Concrete Corrosion Problems and Cures
INSPECTION OF UNDERGROUND PIPING EPRI Update on Nuclear Power Plant Activities
New and Revised API Inspection Standards in Progress
2011 Inspectioneering Journal Article Index
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January/February 2011 Inspectioneering JournalBy Del Underwood at Det Norske Veritas
A continually frustrating phenomenon to many of us is the situation where a tight bolt will function satisfactorily, but in the same situation, a loose bolt will fail...
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Partner ContentAuto-refrigeration can impose low temperatures onto process vessels and piping causing them to be at risk of brittle fracture, the sudden break-before leak phenomena that can result in catastrophic rupture of the equipment.
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March/April 2011 Inspectioneering JournalBy Del Underwood at Det Norske Veritas
In the previous issue we dealt with the fact that bolts can withstand significantly less cyclic loading than steady loading. We are now looking at the mechanics of why bolts fail if flanges are allowed to separate during operation.
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May/June 2011 Inspectioneering JournalBy Del Underwood at Det Norske Veritas
In two previous issues we discussed the important difference between steady and cyclic loading, and why loose bolts fail while tight ones do not. This issue will offer two suggestions for reducing the tendency for bolts to become loose.
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September/October 2011 Inspectioneering JournalBy Pieter VanderWerf at Building WorksDeterioration of concrete structures has plagued petrochemical production facilities. As a result of sulfur compound exposure, concrete corrodes and weakens continuously over time. The proper operation of the structure deteriorates with it until management undertakes repair or replacement of the affected sections. While the concrete degrades, productivity can be lost and product quality can suffer. The repairs undertaken can be costly. The production downtime during repairs can cost even more.
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January/February 2011 Inspectioneering Journal
Washington DC, January 27, 2011 - A U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) case study released today on the 2008 heat exchanger rupture and ammonia release at the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company in Houston, Texas, identifies gaps in facility emergency response training and calls for increased adherence to existing industry codes.
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November/December 2011 Inspectioneering Journal
The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) today released its final report on a series of three accidents that occurred over a 33-hour period on January 22 and 23, 2010, at the DuPont Corporation's Belle, West Virginia, chemical manufacturing plant - including a fatal release of deadly phosgene gas, which was used as a chemical weapon in World War One.
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Development of a Remote Robotic Crack Detection System for Internal Inspections of On-line Coke Drums
May/June 2011 Inspectioneering JournalBy Rick Clark at CIA Inspection Inc.In the summer of 2005, as part of CIA Inspection's (CIAI) ongoing, in house, research efforts to improve inspection capabilities for coke drums, a development program was initiated to integrate ACFM (Alternating Current Field Measurement) inspection technology with a proven laser and video inspection tool for coke drums.
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March/April 2011 Inspectioneering JournalBy Lyle Breaux P.E. at Stress Engineering Services, Inc., Eric Luther P.E. at Stress Engineering Services, Inc., and Scott McNeill Ph.D., P.E. at Stress Engineering ServicesThe most common equipment vibration problems are often solved in industry without the use of specialty engineering resources. Routine vibration problems-from machinery imbalance and misalignment to simple cases of noise and resonance-are often addressed at the plant level without help from consultants.
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January/February 2011 Inspectioneering JournalBy Leo Vega at Stress Engineering Services, Inc.
Describes a non-destructive sampling procedure which records and preserves the topography of a metallographic specimen as a negative relief on a plastic film (replica).
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September/October 2011 Inspectioneering JournalBy Cliff Knight, P.E. at KnightHawk Engineering, Inc.The morning meeting at the plant was a tough one for you. As an area engineer you are not satisfied with the information you are receiving from your team's investigation into a major compressor wreck that has happened once again. The conclusion from the team has always been corrosion fatigue, and suggestions have been made to change the material to a more exotic type...
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July/August 2011 Inspectioneering JournalBy Cliff Knight, P.E. at KnightHawk Engineering, Inc.
Once again there is a crack found in the inlet tubesheet in your high-pressure high temperature heat exchanger. As head of the maintenance engineering effort, you know that plant management will ask you if it can run safely and reliability until the next scheduled shutdown.
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May/June 2011 Inspectioneering JournalBy Joey Poret at Chevron
The reliability of equipment is determined by several factors including equipment condition, service history, failure modes, and maintenance. A subsection of equipment reliability is the ability to detect defects before they contribute to the failure of the equipment. In many cases, Nondestructive Testing (NDT) methods are utilized to detect and monitor these defects both in-service and during fabrication.
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September/October 2011 Inspectioneering JournalBy Greg Alvarado at Inspectioneering Journal
Leaks or spills over the life of nuclear power plant operation can lead to undesirable consequences. The nuclear industry’s GroundwaterProtectionInitiativeandthelessonslearnedand experiences gained from implementing groundwater protection programs have led to the development of another voluntary industry initiative, the Underground Piping and Tank Integrity Initiative, which aims to better understand the conditions of and mitigate leaks from these components.
