Practical External Inspection of FRP Vessels

摘要

For the purposes of this article, vessels include storage tanks, chemical reactors, scrubbers, and other containers for storage or processing of chemicals. Since usage of Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) for vessels and piping in the chemical processing industry (CPI) started in the 1950s, many users have experienced reliability problems. In response to this, there has been significant work to establish standards and codes for FRP vessel design. They have contributed significantly to increased reliability of FRP equipment. Even with these increases in reliability, some vessel failures still occur, some of which could have been prevented or mitigated by following a systematic external inspection program. This article provides a systematic process/program for these external inspections that serves to increase reliability.