The main equipment for storing oil and petroleum products are metal tanks, among which the most commonly used are vertical steel tanks with a fixed roof. Existing methods for tanks and tank farms fire safety assurance are not able to completely prevent the occurrence of accidents. The high speed of flame propagation and the high temperature created by the explosion of combustible mixtures in the structure lead to a sharp increase in pressure inside, the destruction of equipment elements and building structures and the shutdown of production. Explosion safety is one of the fundamental criteria of industrial safety in all industries, in particular oil and gas. The aim of the work is to increase the reliability of tank farms operation by improving the roof of the tank. The statistics of fires occurrence is considered, the necessity of using easy-to-throw frame roof structures for vertical steel tanks of large capacity is substantiated to ensure operational reliability and safety of emergency tank structures and nearby structures in the event of an explosion. Calculations of The required safe depressurization area is calculated for 20,000 m3 vertical steel tank with, the stored product is oil at a temperature of 50 °C. It is noted that described calculation method should not be applied to systems that are prone to volumetric self-ignition and detonation. Calculations of the safe area of depressurization for tanks of the type RVS-5000, RVS-10000, RVS-20000, RVS-30000, RVS-40000, RVS-50000 have been carried out. The results show that the required area of the depressurization opening increases more slowly than the volume of the tank. Depending on how full the tank is of a certain volume, it is possible to use one or another modification of the technology of partial separation of the roof to protect against an explosion.
References
1. Bolod"yan I.A., Shebeko Yu.N., Karpov V.L. et al., Rukovodstvo po otsenke pozharnogo riska dlya promyshlennykh predpriyatiy (Fire risk assessment guide for industrial establishments), Moscow: Publ. of VNIIPO, 2006, 93 p.
2. Orlov G.G., Legkosbrasyvaemye konstruktsii dlya vzryvozashchity promyshlennykh zdaniy (Easily drop structures for explosion protection of industrial buildings), Moscow: Stroyizdat Publ., 1987, 187 p.
3. Oleynik A.A., Metod otsenki konstruktivno-tekhnologicheskoy vzryvo-pozharobezopasnosti rezervuarov dlya nefteproduktov (Method for assessing the structural and technological explosion and fire safety of tanks for petroleum products): thesis of candidate of technical science, St. Petersburg, 1998.
