4 replies to this topic

[PSU]

Dear all

I have been working for Engineering company for years. I have a problem about my current project. I have an existing reactor designed with external limpet coil based on cooling purpose. After I have considered external fire case as governing and I got very high relief load, I will install some insulaion (based on suitable F factor) to reduce the relief load.

However, client have insisted taking credit of the limpet coil to protect the reactor and they prefer to install the insulation especially at the bottom head.

Frankly speaking, I disagreed with their ideas. Although the limpet coil is good at both the uniform of fluid velocity and the good distribution of medium, it is not designed to protect the reactor from fire. Moreover, material of the limpet coil is the same as the material of reactor. That's why I would like to install the insulation which is able to withstand fire within 2 hrs.

I would appreciate it if you could give me the advice how to defend unpractical ideas.

[fallah]

PSU,

 

You should at first specify if the reactor is a wetted-wall or an unwetted-wall vessel...

[PSU]

Dear Naser Fallah

 

Thank you for your suggestion. Hence, I would like to give you more information.

The reactor is a wetted wall and it maintains Hexane solvent.

 

The polymerization reaction is exothermic reaction and cooling facilities (limpet coil) will control and maintain the reaction temperature at 72 'C.

 

Someone can give me the advices if client's ideas are viable in real life.

Looking forward to hearing from you. Thank you in advance.

[fallah]

PSU,

 

If the fire protective insulation is applied over the limpet coil, you may take credit of the relevant cooling effect in the calculation of fire's heat absorption; otherwise due to mechanical weakness of the coil tube that credit cannot be valid because the coil will be ruptured at the early stage of the fire propagation...

[latexman]

In addition, the mechanical bond of the coil to the RX can act like a fin on a heat exchanger tube to conduct heat from the fire into the vessel, before and after the coil ruptures.