Tank farms are used for the storage of highly flammable and explosive substances; Consequently, preventive fireplace safety is of main importance. When rehabilitation of such a tank farm is deliberate, contractors typically suggest intensive – and thus pricey – measures. A fire-protection resolution developed by TÜV SÜD demonstrates that an equal degree of security can additionally be reached with a far more cost-effective resolution. A central role in harm limitation is performed by early fire detection using thermographic cameras.
Numerous tank farms all through Germany store petrol, diesel, kerosene or liquefied petroleum gasoline (LPG). In contact with air, these extremely flammable substances can form explosive mixtures. Given this, tank farms require particular measures in the subject of preventive fire protection. If rehabilitation of fire-protection techniques turns into needed at an older tank farm, far-reaching measures must be taken, not solely by means of precaution but additionally to exclude attainable legal responsibility dangers. And but not every measure that’s technologically feasible can also be necessary in case of a rehabilitation, as can be seen from the instance of a tank farm in Bavaria, Germany.
The tank farm is located at a basin of a river port in Bavaria. The part of the tank farm in want of rehabilitation covers 24 tanks with a storage quantity of between 600 and a pair of,000 cubic metres. The tank farm is used for intermediate storage of extremely flammable fluids with flame points of < 21 levels Celsius, as outlined in the German hazardous substances legislation. In hearth inspections and on-site inspections after incidents, the inspectors had identified major non-conformities within the fire-extinguishing system. To substitute the outdated and non-conforming system, an engineering firm submitted an in depth list of measures. These measures absolutely happy all regulatory necessities but represented a really cost-intensive answer, requiring a full rehabilitation using traditional extinguishing systems. For the tank-farm working firm, the prices of implementing these measures would have added as much as 1.7 million euros.
In hearth safety, the challenge lies in connecting well-founded technological information and legal know-how. In follow this means harmonising affordable engineering services and legal purposes to acquire a cohesive, economically possible and easily applied fire-protection idea.
Alternative answer developed by TÜV SÜD
At the operating company’s request, TÜV SÜD’s third-party specialists validated the person measures and the cost-effectiveness of the rehabilitation plan submitted by the engineering agency. Owing to the big number of deficiencies recognized within the tank farm, the specialists first ready a listing of priorities with the measures essential to fulfil the protection requirements and obtain the protection aims. They arrived on the conclusion that not all the proposed measures really wanted to be implemented. Starting from this finding, they then drew up an alternative fire-protection idea that might ultimately reduce the projected prices by one third.
TÜV SÜD’s rehabilitation plan included the fire-protection infrastructure already in place at the tank farm, corresponding to a non-automatic foam extinguishing system with a total foaming-agent supply of 10,500 litres distributed throughout two tanks, two submerged pumps within the port basin with a pump capacity of a hundred and eighty m3 per hour to ensure water provide for hearth preventing and sprinkling the shells and the roofs of the tanks, manual triggering of the shut-off valves and a transformer station powered by the regional energy provider. The feed-in of emergency power was effected by the local skilled fire division.
The engineering firm, in contrast, had deliberate to exchange the complete fire-extinguishing system. They wanted to install three cell extinguishing-agent distribution methods in container kind for remote managed sprinkling and foaming of the tanks. This answer would have required the set up of recent electrical, operational and management systems as properly as new pipe routes connecting the extinguishing-agent distribution systems with the fire-fighting systems in the tank fields. The costs for the three extinguishing-agent distribution methods in container kind alone would have added as a lot as around 1.2 million euros.
Incipient fire fighting scenario with intact energy provide and free access to the tank farm.
Implementation of three packages of measures
The different rehabilitation concept developed by TÜV SÜD, which additionally met the requirements of the Bavarian Building Code (BayBo [1]), supplied for 3 important packages of measures to attain the safety and safety goals.
First, installation of a totally computerized infrared measuring system made by DIAS Infrared to ensure early hearth detection. The system’s seven thermographic cameras are put in on pan-tilt models. They detect changes in temperature at the surfaces of the tanks made of different materials and positioned in the space monitored by the cameras, before these changes in temperature may cause a fire. As เกจวัดแรงดันsumo can transfer, the areas to be monitored may be divided into sectors. The cameras then strategy these sectors cyclically in sequence. To shield the cameras towards external influences, they’re housed in ventilated and heated weatherproof enclosures (Fig. 1). Monitoring focuses primarily on the security devices of the tanks, pumps and motors and on the filling systems on the tank-farm premises. The control room at the tank farm and the native professional fireplace department are notified immediately as soon because the temperature exceeds a certain restrict. The measure package deal also contains remote triggering of the extinguishing-agent provide from the control centre and automation of the safety devices.
Incipient fireplace combating state of affairs with power loss where access to the tank farm is blocked by a cargo train.
In addition, it covers rehabilitation of the sprinkler and foam-extinguisher system. In this context, TÜV SÜD’s answer supplied for alternative of the leaking and corroded pipe sections with new pipes and for set up of three fixed foam-extinguishing systems within the type of foam screens to fight incipient fires immediately. In addition, a mobile foam monitor was deliberate as a backup.
A third focus area concerns safeguarding the facility supply required for early hearth detection and fire fighting. According to the regional power provider, power outages could have a length of no less than half-hour. Given this, the tank-farm needed an unbiased power provide system that was in a position to ensure energy supply for at least 2 hours. The specialists relied on battery buffering and a diesel operated emergency power unit to solve this drawback.
Fire protection must guarantee achievement of the safety aims
Protection aims and equivalent security stage reached
The fire-protection resolution offered by TÜV SÜD was agreed with both the tank farm’s working firm, the municipal authority and the skilled fire division. The three measure packages also complied with the required protection objectives and the security ranges. And in the end, they proved far more cost-effective than the answer initially proposed. Since rehabilitation of the tank farm, early fireplace detection at the aspect of improved fire-protection infrastructure has become a central a part of damage limitation. Since the rehabilitation idea was applied, the tank-farm’s working firm – working with the skilled fireplace department – has been in a position to successfully counteract all potential situations of incipient fireplace effectively and at an early stage, even in cases of power loss or when entry to the tank farm is blocked (see Figures 2 and 3).
For more info, go to www.tuev-sued.de/is or www.dias-infrared.de
Classification under the Bavarian Building Code (Bayerische Bauordnung, BayBo)
Tank farms are installations of a special kind and use (special structures). Their operation involves the handling and storing of extremely explosive or flammable substances. Protection measures and security precautions thus not only fall within the operating company’s accountability but are additionally a matter of public curiosity. Given this, the BayBO stipulates requirements together with materials necessities which, as “General clauses of fireplace protection”, help to assist the protection objectives defined in Article 12. However, in accordance with article 3 (1) deviations from the technical constructing rules are possible if another answer is found that’s equivalent in phrases of fulfilling the overall necessities in paragraph 1. In other words, the necessities laid down within the Building Code are deemed complied with if the commonly recognised guidelines of architecture and expertise are fulfilled.
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