Event Category: Storage Tanks

Course Description

The design and analysis of welded storage tanks can involve the application of a number of interrelated requirements of API 650. Application of these requirements may not always be intuitive to the storage tank engineer. Storage Tanks for Engineers will provide the learner with a practical understanding of the basics of aboveground storage tank design and analysis. Many aspects of tank design are presented such as roof designs, foundations, materials considerations, fabrication, examination, and testing. The course emphasizes these design elements relative to API 650 requirements, but other storage tank designs, such as API 620 tanks, are also covered within the course.

Other tank design considerations presented during the course are designs loads, including special requirements for wind and seismic loads and external pressure, temperature considerations related to brittle fracture (LODMT) and elevated temperature tanks, and design requirements for some basic tank designs (e.g. stainless and aluminum tanks, fixed roof and floating roof tanks, and tanks with double bottoms).

The course also provides the learner with a basic understanding of the evaluation of existing storage tanks in accordance with API 653, including the determination of tank minimum thicknesses, inspection intervals, repairs, hydrostatic test requirements and settlement evaluation. The focus of this course is design and analysis requirements, but also includes practical information that comes from instructors who have worked for Owner-Users and in a consulting capacity.

The course content delivery is an informal lecture style that includes example problems to challenge the learner to apply concepts covered in the lectures. The course is intended primarily for engineers serving in a maintenance or reliability role whose responsibilities include the evaluation of aboveground storage tanks.

Course Outline

API 650 Overview and Scope, and details on:
• Tank material selection
• Shell and bottom design
• Shell attachments and fixed roofs
• Anchorage and foundations
• Tanks with internal pressure, elevated temperature, external pressure
• Small, shop fabricated tanks
• Seismic design considerations
• Non-carbon steel tanks
• Piping loads on tanks
• Fabrication, erection, and testing
• Floating and dome roofs
• Leak detection

Other tank standards, API 579-1/ASME FFS-1 for tanks, and several worked example exercises to demonstrate application of design calculations

Course Outcome

Upon completion of this training course, learners will be able to:

• Describe how to design basic storage tank components per API 650
• List material, examination, and testing requirements per API 650
• Summarize the use of API 653 assessment procedures for evaluation of existing storage tanks
• Contrast the API 650 requirements with that of the other main storage tank design standard, API 620
• Recap the basics and differences in other storage tank design and fabrication standards
• Discuss applicable API 579-1/ASME FFS-1 techniques for evaluating storage tanks
• Describe API 653 requirements for using RBI to determine the next inspection date

Who Should Attend

• Engineers in mechanical maintenance or reliability departments
• Storage tank inspectors
• Central engineering staff
• Consultants for refining and petrochemicals
• Professionals in the pulp and paper, natural gas, chemical and other industries that use and maintain storage tanks