Pressure Vessels Regulations. Storage and Filling of Liquified Petroleum Gases (LPG)

Pressure equipment is designed to contain fluids in an enclosure whose containment safety is ensured by the application of marketing and in-service monitoring rules.

In Europe, national requirements, derived from European directives, cover the conditions for marketing equipment containing liquids and gases. In-service monitoring regulations are national initiatives.

The field of pressure equipment is vast. It covers devices (and associated pressure and safety accessories) of all types, sizes and risks, such as :

• steam generators, from pressure cookers to boilers for thermoelectric power plants;

• containers, from mobile compressor air tanks to petrochemical industry reactors, and compressed or liquefied pressurized gas storage;

• piping, conveying a wide variety of fluids into the plant enclosure;

• transport pipelines.

Transportable pressure equipment (cylinders, road and rail tanks) is subject to specific regulations. They are not included in this analysis.

The objective, for an operator, a works manager or a third party, is to :

• be familiar with the regulations affecting the site's pressure equipment;

• list the equipment that is subject to it;

• know the requirements for commissioning new equipment ;

• be familiar with in-service inspection and maintenance requirements ;

• set up the organizations and procedures needed to comply with regulatory requirements and maintain pressure equipment in a safe condition.

The aim of this article is to provide a basis for a first approach to this objective.

To simplify the approach, and go beyond generalities, this article sets out the regulatory requirements applicable to pressure equipment installed in a specific case of ICPE, namely storage sites and filling centers for pressurized liquefied commercial propane and butane (LPG).