Variety of Standards Used in Design and Selection of Flanges

Flange Standards

There are a variety of standards used in the design and selection of flanges. The following codes and standards relate to pipe flanges:

ASME Codes and Standards:

B16.1 - Cast Iron Flanges and Flanged Fittings
B16.5 - Pipe Flanges and Flanged Fittings
B16.24 - Bronze Flanges and Fittings–150 and 300 Classes

B16.42 - Ductile Iron Pipe Flanges and Flanged Fittings–150 and 300 Classes

B16.47 - Large Diameter Steel Flanges

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ANSI / ASME B31.11: Slurry Transportation Piping Systems

Scope

Like ASME B31.4, this section of ASME B31, Pressure Piping Code, specifies minimum requirements for the design, materials, construction, assembly, inspection, testing, operation, and maintenance of piping transporting aqueous slurries of nonhazardous materials, such as oil, mineral ores, and concentrates, between a slurry processing plant or terminal and a receiving plant or terminal. The requirements of ASME B31.11 also apply to the following:

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ASME B31.9: Building Services Piping (Addenda & Code Cases)

Scope

ASME B31.9 applies to the following building services:

œ Water for heating and cooling

œ Condensing water

œ Steam or other condensate

œ Steam

œ Vacuum

œ Compressed air and other nontoxic and nonflammable gases

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Asme B31.8: Gas Transmission And Distribution Piping Systems

Scope

A pipeline or transmission line is defined as that pipe which transmits gas from a source or sources of supply to one or more large-volume customers or to a pipe used to interconnect sources of supply. ASME B31.8 prescribes requirements for the design, fabrication, installation, testing, and safety aspects of operation and maintenance of gas transmission and distribution piping systems, including gas pipelines, gas compressor stations, gas metering and regulation stations, gas mains, and service lines up to the outlet of the customer’s meter set assembly.

Also included within the scope of ASME B31.8 are gas storage equipment of the closed-pipe type, fabricated or forged from pipe or fabricated from pipe and fittings, and gas storage lines.

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ASME B31.5 Refrigeration Piping Scope and Addenda

Scope

This section of ASME B31, Pressure Piping Code, contains requirements for the materials, design, fabrication, assembly, erection, testing, and inspection of refrigerant and secondary coolant piping for temperatures as low as 320 F ( 195.5 C), except when other sections of the code cover requirements for refrigeration piping.

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ASME B31.4: Liquid Transportation Systems for Hydrocarbons, Liquid Petroleum Gas, Anhydrous Ammonia, and Alochols

Scope

Section B31.4 of the ASME Pressure Piping Code prescribes requirements for the design, materials, construction, assembly, inspection, and testing of piping transporting liquids such as crude oil, condensate, natural gasoline, natural gas liquids, liquefied petroleum gas, liquid alcohol, liquid anhydrous ammonia, and liquid petroleum products between producers’ lease facilities, tank farms, natural-gas processing plants, refineries, stations, ammonia plants, terminals, and other delivery and receiving points.

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ASME B31.1: Power Piping Code

Scope

ASME B31.1, Power Piping Code, prescribes requirements for the design, material, fabrication, erection, test, and inspection of power and auxiliary service piping systems for electric generation stations, industrial and institutional plants, central and district heating plants, and district heating systems. It does not apply to piping systems covered by other sections of the Code for Pressure Piping, and other piping which is specifically excluded from the scope of this code. 

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ASME B31: Code For Pressure Piping

Starting with Project B31 in March 1926, the first edition of American tentative Standard Code for Pressure Piping was published in 1935. In view of continuous industry developments and increases in diversified needs over the years, decisions were made to publish several sections of the Code for Pressure Piping. Since December 1978, the American National Standards Committee B31 was reorganized as theASME Code for Pressure Piping B31 Committee under procedures developed by the ASME and accredited by ANSI.

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ASME Section XI: Rules For In-Service Inspection of Nuclear Power Plant Components

Scope

ASME Section XI comprises three divisions, each covering rules for inspection and testing of components of different types of nuclear power plants. These three divisions are as follows:

• ASME Section XI, Division 1: Rules for Inspection and Testing of Components of Light-Water-Cooled Plants
• ASME Section XI, Division 2: Rules for Inspection and Testing of Components of Gas-Cooled Plants
• ASME Section XI, Division 3: Rules for Inspection and Testing of Components of Liquid-Metal-Cooled Plants.

Since the publication of the first edition of ASME Section XI in 1971, significant changes and additions have been incorporated, and as such, the organization of the later versions of ASME Section XI, Division 1, is considerably different from that of the first edition.

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ASME Section IX: Welding And Brazing Qualifications

Scope

ASME Section IX consists of two parts—Part QW and Part QB—which deal with welding and brazing, respectively. In addition, ASME Section IX contains mandatory and nonmandatory appendixes.

