Mex10101 PDF

Engineering Encyclopedia
Saudi Aramco DeskTop Standards
Saudi Aramco Piping Systems
Note: The source of the technical material in this volume is the Professional
Engineering Development Program (PEDP) of Engineering Services.
Warning: The material contained in this document was developed for Saudi
Aramco and is intended for the exclusive use of Saudi Aramcos
employees. Any material contained in this document which is not
already in the public domain may not be copied, reproduced, sold, given,
or disclosed to third parties, or otherwise used in whole, or in part,
without the written permission of the Vice President, Engineering
Services, Saudi Aramco.
Chapter : Piping & Valves For additional information on this subject, contact
File Reference: MEX10101 K.S. Chu on 873-2648 or R. Hingoraney on 873-2649
Engineering Encyclopedia Piping & Valves
Piping Systems
MODULE COMPONENT PAGE
Saudi Aramco Piping Systems: Types, Functions, and Components ................................. 1

Chemical Plant and Petroleum Refinery Piping .................................................................. 2
Function............................................................................................................................... 2
Liquid Petroleum Transportation Piping ............................................................................. 4
Gas Transmission and Distribution Pipelines ...................................................................... 5
Submarine Pipelines ............................................................................................................ 6
Codes and Standards for Saudi Aramco Piping Systems .................................................... 7
Saudi Aramco Engineering Requirements........................................................................... 8
ASME/ANSI B31.3, Chemical Plant and Petroleum Refinery Piping .............................. 10
Scope ................................................................................................................................. 10
ASME/ANSI B31.4, Liquid Petroleum Transportation Piping ......................................... 12
ASME/ANSI B31.8, Gas Transmission and Distribution Piping ...................................... 15
Summary ........................................................................................................................... 18
GLOSSARY ...................................................................................................................... 20
Saudi Aramco DeskTop Standards

Piping Systems
Saudi Aramco Piping Systems: Types, Functions, and Components
The major types of piping systems that are used by Saudi Aramco include:
Chemical and petroleum refinery plant piping.
Liquid petroleum transportation piping.
Gas transmission and distribution piping.
Submarine transportation piping.
An engineer will often have to recognize the type of piping system from observable
characteristics, and determine the type of piping system being designed, analyzed, or
modified.
This section will describe the types of piping systems listed above based on observable
physical characteristics. Each description will include:
The function of the piping system.
Common components that are found in the piping system.
Saudi Aramco DeskTop Standards 1

Piping Systems
Chemical Plant and Petroleum Refinery Piping
Function
Conveys fluid between items of connected equipment within one plant unit or between
plots within one plant area.
Connected equipment includes items such as process reactors, heat exchangers, pumps,
compressors, furnaces, columns, and drums.
Defined in Saudi Aramco Engineering Standard SAES-L-001, Basic Criteria For

Pressure Piping Systems. Plant piping includes systems which are directly connected
with:
- Processing or handling of oil, gas, or their derivatives.

- Supply of power steam, or other utilities related to the above.
- Fenced in well sites.
Plant piping may be within on-shore perimeter fences, or on off-shore structures.
Components
A significant number of valves to control process conditions, isolate equipment, and

separate process streams.
Small bore connections to monitor process conditions with temperature and pressure
transducers, withdraw fluid samples, or drain the piping.
Flanged connections near the equipment to facilitate maintenance or changes in

operation.
Branch connections to facilitate bypassing the equipment due to changing operational

needs.
Elbows to facilitate changes in direction or a piping system end points.
Most often 600 mm (24 in.) and under in diameter, although larger diameter systems are
also used.
Figure 1 illustrates a typical plant piping system that connects several equipment items and
shows various components.

Piping Systems
PLANT PIPING
FIGURE 1

Piping Systems
Liquid Petroleum Transportation Piping
Function
Conveys liquid petroleum, liquid petroleum products, or liquid-gas mixtures from the
wellhead by connecting one or more of the following:
- Gas-oil separation plant (GOSP).