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November/December 2011 Inspectioneering JournalEPRI is investigating improved inspection technologies as part of a multi-faceted effort to enhance the understanding and management of underground piping and tanks at nuclear power plants. An ultrasonic immersion technique tested on an 8-inch-diameter, 60-foot pipe run containing both horizontal and vertical sections and six elbows successfully navigated all obstructions and detected pipe thinning.
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MI Inspection During Capital Projects Promotes PSM Compliance, Corrosion Rate Accuracy and Improved BudgetingMay/June 2011 Inspectioneering JournalBy Paul F. Schubert, Ph.D. at SGS North America Industrial Services, and Travis Keener, P.E. at SGS North America Industrial Services
Putting off the initial inspection (i.e. baseline) of piping and vessels in a new process unit is both common and problematic. The tendency of owners is to rely on the nominal thickness because the actual original thickness was either not measured or not recorded for calculating corrosion rates after the first wave of thickness readings are taken with the equipment having been in service for some period of time.
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November/December 2011 Inspectioneering JournalBy Greg Alvarado at Inspectioneering JournalThe original article on scalable accuracy which laid the groundwork for the concept was published in the March April 2011 issue of the Inspectioneering Journal, entitled Scalable Accuracy, Key Roles of Risk Based Inspection and Fitness for Service, Equipment Life-Cycle Management Process. This article is reprinted immediately following this article for ease of reference.
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September/October 2011 Inspectioneering JournalBy John Reynolds at Intertek
Three new recommended practices (RP) are under way within the API Inspection Subcommittee (SCI) which will add to the list of SCI standards available to owner-users to improve their mechanical integrity (MI) and inspection programs.
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March/April 2011 Inspectioneering JournalBy Adnan A. Boudi, Ph.D, P.E., AVS. at SPE International
Due to increasing market demands for stabilized crude, it is a high priority for oil handling and processing facilities to avoid production interruption. One optimization opportunity is to review our approach for scheduled facility Test and Inspection (T&I) during turnarounds or outages.
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Partner ContentIt’s a scary thought to think that with all the new advancements in technology, some facilities still rely on traditional inspection contractors that perform out of date procedures. You rely on technology to keep your home and identity safe, so why run the risk of hiring inspection contractors without technological solutions to provide the vital information needed to keep your facility safe.
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March/April 2011 Inspectioneering JournalBy Greg Alvarado at Inspectioneering Journal
Two technologies, immediately available to plant operators for fixed equipment life-cycle management are Risk-Based Inspection (RBI) and Fitness for Service (FFS), two best practices that optimally work together or can standalone. Both have abilities of scalable accuracy.
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July/August 2011 Inspectioneering Journal
On October 7, 2010, EPA maintained the November 10, 2010 compliance date for drilling, production or workover facilities that are offshore or that have an offshore component, and for onshore facilities required to have and submit Facility Response Plans (FRPs). However, EPA extended the compliance date an additional year for all other facilities to amend or develop a SPCC Plan until November 10, 2011.
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July/August 2011 Inspectioneering Journal
Tesoro Corporation (NYSE:TSO) today announced the release of the TOP (Triangle of Prevention) Investigation Team Report on the April 2, 2010, incident at the Anacortes Refinery in Washington State. The incident occurred when a heat exchanger in the refinery's Naphtha Hydrotreater unit ruptured, causing an explosion and fire that fatally injured seven employees.
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September/October 2011 Inspectioneering JournalBy Barry Snider at Small Hammer Incorporated
Maintenance has been around since prehistoric man fixed a broken, trusted spear instead of fashioning a new one. One concept of maintenance is any activity that extends the useful life or enhances the performance of an item of interest. A broad concept for sure but for most of recorded history, maintenance has been synonymous with fixing or repairing.
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The Role of Industry Codes and Standards in Achieving Excellence in Pressure Equipment Integrity and ReliabilityJuly/August 2011 Inspectioneering JournalBy John Reynolds at Intertek
In the first article in this series entitled How to Put It All Together - Guide to Organizing a Successful PEI Program, I provided an overview of the necessary Management Systems for a successful program to achieve excellence in pressure equipment integrity. This is the seventh article in that series. Clearly, Codes and Standards have a major role in achieving excellence in Pressure Equipment Integrity and Reliability.
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The Role of Life Cycle Management in Achieving Excellence in Pressure Equipment Integrity and ReliabilityJanuary/February 2011 Inspectioneering JournalBy John Reynolds at Intertek
In the first article in this series entitled How to Put It All Together - Guide to Organizing a Successful PEI Program, (1) I provided an overview of the necessary Management Systems (MS) for a successful program to achieve excellence in pressure equipment integrity (PEI). This is the sixth article in that series.
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The Site Procedures and Work Processes for Achieving Excellence in Pressure Equipment Integrity and ReliabilityNovember/December 2011 Inspectioneering JournalBy John Reynolds at Intertek
In the first article entitled How to Put It All Together - Guide to Organizing a Successful PEI Program in the current series of articles that I am writing, I provided an overview of the necessary Management Systems (MS) for a successful program to achieve excellence in pressure equipment integrity and reliability (PEI&R). The eighth article in this series will appear in the November/December issue of the Inspectioneering Journal.
