Maintain Operations While Isolating a Pressure Relief Device | AIChE

Maintain Operations While Isolating a Pressure Relief Device

Overpressure protection must be provided for pressurized equipment by means of pressure relief devices (e.g., pressure relief valves, bursting discs, explosion hatches, water seals, buckling pin devices, and pressure/vacuum breather valves). These pressure relief devices sometimes require isolation and removal for inspection, maintenance, or repair, which typically necessitates shutting down the process. An engineering assessment, however, can identify specific ways for providing temporary overpressure protection, including elimination of root causes of overpressure events, provision of alternative pathways to overpressure protection, modification of process operations, and/or establishment of a means of equivalent or better risk reduction for the duration of the isolation. This article provides guidance on performing engineering assessments for isolation of pressure relief devices while maintaining operation of the process, with recommendations of actions that may be required to provide temporary overpressure protection.

Tags 

Pressure relief devices
Pressure Relief Valves
Bursting discs
Explosion hatches
Water seals
Buckling pin devices
and Pressure/vacuum breather valves

Date 

March, 2017