- Pumping facilities.
- Oil terminal and shipping facilities.
- Refineries and chemical plants
- Temporary storage facilities.
Serves as a main cross-country pipeline.
May also include flowlines, testlines, and trunklines as defined in SAES-L-001, Basic
Criteria For Pressure Piping Systems.
Components
Contains many of the same components that are found in plant piping, but the pipe sizes
used in this type of piping usually exceed those used in plant piping. Pipe is generally
750 mm (30 in.) or larger in diameter.
The piping usually contains few flanges. Flanges and valves that are used match the
size of the pipe, and the valves have a full bore. At major equipment locations (such as
GOSPs, pump stations, and terminal or shipping facilities), the piping contains
additional flanges, primarily to facilitate maintenance.
Main cross-country piping includes check valves where prevention of flow reversal is
necessary.
Few branch connections or small bore connections are employed, except at pump
stations or similar locations where pressure control is accomplished.
Pipeline scraper launcher and receiver equipment at pump stations.
Pressure relief system required at pump stations.
Figure 2 illustrates typical pipeline details.

Piping Systems
ABOVEGROUND AND UNDERGROUND CROSS-COUNTRY PIPING
FIGURE 2
Gas Transmission and Distribution Pipelines
Transmission piping similar to liquid petroleum transportation piping.
Distribution piping similar to plant piping.
Conveys natural gas fluids between the gas-oil separation plant (GOSP) and the end-use
location.
Connects the following facilities:
- GOSP's.
- Gas treating facilities.
- Gas compression stations.
- Gas metering and regulation stations.
- Gas mains.
- Gas service lines to the end-use location.
Generally buried, except at buildings, control stations, and compression stations.

Piping Systems
Submarine Pipelines
Usually transportation piping.
May deliver oil or gas produced off-shore.
Similar to liquid petroleum or gas transmission pipelines.
May rest on marine bottom or may be trenched and/or buried.
May be coated with concrete to overcome buoyancy.
Figure 3 is a conceptual sketch of a submarine pipeline.
SUBMARINE PIPELINE
FIGURE 3

Piping Systems
Codes and Standards for Saudi Aramco Piping Systems
An engineer must know which industry codes and Saudi Aramco standards apply to a
particular piping system to effectively participate in its design. The codes and standards allow
the engineer to identify acceptable materials, design equations, allowable stresses, permitted
design details, fabrication requirements, and inspection and testing criteria that apply for the
piping system.
The ASME/ANSI B31 Codes that are applicable to Saudi Aramco piping systems are:
ASME/ANSI B31.3, Chemical Plant and Petroleum Refinery Piping.
ASME/ANSI B31.4, Liquid Transportation Systems for Hydrocarbons, Liquid

Petroleum Gas, Anhydrous Ammonia, and Alcohols.
ASME/ANSI B31.8, Gas Transmission and Distribution Piping.
The Saudi Aramco Engineering Standards, SAES-L series, and Saudi Aramco Material
System Specifications (SAMSS's) provide additional requirements that supplement the B31
Codes. SAES-L-001, Basic Criteria for Pressure Piping Systems, defines the scope and
definitions of terms that apply to the piping-related Saudi Aramco Engineering Standards.
SAES-L-001 also specifies the minimum basic requirements for pressure piping systems
within its scope.
The Codes and standards describe requirements for the materials, design, fabrication, erection,
inspection, and testing of piping systems.
This section discusses:
An overview of the Saudi Aramco Engineering Standards, SAES-L series, and Saudi
Aramco Material System Specifications.
Each Code designation and scope.
Selecting the applicable ASME/ANSI B31 piping Code based on whether a piping
system is plant piping, or transportation piping, and whether transportation piping
transports liquid or gas.

