Case Studies

A case study on utilizing the Quantitative Reliability Optimization (QRO) methodology to help better evaluate equipment risk and predict future product availability.

The assessment procedures in API 579 may also be applied to pressure-containing equipment constructed to other recognized codes and standards. The author will examine the application of these procedures to aboveground storage tanks.

TEAM believes that quality inspections are the key to reliability. Our inspection crews are made up of specialty trained, experienced technicians who adhere to the highest quality standards. Our API 653 inspectors deliver thorough, reliable...

Resulting from developing a 20-year nonintrusive inspection strategy, a successful experience is presented using a volumetric examination on a modified storage tank shell-to-bottom weld, known in the industry as corner-weld.

After extensive application research, development, and testing, a technique has been developed that eliminates the need for backing gas for purging. It also provides a cost-effective system for welding the entire weld with high integrity.

A study of the level of deterioration on a catalytic reformer support structure, the challenges involved, the solutions presented, and the aggressive schedule that was required to complete the project.

This study found that a machine learning model was able to predict degradation rates for a hydrocracker unit more accurately and with a smaller margin of error compared to current industry practices.

The influence of sensitization on creep response of hydrocracker feed fractionator fired heater tubes made of AISI Type 347 stabilized steel after service exposure of around 20 years is investigated.

Applying advanced statistical analysis methods will provide owner/users with a RAGAGEP-accepted method for analyzing corrosion monitoring data while also integrating the latest improvements in inspection capabilities.

This article describes HTHA predictive modeling advances that are designed to demonstrate a direct integration with inspection such that modeling and inspection can be leveraged together in a way never done before.

The application of a detailed design-by-analysis method using ASME Sec-VIII Div-2 confirms field-observed ratcheting and fatigue type failures in the tubesheet due to the complex cyclical thermal-mechanical loading encountered during operation.

Traditional line interventions either utilize a single isolation point or are utilized in conjunction with bypass lines. A double block and bleed (DBB) replaces the need for using three separate line interventions to perform the same function.

A finite element analysis (FEA) was performed on five different models of varying configurations as an approach to establish best practices in the choice of the most appropriate factor of safety, depending on the type of metal loss.

A historical review into the integrity of reformer furnaces since commissioning is discussed in this case study, along with other technical and engineering challenges, and the efforts to overcome them.

Establishing a proactive touch point corrosion integrity management program using engineered on-stream line lifting is a safe and effective means of mitigating unplanned downtime and related safety and potential environmental hazards.

Condition monitoring optimization goes beyond traditional CML optimization, which is often limited in the breadth of analysis, or can overemphasize a subset of the overall objective.