The

Safety Relief Valve

Handbook
Design and Use of Process Safety
Valves to ASME and International

Codes and Standards

Marc Hellemans

www.icheme.org

IChemE
heart of the process

AMSTERDAM

PARIS
ELSEVIER

BOSTON

SAN DIEGO

HEIDELBERG

SAN FRANCISCO

Bulterworth-Hcinemunn is an

LONDON

NEW YORK

SINGAPORE

SYDNEY

imprini ofElsevier

OXFORD

TOKYO

Contents

PREFACE

xi

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

CHAPTER 1

CHAPTER 2

CHAPTER 3

xv

History

1.1

Acronyms, Abbreviations

Overpressure Protection

2.1

General Definition of

2.2

Where do SRVs Fit in the Process?

2.3

Where do SRVs Act Within the Process ?

2.4

Causes of Overpressure

2.4.1

Blocked

2.4.2

Fire

2.4.3

Thermal

2.4.4

Runaway

2.4.5

Tube

an

SRV

discharge

case

expansion

17

reaction

rupture

in heat

18

exchangers

18

2.5

Determine Overpressure Protection Requirements

19

2.6

Overpressure

21

2.7

Risk Assessment and Reduction

Relief Devices

24

Terminology

27

3.1

Testing

27

3.2

Type

of Devices

29

3.2.1

Reclosing pressure-relieving devices

29

3.2.2

Non-reclosing pressure relief device

30

3.3

Dimensional Terms

3.4
3.5

31

Operational

Terms

33

Component

Terms

39

3.6

Clarification of the Terms: Set Pressure, Overpressure,

Accumulation, MAWP
3.6.1

CHAPTER 4

PED

versus

and

Design Pressure

42

ASME

46

Codes and Standards

53

4.1

Overview Operational Requirements

4.2

ASME and API Codes and Standards

56
-

Clarifications

56

4.2.1

National Board approval

57

4.2.2

Main

58

4.2.3

Main excerpts from American Petroleum

paragraph

excerpts from ASME VIII

Institute recommended practices related to

safety
NACE

4.4

PED 97/23/EC

4.5

ATEX
4.5.1

CHAPTER 5

64
68

(Pressure Equipment Directive)

CEN ....71
75

European

ATEX Guidelines

Design Fundamentals

75

78

5.1

Construction Materials

79

5.2

Direct Spring-Operated SRVs

79

5.2.1

Introduction

79

5.2.2

Functionality

80

5.2.3

General

85

5.2.4

Design of main assemblies

89

5.2.5

Design differences

96

5.2.6

Types of spring-operated SRVs

5.3

CHAPTER 6

relief valves

4.3

design

99

Pilot-Operated Safety Relief Valves

110

5.3.1

Introduction

110

5.3.2

Functionality

Ill

5.3.3

Types of POSRV

112

5.3.4

Summary

122

5.4

DIN Design

123

5.5

Non-reclosing Pressure Relief Devices

124

5.5.1

128

Summary

Installation
6.1

129

Inlet and Outlet Piping

6.1.1

Calculating piping

6.1.2

Calculating

129
losses

139

outlet piping

144

CHAPTER 7

6.2

Location of Installed SRVs

147

6.3

Reaction Forces and

147

6.4

Temperature Transmission

151

6.5

Installation Guidelines

151

Bracing

Sizing and Selection

158

7.1

Introduction

7.2

Gas and Vapour

7.3

Steam

7.4

Steam Sizing

7.5

Liquid Sizing

169

7.5.1

170

7.6

158

Sizing

162

Sizing (Sonic Flow)