Piping Systems
Saudi Aramco Engineering Requirements
The Saudi Aramco Engineering Standards (SAES) and Saudi Aramco Material System
Specifications (SAMSS) are the primary documents that define Saudi Aramco's engineering
requirements and supplement the ASME/ANSI B31 Codes.
The SAES's specify the engineering requirements that apply to a broad equipment category,
system, or topic, such as piping systems. The SAES's are used by the prime engineering
contractor that is employed by Saudi Aramco for a particular project. The prime engineering
contractor extracts the SAES requirements that are relevant for a particular situation. These
relevant SAES requirements are then included in the technical design specification that is
prepared and used for a project. The contractor must ensure that the supplier or sub-
contractor receives all relevant SAES requirements and that the supplier does not have to read
the entire SAES to find only the items that apply to his scope of supply. For example, a sub-
contractor who is designing piping systems for the Ras Tanura refinery should not be given
SAES requirements that pertain only to piping on off-shore structures. The sub-contractor
must be given all the requirements that are relevant to the systems that he is designing. An
SAES is typically not included in a technical design specification in its entirety.
The SAMSS's specify detailed engineering requirements that apply to a particular equipment
type or component. The relevant SAMSS's are included in their entirety in a technical design
specification that is sent to a supplier. The supplier must ensure that all the requirements that
are contained in the included SAMSS's are met. For example, Saudi Aramco has a series of
SAMSS's that contain requirements for specific types of values. The SAMSS that applies to a
specific valve type must be included in the purchase requisition whenever that valve type is to
be used.
Both the SAES's and SAMSS's supplement applicable industry standards with additional
engineering requirements that Saudi Aramco wants to employ. These documents will
typically reference relevant industry standards and thus make these industry standards
mandatory requirements. Then, the SAES's and SAMSS's add additional Saudi Aramco
requirements. Use of the SAES's and SAMSS's as described above applies for all Saudi
Aramco equipment purchases, not just for piping systems and components.
The purchase of piping components that meet Saudi Aramco requirements has been simplified
through the use of computer software that contains all relevant SAMSS requirements. With
this system, appropriate component purchase descriptions can be found, along with acceptable
suppliers and Saudi Aramco order numbers. The use of this system will be highlighted in
MEX 101.02.

Piping Systems
The piping standards are found in the SAES "L-Series", and apply to all pressure piping
systems that are included in the scope of any one of the ASME/ANSI B31 Codes. These
SAES's also apply to certain other pressure piping services that are excluded from the Code.
SAES-L-000, Piping Standard Forward and Index, provides an index that identifies the
contents of each SAES. The Saudi Aramco engineer should refer to SAES-L-000 to identify
the applicable SAES's when participating in a piping design problem.
There is no single index to just the piping SAMSS's. However, all piping system and
component-related SAMSS's begin with "01-SAMSS", "02-SAMSS", or "04-SAMSS".
Specific SAES and SAMSS requirements will be discussed throughout MEX 101 as
appropriate.

Piping Systems
ASME/ANSI B31.3, Chemical Plant and Petroleum Refinery Piping
The information presented below is from ASME/ANSI B31.3.
Scope
Figure 4 is a schematic representation of the scope of ASME/ANSI B31.3. The information

that follows provides additional details.
Applies to piping for all fluids, including:
- Raw, intermediate, and finished chemicals.

- Petroleum products.
- Gas, steam, air, and water.
- Fluidized solids.
- Refrigerants.
Covers all piping within the property limits of facilities engaged in the processing or
handling of chemical, petroleum, or related products.
Covers piping interconnecting equipment items within a packaged equipment assembly.
Excludes:
- Piping systems for internal gauge pressures at or above zero but less than
103 kPa (15 psi), provided that the fluid is nonflammable, nontoxic, and not
harmful to human tissue, and its design temperature is -29C to 186C (-20F to
366F).
- Power boilers.
- Tubes, tube headers, crossovers, and manifolds internal to a fired heater enclosure.
- Pressure vessels, heat exchangers, pumps, compressors, and other fluid handling or
processing equipment.
- Piping located on company property that has been set aside for pipelines that
conform to ASME/ANSI B31.4, B31.8, or B31.11, or applicable government
regulations.
- Plumbing, sanitary sewers, or storm sewers.
- Fire protection systems.

