Pipe Routing

Use Dyke Bellows in Tank Farm Area to address Process and Space Constraints
Avinash Kadam, Sudhir Bhise
The authors present the advantages of using dyke bellows in tank farms and discusses this in the context of one of their projects. Instead of anchoring of pipes in dyke wall, they recommend use of dyke bellows to satisfy pump nozzle loads in case of process & space constraints.
Authors Avinash Kadam (M.Tech., IIT Delhi) is currently head of Stress-Support Group Aker Powergas, Pune. He has 10 years of experience in stress analysis. He has previously worked for Lurgi, Samsung Engg (S. Korea), Hyundai offshore Engg (S. Korea).

Introduction

s projects get more complex and space is a limitation, piping engineers face a challenging task to fulfill all requirements of safety and functionality of piping under given constraints. In this project, there were eight tanks with eight pumps in an area of 24.5 m x 50.5 m. Each tank size was 8.5m, which left limited space to plan pumps and piping connected between pumps and tanks. All these tanks were enclosed in a dyke wall to satisfy safety norms of industry to avoid spillage in case of leakage of tanks. Lines running from tank to pump have to cross dyke walls. To meet the requirement of a spill proof dyke wall and provision of sufficient flexibility to piping, we used the concept of Dyke Bellows.

Sudhir Bhise (B. E. Mech, VJTI Mumbai) is freelance consultant and trainer. He has 15 years of experience in stress analysis. He has worked for reputed organisations such as Tata Consulting Engineers, Uhde India, Aker Powergas, Pune.

Layout details
Typical layout for tank farm area, layout consisted of tanks and pumps (Fig 1). Pumps were located outside dyke wall. At a location where pipe penetrated dyke wall, a barrier puddle flange was provided. 79

Chemical Industry Digest. March 2013

CMYK

Pipe Routing
When puddle flange is used in dyke wall, the puddle flange acts as an anchor restricting all degrees of freedom. From above layout, it is clear that there is little space available both inside and outside the dyke wall to provide flexibility using bends to bring both tank and pump nozzle loads within vendor allowable limits. This situation also creates high forces and moments on tank and pump nozzles.

Dyke bellows

Fig 1. Tank farm layout: A total of eight tanks with pipe rack in between to lay pipes. All pumps are closely spaced, leaving minimum space to route suction lines from tank to pump. Dyke wall Clamps Pipe Pipe sleeve

Provision of dyke bellows in such situation is a good solution for all stress analysis problems. Here, one end of bellows is clamped on service pipe and another end on pipe sleeve which is inserted in dyke wall (Fig.2). Sleeve size is kept one size higher than service pipe. Also, these bellows act as a dyke wall sealant, in case of failure of tank. This construction allows the pipe to move freely inside the sleeve eliminating the anchoring effect of puddle flange. When used for pump system in tank farm area, this helps to reduce pump and tank nozzle loads. As bellows do not come in contact with the service fluid, except when there is spillage, it will have good service life. Minimum specifications for dyke bellows should consider the following: 1. Material of bellow 2. Small end size 3. Large end size 4. Clamp material for both sizes 5. Length 6. Fluid service (in case of tank spillage) 7. Expected displacements (axial & lateral)

Bellow

Requirement of bellow (with clamps) to allow pipe expansion and avoiding anchor at dyke wall.

Fig 2. In the above scheme presented, we satisfy all requirement by using dyke bellows which is cost effective technical solution and easy to install.

Summary

Fig.3 Dyke Bellow

Dyke bellows offer a good techno-economic solution for relieving stress of pipes crossing walls without unnecessarily altering the piping route. At the same time, it maintains the integrity of the dyke wall.

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Chemical Industry Digest. March 2013

CMYK