Flaring are important safety devices used in refineries and petrochemical

facilities. They safely burn excess hydrocarbon gases which cannot be recovered
or recycled. Excess hydrocarbon gases are burnt in the flare systems in an
environmentally-sound manner, as an alternative to releasing the vapour directly
into the atmosph

Flaring is a combustion control process in which waste gases and excess gases are
burned either in the open air or in a enclosed shield.

The primary function of a flare is to use combustion to convert flammable, toxic or

corrosive vapors to less objectionable compounds. Which we can disperse in environment
safely,

First purpose eof the flare system is to burn flammable and toxic gasses whices are disperses from
different- different process of refineries, which cannot be recycled and recovered and store in the tank.
The gases released in a process plant is generally hazardous. Primary purpose of flare system
is to safely take the released gases to a flare stack and burn it.

Sometimes plants become over pressurized due to some failure for example water failure, external fire,
blocking of valve or other equipment failure and upset condition, thn we need to disperse those gases
so we use flare system to burn those over presurrized gases make the plant into the normal condition.
Sometimes the volume of waste gas is very large therefore we cannot store it into tanks because it
requires the large vessel and increase the equipment cost which is not preferable at industrial level.

Basically there are two types of flare system

Elevated flare system and ground flare system.
In some refineries it used as a backup plan for elevated flare system, when elevated flare system in
maintance

Many industries generate significant amounts of waste streams, such as

hydrocarbon vapors, which must be disposed of, on a continuous or intennittent
basis. Some of the examples can be like off-spec product or the bypass streams
generated during startup operations. Direct discharge of waste gas streams and
vapors into the atmosphere i s unacceptable due to safety and environmental
control considerations.

So whatever waste flamamable gases are formed from diifferent-different process are collectes into
main flare header. After the flare header the waste stream goes into the knock drum, where liquid vapor
are seperated. Then it goes to flare stack where combustion takes place and after that combustion
products disperesed directly in the atmosphere.

So this is the basic flow diagram of elevated header, here is the Flare header, Is basically piping system
which is connected to many sub headers. Thn it goes into the knoc out drum, knock out drum removes
water and hydrocarbon droplet that coud create problems in the combustion zone and affects the
combustion efficiency. After that it goes itno the water seal which prevents from flash back and provide
positive pressure to waste gas, which helps the it to rises up. Thn it goes in the flare stack, this is the
riser part, in that section waste stream noramlly rise, this is the gas barrier which provides a seal

against entrance of air into

the flare stack and minimizes the possibility of a explosive mixture forming in the stack. This
one is the flare tip or burner tip which is the end and major part of flare stack. So waste gas
and oxygen are mixed here, for better mixing steam connection is provided, better mixing
leads to complete and efficient combustion which reduces the smoke formation. After mixing
it ignited by the pilot burner, ignition of the pilot burner is automatic usually infrared an
thermocouple are used and started to burn.
We use purge gas because the buoyancy force of the purge gas creates zone where pressure
higher than atmospheric pressure and also sweeps the corrosive and explosive components.

When gas stream enters the knockout drun it velocity reduces due to the larger diametr of the
drum so the residenc time will be higher thn time required to travel the this distance and the
liquid particles settled down due to the effect of gravity

Flammablity limits is defined as ration of wate gas and demand of oxygen,