Piping Systems
SCOPE OF ASME/ANSI B31.3
Source: ASME/ANSI B31.3 - 1990. With permission from American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
FIGURE 4

Piping Systems
ASME/ANSI B31.4, Liquid Petroleum Transportation Piping
The following information is from ASME/ANSI B31.4.
Scope

This Code applies to:
Piping transporting liquids including crude oil, condensate, natural gasoline, natural gas
liquids, liquefied petroleum gas, liquid alcohol, liquid anhydrous ammonia, and liquid
petroleum products.
Transportation piping between producers' lease facilities, tank farms, natural gas
processing plants, refineries, stations, ammonia plants, terminals, and other delivery and
receiving points.
The piping includes: pipe, flanges, bolting, gaskets, valves, relief devices, fittings, and
the pressure-containing parts of other piping components. It also includes hangers and
supports, and other equipment items necessary to prevent over stressing of the pressure-
containing parts.
Primary and associated auxiliary liquid petroleum and liquid anhydrous ammonia piping
at pipeline terminals, tank farms, pump stations, pressure-reducing stations, and
metering stations.
Storage and working tanks.
Liquid petroleum and liquid anhydrous ammonia piping located on property that has
been set aside for such piping within refineries, natural gasoline and gas processing
plants, ammonia plants and bulk plants.
General safety aspects of operation and maintenance of liquid petroleum and liquid
anhydrous ammonia piping.

Piping Systems
ASME/ANSI B31.4 does not apply to:
Auxiliary piping used for water, air, steam, lubricating oil, gas, or fuel.
Pressure vessels, heat exchangers, pumps, meters, and other such equipment including
internal piping and connections.
Piping designed for internal gauge pressures at or below 103 kPa (15 psig) regardless of
temperature, and above 103 kPa (15 psig) if design temperature is below -29C (-20F)
or above 120C (250F).
Casing, tubing, or pipe used in oil wells, wellhead assemblies, oil and gas separators,
crude oil production tanks, other producing facilities, and pipelines interconnecting
these facilities.
Piping in refineries, natural gas processing plants, ammonia plants and bulk plants.
The design and fabrication of proprietary equipment, apparatus, or instruments.
Ammonia refrigeration piping systems provided for in ASME/ANSI B31.5,

Refrigeration Piping.
It should be noted that SAES-L-020, Design of Transportation Piping Systems, requires that
ASME/ANSI B31.4 be used for all transportation piping systems regardless of fluid service.
Thus, SAES-L-020 extends the applicable scope of B31.4 to also cover gas and multi-phase
services.

Piping Systems
FIGURE 5

Piping Systems
ASME/ANSI B31.8, Gas Transmission and Distribution Piping
The following information is from ASME/ANSI B31.8.
Scope

Gas transmission and distribution 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.
Gas storage equipment of the closed-pipe type, fabricated or forged from the pipe or
fabricated from the pipe fittings, and gas storage lines.
Pipe, valves, fittings, flanges, bolting, gaskets, regulators, pressure vessels, pulsation
dampers, and relief valves.
ASME/ANSI B31.8 does not apply to:
Design and manufacture of pressure vessels covered by the ASME Boiler and Pressure
Vessel Code.
Piping with metal temperatures above 232C (450F) or below -29C (-20F).
Piping beyond the outlet of the customer's meter set assembly.
Piping in oil refineries or natural gas extraction plants; gas treatment plant piping, other
than the main gas stream piping in dehydration plants, and all other processing plants
installed as part of a gas transmission system, gas manufacturing plant, industrial plant,
or mine.
Vent piping that operates at substantially atmospheric pressure for waste gases of any
kind.
Wellhead assemblies, including control valves, flowlines between wellhead and trap or
separator, connecting piping on off-shore production platforms up to the connection to
the transportation piping system, or casing and tubing in gas or oil wells.

Piping Systems
The design and manufacture of proprietary items of equipment, apparatus, or

instruments.
The design and manufacture of heat exchangers.
Liquid petroleum, liquid slurry, carbon dioxide, or liquefied natural gas transportation
piping systems.
As previously noted, SAES-L-020 requires that ASME/ANSI B31.4 be used for transportation
piping systems that are within the nominal scope of B31.8. SAES-L-020 also requires that
B31.8 requirements that are in addition to or exceed B31.4 requirements be applied to
pipelines that are in hydrocarbon gas or multi-phase service.

