within various sectors of the CPI are at their highest levels in history, and are continuing to grow, an understanding of this method of hydrogen production and purification can be useful... http://www.che.com/processing_and_handling/liquid_gas_and_air_handling/Hydrogen-Production-By-Steam-Reforming_5640.html
The stirred tank reactor with rotating mixers remains the backbone of the chemical process industries (CPI). While mixing is considered a mature technology, it is clear that continued technological development is necessary to achieve the state-of-the-art design demanded by ever-increasing efficiency needs. As worldwide competition forces the CPI to increase the profitability of their production plants, it is even more important for process developers and plant design engineers to understand the mechanical design aspects of agitated reactors. Process design is often an interactive procedure of chemical and thermodynamic requirements on the one hand, and plant or mechanical restrictions on the other. Chemical and mechanical engineers work together to reach the common goal of optimum reactor design. And, this knowledge is also important for plant operators and maintenance engineers. Often there is a need to boost the plant capacity and process efficiency by revamps and modifications of the reactors. Only an awareness of the mechanical conditions in the existing reactor will prevent expensive failures.... http://www.che.com/processing_and_handling/liquid_gas_and_air_handling/mixing/Mechanical-Design-Aspects-for-High-Performance-Agitated-Reactors_5572.html
For valves operating in hazardous environments, certification testing is critical to ensure the reliability and safety of the equipment. But this testing process has historically required facilities to shut down and sacrifice valuable production hours to check each valve. Built-in self-test (BIST) capabilities in smart, electronic valve actuators were developed in response to these testing challenges. This article examines how BIST simplifies valve testing and reduces the cost, while increasing the level of confidence in valve and actuator safety.... http://www.che.com/processing_and_handling/liquid_gas_and_air_handling/valves/The-BIST-In-Electronic-Valve-Actuators_5459.html
Pipe sizing calculations include certain values that are time dependent, such as costs. While some costs rise, others decrease over time. It is the designers task to ensure that the total cost is minimized. For fluid flow calculations,heuristic criteria are often used, which is the main reason why these values must be updated from time to time. In this article, recommended velocities are updated for several materials of construction, and other velocities for new materials are calculated, using the Generaux Equation [1],... http://www.che.com/processing_and_handling/liquid_gas_and_air_handling/piping_and_tubing/Updating-the-Rules-For-Pipe-Sizing_5402.html
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