In the oil and gas industry, changes are constantly made to existing equipment and processes. These changes often require modifications to the relief systems design. There are many options that could address the concern, but typically there is one option that is more economical than the others while still satisfying all safety requirements. Certain operational and economic considerations tend to be overlooked when these relief systems modifications are made, resulting in unnecessary capital costs, wasted engineering hours, or potentially unsafe design. The intention of this paper is to review some representative cases where existing relief systems were inadequate, and the more common mitigations raise additional concerns. By thinking outside of the normal realm of process safety design, as well as having a proper understanding of the industry codes and standards, resolutions can be made that have a lower operational and/or financial impact. The case studies will also cover the challenges that arise in the detailed design and construction phases while trying to implement mitigation plans, and why it is important to plan ahead as to what possible challenges may be seen in the future phases of the project.
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