Piping Systems
FIGURE 6

Piping Systems
Summary
Saudi Aramco piping systems include:
Chemical and petroleum refinery plant piping.
Liquid petroleum transportation piping.
The Saudi Aramco engineer must know the components and functions of each type of piping
system to effectively participate in piping design problems. The applicable Codes and
standards include:
ASME/ANSI B31.3.
ASME/ANSI B31.4.
ASME/ANSI B31.8.
Saudi Aramco Engineering Standards, SAES-L Series, and applicable Saudi Aramco
Material System Specifications (SAMSS).
The steps that follow summarize an approach which may be used to determine which
ASME/ANSI Code, SAESs and SAMSSs apply to a particular situation.
1. Determine if the piping system is plant or transportation.
2. If it is plant, B31.3 applies.
3. If it is transportation piping, the requirements of B31.4 apply, regardless of the fluid.

The additional requirements of B31.8 apply to pipelines in hydrocarbon gas and multi-
phase service.
4. When transportation piping is within plant limits, refer to Saudi Aramco Engineering
Standard SAES-L-003, Design Stress Criteria for Pressure Piping, which supplements
the requirements that are in the ASME/ANSI B31 Codes.

Piping Systems
5. The following piping shall be designed to either ASME/ANSI B31.3 or ASME/ANSI

B31.4 and applicable SAES's.
Tank farm
Piers.
Pump stations.
Terminals.
6. Pump station piping shall be designed to ASME/ANSI B31.3 if the pump station is
located inside a plant (such as at Abqaiq).
7. Piping designed and tested to ASME/ANSI B31.3 is acceptable within the scope of
either ASME/ANSI B31.4 or B31.8, provided that this is recorded in the permanent
project records.
8. Refer to SAES-L-000, Piping Standard Forward and Index, to determine which SAES's
apply to the particular system.
9. Refer to the SAMSS's, and determine which ones apply to piping components that are
included in the particular system. Piping component requirements are specified in
SAMSS's which begin with "01-SAMSS", "02-SAMSS", or "04-SAMSS".

Piping Systems
GLOSSARY
assembly The joining together of two or more piping components by

bolting, welding, caulking, brazing, soldering, cementing, or
threading in their installed location as specified by the
engineering design.
branch connection The attachment of a branch pipe to the run of a main pipe
with or without the use of preformed fittings.
cold allowable stress The allowable stress at the minimum metal temperature the
material is exposed to during its life, as defined by the
applicable Code.
creep rupture Creep is the property of material where the strain changes
with time under constant temperature and stress.
design factor A factor used in establishing the allowable stress for

transportation piping. A factor of population density or
degree of hazard.
expansion loops and offsets Arrangements of piping used to increase flexibility.
flammable A fluid which, under ambient or expected operating

conditions, is a vapor or produces vapors that can be ignited
and continue to burn in air.
flowlines Pipelines connected to oil, gas, or water wells for production

or well testing.
GOSP Gas Oil Separation Plant, used to separate and produce oil
and gas.
hot allowable stress The allowable stress at the maximum temperature the
material attains for a particular metal design condition as
given by the applicable Code.
local stress A stress that decays or reduces rapidly away from the
location such as at branch connections.
minimum specified A guaranteed value of the yield strength for a given

yield strength material as stated in the ASTM specification.
off-plot Any area outside of plot limits.

