Automatic Flaw Detection in TOFD Images for NDT During Welding
Inspection Techniques for Detecting Corrosion Under Insulation
Inspector's Responsibilities for New FRP Vessels: Part 2
Magnetostrictive Sensors Detect Corrosion of Insulated Piping Systems
Activities from T-1 and T-8 Meetings
Addressing Gusset Problems: Pipe Cracking Part 3
Inspector's Responsibilities for New FRP Vessels
PSM Regulation Citations: Trends in OSHA PSM Enforcement
Structural Characterization of a Coke Drum
Verification of Fitness-for-Service Prediction Methodologies
Do Annual or Bi-annual Boiler Inspections Really Add Safety Value In Our Industry?
ISO 9000 for Inspection and Service Companies
Structural Characterization of a Coke Drum
Tips for Successful Contracting of NDE Services
Addressing Gusset Problems: Pipe Cracking Part 2
Digital Still Cameras Increase Effectiveness of Inspection Documentation
Do You Want World Class Reliability? Invest in Your Pressure Equipment Inspectors
Nondestructive Testing Services Market Rebounds in the Chemical/Petrochemical Industries
On-line Condition Monitoring of Power Plant Equipment
The ASME Post Construction Committee
1996 Inspectioneering Journal Article Index
Task Group T-1G-24 on Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic (FRP) Pipe and Accessories in Oilfield Service is working on a test method for evaluating the compatibility of FRP tubulars in oilfield environments. They hope to submit a draft for ballot...
Last issue, in keeping with the evaluation that "gussets are stiffeners, not strengtheners," we discussed welding around the ends of the gusset plate instead of just along the sides in order to reduce the stress concentration. A further improvement...
This final issue on gusset problems will discuss why gussets are "stiffeners" rather than "strengtheners." The effective load bearing capacity of a member of given strength is based upon how large a cross-sectional area is carrying the load....
This case study is an example of an incident that started with a routine API 653 inspection and resulted in a very difficult repair to a tank bottom contaminated with hydrocarbons on the underside. This case highlights the potential risks with...
The basic approach to the inspection and repair procedure for welding has barely altered for three decades. The normal practice has continued to be to inspect a weld only after the welding programme is complete. Thus by the time a defect is...
"Inspection and testing procedures shall follow recognized and generally accepted good engineering practice," can mean many things to many people. Fortunately, organizations like API, NACE, ASME, etc. have taken the initiative in establishing many...
This article is a practical review of Nondestructive Examination (NDE) methods that can be used to find Erosion/Corrosion (E/C) and/or Corrosion wear in fossil fuel power piping systems. The article is based on experience with PG&E's E/C detection...
A picture is worth a thousand words and thousands of dollars. There are many instances where in-service inspection reports are greatly enhanced by including photographic documentation. Using a conventional, high-quality 35 mm camera requires...
Are your jurisdictional boiler and/or pressure vessel rules and regulations too stringent, too costly, too bureaucratic, without adding real safety value commensurate with the time and resources necessary for compliance? Are you having to hire...
Lessen downtime by enhancing your plant infrastructure, ensuring mechanical integrity, and extending equipment lifespan. Contact us for on-demand engineering expertise in assessment, problem-solving, specialized testing, and preventative solutions.
There are a lot of vital roles in the success of any refinery or petrochemical process plant. But none are more important to success than that filled by the pressure equipment inspector (PEI). Years back, we recognized that world class pressure...
Corrosion under insulation (CUI) is a real threat to the onstream reliability of many of today's plants. This type of corrosion can cause failures in areas that are not normally of a primary concern to an inspection program.
In today's environmental and legal climate, industry is looking for guaranteed high reliability of vessel quality for most chemical fluids. Failures are more costly than in the past due to: 1. environmental laws and requirements 2. emphasis on...
All FRP tanks should be fabricated to a national standard as a basic requirement. Additional requirements may be appropriate and should be agreed to by the purchaser and fabricator. Very acceptable basic standards are...
The ISO 9000 series of standards is one of the fastest growing quality initiatives in the world. Nearly 100,000 certificates of compliance with ISO 9000 standards have been issued in some 80 countries, including over 8,000 certificates in the U.S....
In today's chemical and refining industries, sustained long term reliability of facilities is critical to profitability and competitiveness. In fact, history shows that differences in operating expenses between best-in-class refineries, and poor...
Engineers and scientists at Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) in San Antonio, Texas, may have found a cost-effective and practical method of detecting ID and OD corrosion of insulated piping systems.
A recent in-depth analysis of nondestructive Testing Services Markets indicates that after very slow overall growth in 1993 and 1994, these markets have resumed growing in 1995. The combined U.S. and Canadian market for nondestructive testing...
On-line condition monitoring concepts which have originally been applied to vibration monitoring of rotating equipment are now being applied to monitoring the structural integrity of power plant components. Market demand for more flexible plant...
Since OSHA began issuing citations under the Process Safety Management (PSM) standard (29 CFR 1910.119) the relative frequency of citations related to some subsections of the regulation has increased dramatically, while the frequency of others has...
Petroleum coke production is an important source of revenue for many refineries. While coking units were initially constructed to deal with a waste product, these units are now of significant economic value.
A pair of delayed coker drums was placed in service in 1968, and now have 28 years of service in what may be the most severe cyclic loading conditions of any petrochemical vessels. They are a conventional ASME VIII/Div 1 pressure vessel design...
A set of delayed coker drums was placed in service in 1968, and now have 27 years of service in what may be the most violent and severe cyclic loading conditions of any petrochemical vessel. As part of the continuous evaluation of their integrity,...
A set of delayed coker drums were placed in service in 1968, and now have 27 years of service in what may be the most violent and severe cyclic loading conditions of any petrochemical vessel. As part of the continuous evaluation of their integrity,...
In June of 1995, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers Council on Codes and Standards approved the formation of a new main committee, the Post Construction Committee (PCC). The action culminated the activities of a Task Group on Post...
The Remote Field Electromagnetic Technique, often referred to as RFEC (remote field eddy current), is used to identify corrosion in ferromagnetic tubes. Available for less than ten years, many people are not familiar with its applications.
We all have a responsibility to perform the best job we can for our employers/customers. That is why I am sharing my thoughts with you, my clients, the Inspectioneering Journal readers. In 12 years of being on the owner/user side of the fence, as...
In the January 1995 issue, I introduced the concept of Risk-Based Inspection (RBI) being developed by an API (American Petroleum Institute) project. This article is an update and status report on that project, which now has 20 sponsor companies,...
Three levels of risk based inspection have been developed by the API sponsor group. Level 1: Qualitative RBI which utilizes a step-by-step workbook to rank entire process units or process systems into a 5 x 5 risk matrix...
The U.S. Department of Energy's Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) has a substantial interest in predictions for fitness-for-service as well as for lifetime extension. The ability to predict fitness-for-service is applicable to making...
Since the publication of API Standard 653, Tank Inspection, Repair, Alteration and Reconstruction in early 1991 it has gained wide acceptance within the petroleum and chemical industries. In addition, six states (Alaska, Arkansas, Florida,...