-

165

Per ASME Section 1

Combination devices

Two-Phase and Flashing Flow

170

7.6.1

Some basics

172

7.6.2

Two-phase liquid/vapour flow

174

7.6.3

Two-phase system with flashing

CHAPTER 9

or

non-condensable gas

176

7.6.4

Subcooled liquid flashing

178

7.6.5

Two-phase system with flashing and

non-condensable gas

CHAPTER 8

167

181

Noise

190

8.1

Risk of Damage

8.2

Planning

8.3

Noise from the

8.4

Noise Calculations

201

8.5

Conclusions

204

Safety

to

Hearing

195

Accident

an

SRV, Open Vent

Relief Valve Selection

200
and

Associated Pipe.. 200

207

9.1

Seat

9.2

Blowdown

208

9.3

Service

Temperature

208

9.4

Weight

and/or

209

9.5

Backpressure

9.6

Orifice Size

9.7

Two-Phase Flow

212

9.8

Type of Fluid

213

9.9

Tightness

207

Height

209

Sizing

212

Reciprocating Compressors

213

9.10

Liquid

214

9.11

Materials

215

CHAPTER 10

Maintenance and Testing

10.1

10.2

217

Maintenance Frequency

and Cost

217

10.1.1

Introduction

217

10.1.2

Maintenance cost

218

10.1.3

Maintenance frequency

220

and Dirt

224

Transportation
10.2.1

Preinstallation

handling

and

testing of

pressure relief valves

10.3

Troubleshooting
10.3.1

10.4

10.5

CHAPTER 11

Seat

226
227

leakage

10.3.2

Chatter

229

10.3.3

Premature opening

231

10.3.4

Valve will not open

232

10.3.5

Valve opens above set pressure

232

10.3.6

Valve does not reclose

232

10.3.7

Bellows failure

232

10.3.8

Springs

235
236

Testing
10.4.1

In situ testing of spring-operated SRVs

238

10.4.2

In situ testing of pilot-operated SVs

240

Maintenance Procedure

241

249

Cryogenic Applications
11.1

Thermal Relief

251

11.2

Process

251

11.2.1

Conventional spring-operated SRVs

cryogenic
11.2.2

11.2.3
11.3

11.4

CHAPTER 12

225

SRVs

on

service

Balanced bellows

252

spring-loaded

SRVs on

cryogenic

service

252

POSRV

cryogenic service

254

on

Testing for Cryogenic

Service

256

11.3.1

The'submerged test'

256

11.3.2

The'boil-off test'

257

Conclusion

258

Specifying Safety Relief Valves

259

12.1

Summary

259

12.2

Materials

260

12.3

Design

261

12.4

Identification

262

of Overall Requirements

CHAPTER

13

12.5

Inspection and Testing

263

12.6

Preparation for Shipment

263

Non-conformance of Existing Pressure

Relief
13.1

13.2

13.3

13.4

Systems

265

No Relief Device Present

269

13.1.1

External fire

269

13.1.2

Multiple

270

13.1.3

Blocked outlet

270

13.1.4

Thermal relief

270

13.1.5

Tube rupture

270

13.1.6

Others

271

13.1.7

Control valve failure

271

scenarios

Undei/Oversized

Safety Valves

271

13.2.1

External fire

271

13.2.2

Blocked outlet

272

13.2.3

Tube rupture

272

13.2.4

Multiple

272

13.2.5

Control valve failure

272

13.2.6

Others

272

13.2.7

Loss of

Improper

scenarios

condensing

273

Installation

273

13.3.1

Outlet pr

13.3.2

Inlet pressure

13.3.3

Blocked relief pathway

275

13.3.4

Set pressure too high

275

13.3.5

Others

275

What Can Go

es sure

Wrong

drop

drop

too

273

high

high

too

274

in the Process Scenarios

APPENDIX SECTION: RELEVANT TABLES AND REFERENCES

A

276

280

Comparisons Between the Safety Valves Sizing

Formulas

280

Backpressure Correction Factors

Compressibility

Ratio of

Capacity Correction Factor for Superheat, Ksh

Capacity Correction Factor for

284

Factors

286

Specific Heats k and Coefficient C

287
288

High Pressure

Steam, Kn

289

Capacity

Allowable Operating, Working, Relief,

Correction Factor for

Blowdown Pressures

Viscosity, Kv

290

Set and

292

Contents

Codes and Standards

API 526 Data Sheet Recommendation

Organizations

Generic

Worldwide Codes and Standards (Most Common)

M
N

Sizing Program

Properties

of Common Gases

Relevant Conversion Factors

293
295
297
298
299
301

FURTHER READING

305

INDEX

307