ASME Section IX requirements relate to the qualification of welders, welding operators, brazers, and brazing operators and the procedures used in welding and brazing. They establish the basic criteria for welding and brazing observed in the preparation of welding and brazing requirements that affect procedure and performance.

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ASME Section VIII: Pressure Vessels

Scope

The rules of ASME Section VIII constitute construction requirements for pressure vessels. Division 2 ofASME SectionVIII delineates alternative rules of construction to Division 1 requirements. However, there are some differences between the scopes of the two divisions. Recently added Division 3 provides Alternative Rules for Construction of High-Pressure Vessels.

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ASME Section V: Non-Destructive Examination

Scope

ASME Section V comprises Subsection A, Subsection B, and mandatory and nonmandatory appendixes. Subsection A delineates the methods of nondestructive examination, and Subsection B contains various ASTM standards covering nondestructive examination methods that have been adopted as standards. The standards contained in Subsection B are for information only and are nonmandatory unless specifically referenced in whole or in part in Subsection A or referenced in other code sections and other codes, such as ASME B31, Pressure Piping Code. 

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ASME Section III: Nuclear Power Plant Components

Scope

Division1of ASME Section III contains requirements for piping classified as ASME Class 1, Class 2, and Class 3. ASME Section III does not delineate the criteria for classifying piping into Class 1, Class 2, or Class 3; it specifies the requirements for design, materials, fabrication, installation, examination, testing, inspection, certifi- cation, and stamping of piping systems after they have been classified Class 1, Class 2, or Class 3 based upon the applicable design criteria and Regulatory Guide 1.26, Quality Group Classifications and Standards for Water-Steam, and Radio-Waste- Containing Components of Nuclear Power Plants. 

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ASME Section II: Materials

Scope

ASME Section II consists of four parts, three of which contain material specifications and the fourth the properties of materials which are invoked for construction of items within the scope of the various sections of the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code and ASME B31, Code for Pressure Piping. Therefore, ASME Section II is considered a supplementary section of the code.

Part A: Ferrous Material Specifications: Part A contains material specifications for steel pipe, flanges, plates, bolting materials, and castings and wrought, cast, and malleable iron. These specifications are identified by the prefix SA followed by a number such as SA-53 or SA-106.

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Download Set of Presentations related to Oil & Gas Sector

Recently i got an email from "DecomWorld", an online Oil & Gas magazine related to oil & gas sector where those guys shared with me with few sets of presentations which i found highly useful and since i believe in formula of knowledge sharing with all, hence i took permission with them to share all of the presentations with you guys. 

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Rail Tank Car Collapse (Must Watch)

Be careful when you design equipment for steam out. After steam out operation, obviously temperature would drop and steam would condense and vacuum could kick in if the vents are not sized for air ingress to prevent vacuum. See the video below….

This may be worth circulating to all engineers showing the folly of poor design and/or incorrect operating procedures. Apparently the rail car had been steamed out and was still hot inside when it started to rain. The tank had a vent designed to release pressure, not for a vacuum. Also the design of the tank was to operate at pressure and had no vacuum support rings on it. The collapse occurred very quickly. I hope the video works.

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Petroleum Act Petroleum Rules - 1976

Definition of Petroleum as per the Act.

Any liquid hydrocarbon or mixture of hydrocarbons or any inflammable mixture (liquid, viscous/solid containing any liquid hydrocarbon.)

Classification of Petroleum : -

This is based on flash point.

Typical petroleum products under each class are given i 11 bracket.

Class A - flash point less than 230C (LPG)

Class B - flash point 23 0C or more but less than 65⁰C (HSD, Kerosene)

Class C - flash point 650C or more but less than 93⁰C (Furnace Oil, LSHS, LSGR)flash point 93⁰C or more -not covered under Act.

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ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code

Introduction:

ASME Codes give stipulations and guidelines for the design. materials, manufacture and testing of pressure vessels. These are issued by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. New York.

The codes were first issued in 1915. Since then, many changes have been made and new sections added to the code as need arose. It is a Live code and is revised and updated periodically. It keeps pace with time and is responsive to its users.

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Piping Engineering Statutory/State and Local Body Regulations

A. Chief Controller of Explosives (CCE or CCOE)

i. These are statutory rules and come under the purview of Chief Controller of Explosives based in Nagpur. This is a Central Government Authority for whole of India. The regional offices of ‘CCE’ are located in each region. However, these regional offices do not have authority to approve the installations. They can only be consulted on matters relating to these regulations. The Authority for approval of the installations is vested only in the Chief Controller of Explosives (CCE) based in Nagpur.

ii. All liquid hydrocarbons (and some of the non-hydrocarbons as per the list available in the CCE’s Nagpur and other Regional Offices) falling in classes A, B, & C are required to be stored as per these rules. Hence the storages falling under the purview of these rules must be segregated from other flammable I non flammable liquids at the plot plan stage itself. This is a must from space allocation point of view also as the’ CCE’ storages require lot of space.

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