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Environmental
Manager
Aubry Shackelford
Inglenook Engineering
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Temperature drop, F
Understanding the
inherent limitations of
current overpressureprotection analyses is
key to developing a more
robust heuristic
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k=1.3
Brian Pack
BP North America
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Mach
Current-practice limitations
Common practices for pressure relief and effluent handling are found
in numerous references [15]. The
processes for estimating a discharge
temperature and performing the outlet pressure-drop calculations in the
pressure-relief-device discharge piping are limited in their ability to accurately predict flowing temperatures
for many situations.
First, the discharge calculations
are quite often only performed for the
controlling contingency for which the
pressure relief device was sized, which
does not necessarily represent the
most likely cause of overpressure or
the cause resulting in the lowest discharge temperatures.
Second, the outlet pressure-drop
calculations for individual pressure
relief valves consider the outlet discharge piping and potentially exclude
the remaining, downstream piping
system. This practice can result in a
temperature discontinuity between
the calculated discharge temperature
for the individual relief device and
that calculated for the same section
of piping considering the entire down-
45
5
NRU
He
N2
LP
HP
6
Autorefrigeration
4
Dehydration
2
Sweetening
Refrigerant
Demethanizer
Sweetening
NGL
surge
Flash
tank
Deethanizer
Propane
loading
Stabilizer
Amine still
Depropanizer
Emergency storage
FIGURE 2. Typical schematic of NGL processing facility showing common areas of potential MDMT issues
Low temperatures
While the potential for low flowing
temperatures falling below the MDMT
exists in a variety of processing facilities, the issue is especially apparent in
natural-gas processing facilities where
high pressure, low temperature, lowmolecular-weight gases and volatile
liquids are present.
Design considerations. Based on
recent evaluations of several natural-
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AL TRAF
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Environmental Manager
Final analysis
In summary, established overpressureprotection-analysis philosophies are
not well suited to identify possible material concerns as a result of process
fluid flashing and depressuring. Reliefdevice and effluent-handling sizing
conventions and simplified calculation
methodologies limit the ability of the
designer to recognize potential MDMT
concerns. Understanding the inherent
limitations of current overpressure-protection-analysis practice is key to devel-
References
1. API Standard 520, Sizing, Selection, and
Installation of Pressure-Relieving Devices
in Refineries, Part I Sizing and Selection,
8th Ed., December 2008.
2. API Standard 520, Sizing, Selection, and
Installation of Pressure-Relieving Devices in
Refineries, Part II Installation, 5th Ed.,
August 2003.
3. ISO 23251:2006 (API Standard 521), Petroleum, Petrochemical and Natural Gas Industries Pressure-relieving and Depressuring
Systems, 1st Ed., August 2006.
Authors
Aubry Shackelford is a
principal engineer for Inglenook Engineering, Inc., which
provides process engineering consulting with a specific
focus on process safety management (15306 Amesbury
Lane, Sugar Land, TX 77478;
Email: aubry@inglenookeng.
com; Phone: 713-805-8277).
He holds a B.S.Ch.E. from
Northeastern University and
is a professional engineer licensed in the state of
Texas and the province of Alberta (Canada).
Brian Pack is the area engineering-support team leader
for the Mid-Continent operations area in North America
gas region for BP America
Production Co. (501 Westlake Park Blvd., Houston, TX
77079; Email: brian.pack@
bp.com; Phone: 281-366-1604).
He holds a B.S.Ch.E. from the
University of Oklahoma and
is a professional engineer licensed in the states of Texas and Oklahoma.
Note
The views in this paper are entirely
the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of BP America Production Co. or its affiliates.
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