This Fitness-For-Service, Remaining Life Assessment & Repair of Pressure Equipment & Piping training course offered by The Energy Training Centre clarifies the concepts and technologies related to Fitness-for-Service (FFS) and provides in-depth instruction on the application of API 579-1/ASME FFS-1. This standard, jointly published by the American Petroleum Institute (API) and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), addresses a wide range of flaw types and damage mechanisms. It is designed to complement and enhance the requirements of API 510, API 570, and API 653 to ensure the safety and reliability of plant equipment.
The training course will explain the general roadmap and procedures for flaw evaluation, acceptance criteria, calculating remaining life, and the three levels of evaluation. Level 1 procedures for evaluating various flaws, as outlined in Parts 3 through 13, will be explained and demonstrated through worked examples. Additionally, Level 2 procedures will be covered, with some Level 2 examples provided. An introduction to Level 3 analysis methods and acceptance criteria will also be included. The course will also cover stresses of various categories and failure modes associated with each.
This training emphasizes that any FFS assessment must align with code and regulatory requirements, ensuring that basic engineering principles are followed and the intent of the reference publication is respected.
Participants will learn to apply the rules of the API/ASME 579 standard, "Fitness-for-Service," to identify degradation mechanisms, assess the integrity and remaining life of pressure vessels, tanks, piping systems, and pipelines, make cost-effective repair decisions, and select appropriate repair options. In this course, you will learn:
- Fundamental principles of Fitness-for-Service, with practical applications through presentations, worked examples, case studies, and step-by-step evaluations for each type of degradation mechanism.
- Basic principles of component integrity, ASME code rules, material properties related to strength and toughness, and an introduction to stress and fracture mechanics.
- A review of degradation mechanisms and the application of API 579 to brittle fracture, general metal loss, local wall thinning, pitting, blisters and laminations, mechanical defects (such as dents, gouges, misalignment, and distortion), crack-like flaws (including stress corrosion cracking, weld flaws, and other defects), fatigue, HIC and SOHIC, and fire damage.
The Energy Training Centre’s training course will offer thorough instruction on the subjects outlined in the seminar. The instructor will employ a variety of adult learning techniques, including discussions and example solutions to enhance engagement and learning. This comprehensive and intensive course will encourage active participation, with ample opportunities for professional exchanges and sharing of experiences to reinforce the knowledge gained. All course materials will be provided.
Optimizing process plant operations—through improving equipment efficiency, energy consumption, and maintenance management—is crucial for the budgetary success of an organization. Upon completing this seminar, delegates will be equipped to critically assess the methodologies used within their organization and implement improvements where needed.
Participants will acquire essential skills for assessing pressure vessels, piping, and tanks against all known degradation mechanisms, from field-level assessments to expert-level analysis. This knowledge will boost their confidence in making recommendations through professionally written reports.
This training course provides a wide understanding and deeper appreciation of fitness-for service, remaining life assessment and repair of pressure equipment and piping for:
- Integrity Assessment Engineers
- Operations Engineers
- Maintenance Engineers
- Maintenance Supervisors
- Facility Integrity Supervisors
- Corrosion Engineers
- Corrosion Specialists
- Site Inspection Engineers
- Piping Engineers
- Mechanical Engineers
- Plant Managers
- Plant Engineers
- Project Engineers
- Engineers who are responsible for maintaining the integrity of process plant equipment and piping
Day One: Fitness-For-Service Technology
- Overview of API 579 Contents, Objectives and Applications
- Fitness-for-Service assessment procedure
- FFS Assessment Methodology and Procedure
- Structure of the Standard - Road map for Parts 3 through 14 of the FFS Standard
- The FFS eight-step procedure
Day Two: Inspection and Fitness-For-Service
- Fundamentals of Design and Construction of Pressure Vessels, Storage Tanks and Piping
- Annex A - Thickness, MAWP and stress equations for a FFS assessment
- Assessment of General Wall Thinning
- Assessment of Local Thin Areas
- Fabrication Defects and in-Service Degradation of Pressure Equipment and Piping
- Damage Mechanisms
Day Three: FFS Assessment of Brittle Fracture and Metal Loss
- Assessment of Existing Equipment for Brittle Fracture
- Overview of brittle fracture
- Overview of Corrosion, Erosion and Pitting
- Assessment of General Metal Loss
- Assessment of Local Metal Loss
- Worked examples
Day Four: Assessment of Pitting Corrosion, Hydrogen Blisters and Welding Misalignment
- Assessment of pitting corrosion
- Fitness For Service Assessment of Corroded Pipelines
- Assessment of Hydrogen Blisters and Hydrogen Damage Associated With HIC and SOHIC
- Assessment of weld misalignment and Shell Distortions
- Assessment of Crack-Like Flaws
- Worked examples
Day Five: Creep, Fire Damage, Dents and Fatigue Damage
- Creep, Fire and Mechanical Damage
- Assessment of Components Operating in the Creep Range
- Assessment of Fire Damage
- Assessment of Dents, Gouges, and Dent-Gouge Combinations
- Assessment of Laminations
- Assessment of fatigue damage
- Worked examples