Piping Systems
pipe A tube used for conveying fluid or transmitting fluid

pressure.
plant area The area inside an on-shore perimeter fence, or on the decks
of off-shore structures, which are directly connected with the
production or handling of crude oil or gas, and their
derivatives; the supply of power, steam, and other utilities
related thereto; fenced well sites.
plant piping Pressure piping used to transport fluids between connected

equipment within one plant unit or between plots within one
plant area within the scope of ASME/ANSI B31.3.
plot limit The code boundary surrounding a single plant or function,

such as a refinery unit, tank farm, pump station, power
house, or pier.
primary stresses The membrane, shear, and bending stresses due to imposed
sustained loads.
secondary stresses Self-limiting stresses which satisfy the continuity of the

piping system. These are due to displacement controlled
loads.
tensile strength The maximum value on the stress-strain curve for a material.
testline Flowline used for testing an individual well without affecting

the operation of a trunkline.
thermal stress A longitudinal bending stress caused by thermal expansion.
transportation piping The pipeline and appurtenances used to transport fluids

across the country or off-shore between isolated plant areas
or camps, including the portions in pipeways and corridors
within plant areas and non process plot limits at the origin
and end point of the pipeline.
trunklines Pipelines connected to two or more flowlines.

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Engineering Encyclopedia

Saudi Aramco DeskTop Standards

Saudi Aramco Piping Systems

MODULE COMPONENT PAGE

Saudi Aramco Piping Systems: Types, Functions, and Components ................................. 1

Saudi Aramco DeskTop Standards

Saudi Aramco Piping Systems: Types, Functions, and Components

Chemical and petroleum refinery plant piping.

Liquid petroleum transportation piping.

Gas transmission and distribution piping.

Submarine transportation piping.

The function of the piping system.

Common components that are found in the piping system.

Saudi Aramco DeskTop Standards 1

Chemical Plant and Petroleum Refinery Piping

Defined in Saudi Aramco Engineering Standard SAES-L-001, Basic Criteria For

- Processing or handling of oil, gas, or their derivatives.

Plant piping may be within on-shore perimeter fences, or on off-shore structures.

A significant number of valves to control process conditions, isolate equipment, and

Flanged connections near the equipment to facilitate maintenance or changes in

Branch connections to facilitate bypassing the equipment due to changing operational

Elbows to facilitate changes in direction or a piping system end points.

Saudi Aramco DeskTop Standards 2

Saudi Aramco DeskTop Standards 3

Liquid Petroleum Transportation Piping

- Gas-oil separation plant (GOSP).

Serves as a main cross-country pipeline.

Pipeline scraper launcher and receiver equipment at pump stations.

Pressure relief system required at pump stations.

Figure 2 illustrates typical pipeline details.

Saudi Aramco DeskTop Standards 4

ABOVEGROUND AND UNDERGROUND CROSS-COUNTRY PIPING

Gas Transmission and Distribution Pipelines

Transmission piping similar to liquid petroleum transportation piping.

Distribution piping similar to plant piping.

Connects the following facilities:

Generally buried, except at buildings, control stations, and compression stations.

Saudi Aramco DeskTop Standards 5

Usually transportation piping.

May deliver oil or gas produced off-shore.

Similar to liquid petroleum or gas transmission pipelines.

May rest on marine bottom or may be trenched and/or buried.

May be coated with concrete to overcome buoyancy.

Figure 3 is a conceptual sketch of a submarine pipeline.

Saudi Aramco DeskTop Standards 6

Codes and Standards for Saudi Aramco Piping Systems

ASME/ANSI B31.3, Chemical Plant and Petroleum Refinery Piping.

ASME/ANSI B31.4, Liquid Transportation Systems for Hydrocarbons, Liquid

ASME/ANSI B31.8, Gas Transmission and Distribution Piping.

This section discusses:

Each Code designation and scope.

Saudi Aramco DeskTop Standards 7

Saudi Aramco Engineering Requirements

Saudi Aramco DeskTop Standards 8

Saudi Aramco DeskTop Standards 9

ASME/ANSI B31.3, Chemical Plant and Petroleum Refinery Piping

The information presented below is from ASME/ANSI B31.3.

Figure 4 is a schematic representation of the scope of ASME/ANSI B31.3. The information

Applies to piping for all fluids, including:

- Raw, intermediate, and finished chemicals.

Covers piping interconnecting equipment items within a packaged equipment assembly.

Saudi Aramco DeskTop Standards 10

SCOPE OF ASME/ANSI B31.3