Controlling Vessels and Tanks

Walter Driedger

<< It would seem that controlling a vessel should be a very simple matter -- They don't really do anything! But then, if they didn't do anything why are there so many of them? And why do they have so many different names? Going through a typical set of Piping and Instrumentation Diagrams (P&IDs) I see the following vessels: [...] >>

Perfect Cone Layout

www.laurencebrundrett.com

<<A distinct memory of my days as a weld shop engineer is the amount of difficulty people had designing cones. I could almost guarantee that customer developed cones would not roll to the correct dimensions. These same customers knew to get help when designing intersections or elbows, but cone layout seems simple: An outside arc, an inside arc with the same origin and a common sweep angle. How difficult can it be? The problem is that the standard methods these customers used did not take into account the thickness of the cone material. A cone transitioning between two different pipe diameters has to match the small pipe on the OD and the large pipe on the ID. This is called a "Pipe" setup, and will work when the pipes and cone have the same thickness. >>

Addition of Shell Nozzles by Hot-Tapping in Atmospheric Storage Tanks

Carmagen Engineering

<<Hot tapping has been a generally accepted method and, in some cases, the only practical way of adding nozzles in an operating atmospheric storage tank (AST). API Standard 653, Tank Inspection, Repair, Alteration and Reconstruction, provides guidelines on making hot taps in ASTs. However, in our opinion, the requirements contained therein are unduly restrictive in some respects and prohibit hot tapping in certain situations where hot tapping has been done successfully in the past without incident. Hot tapping can be performed safely in situations prohibited by API-653 when appropriate consideration has been given to all relevant factors.>>

An Introduction to Distillation

M.T. Tham

<<Distillation is based on the fact that the vapour of a boiling mixture will be richer in the components that have lower boiling points. Therefore, when this vapour is cooled and condensed, the condensate will contain more volatile components. At the same time, the original mixture will contain more of the less volatile material. Distillation columns are designed to achieve this separation efficiently. Although many people have a fair idea what “distillation” means, the important aspects that seem to be missed from the manufacturing point of view are that: distillation is the most common separation technique; it consumes enormous amounts of energy, both in terms of cooling and heating requirements; it can contribute to more than 50% of plant operating costs.>>

Pressure Vessel Design

University of California / Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

Steel Tank Institute

Underground and Aboveground Storage Tank Technical Publications

Pressure Vessel Guidelines

The Hendrix Group

<<Only pressure vessels and low pressure storage tanks widely used in process, pulp and paper, petroleum refining, and petrochemical industries and for water treatment systems of boilers and steam generation equipment are covered in this chapter. Excluded are vessels and tanks used in many other applications and also excludes other parts of a pressure containment system such as piping and valves.>>

The Pressure Vessel Research Council

<<The Pressure Vessel Research Council (PVRC) was formed in 1945 by the Welding Research Council to encourage, promote and conduct research in the field of pressure vessels and related pressure equipment technologies, including evaluation of materials, design, fabrication, inspection and testing. Several new dimensions are emerging in PVRC activities including joint activities with other organizations, stewardship for sponsoring organizations and continued operation of equipment. These and the numerous ongoing technical projects are the challenges that face PVRC over the next few years.>>

Pressure Vessel Construction

Adams Atomic Engines

<<Like the American pressurized water reactor systems, gas cooled reactors operate at elevated pressures. Unlike water, however, which is kept under extreme pressure in a reactor to prevent it from changing phase, carbon dioxide is kept under pressure in a reactor to improve its ability to remove heat by increasing its density. The actual pressure used is also different. While PWRs often operate with their coolant at a pressure of 150 bar or more, the early CO2 reactors used a coolant system pressure of only 8 bar. This lower pressure implies a much different type of pressure vessel construction.>>