Technical & Practical
Holistic Maintenance and Reliability Programs
When updating equipment protection systems in a plant, it often pays to think long term. Today’s protection systems can do more than avoid catastrophic failure — they are the foundation of an enterprise-wide predictive maintenance program Chemical process industries (CPI)…
Averting Disaster: Delivering Value from Sensors and Alarms
A strategic approach to asset and alarm management will reduce alarm fatigue, mitigate risk and support more effective response On April 20, 2010, an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling rig (owned by Transocean and operated by BP) killed…
Pad-Reinforced Nozzles in Pressure Vessels
This article examines the application of reinforcing pads for strengthening nozzles in pressure vessels and the impact of the geometric gap that exists between the pad and the vessel shell Many common forms of nozzle connections in technological applications are…
Separating Hazardous Materials with Decanter-Centrifuge Systems
Sealed and gas-purged decanter-centrifuge systems can be effective for separating Class I, Div. 1-, or Class I, Div. 2-rated solvents and hazardous materials Traditionally, solids and liquids have been separated by filtration or with press equipment. While these methods are…
Controlling Process Variables for Solid-State Battery Performance
Optimizing electrical conductivity in next-generation batteries depends on carefully controlling process variables, such as mixing, particle-size distribution and temperature. Presented here is a discussion of how these process variables affect battery performance In the evolving landscape of energy storage technologies,…
Facts At Your Fingertips: Efficiency in Electric Induction Motors
The purchase price of an electric motor is generally thought to end up as a small fraction (2–3%) of the motor’s total lifetime cost, with the majority of costs resulting from the electricity used by the motor. This makes motor…
Sliding Vane Pumps
Sliding vane pumps offer a potent processing option for low-viscosity liquids Multiple industries rely on process pumps for handling a variety of substances that help the world function as it does today. Those substances come in a wide variety of…
A Primer on LPG Storage Systems
Any loss of containment for liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) can have potentially catastrophic results. This article details various LPG storage configurations with special focus on the design of mounded-bullet systems Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) is a mixture of propane and…
Facts At Your Fingertips: Understanding Energy Efficiency in a Fired Heater
Process heating systems are critical parts of chemical process industries (CPI) facilities. Unfortunately, the reliable, efficient operation of utility systems is often taken for granted, and they receive little engineering attention. This is perhaps understandable, since these systems play a…
Benefiting from Nozzle Flexibility in Piping Design
The inclusion of nozzle flexibility (directional spring rate) in pipe-stress analysis results in more realistic piping reactions on pressure-vessel nozzles, whereby it will be easier to meet the limited nozzle-load capacity of the nozzles. It will surely contribute to a…