Fine Print

Educational/ Training Material

Issued as a service to the industry
for Free Distribution

Hazard & Identification

FPSO - Hazard Issues
Based on industry practices
• UKOOA FPSO Design Guidance Notes for UKCS Service
• http://olf.no/en/FPSO-Experience-Transfer/FPSO-Lessons-overview/
 C:\Kumar\FPSO\FPSO Parts.jpg

FPSO

FPSO (Floating Production, Storage and Offloading) is an oil
& gas plant built on a ship-like structure

Process facilities or topsides on deck; Oil storage tanks in hull

Built to 2 differing standards or philosophy - Process and
Marine
 FPSOs stay in location for field life, 7-20 years. Process standards
based on repairs, inspections and maintenance carried out in situ
 Marine standards and codes assume periodic visits to port and
occasional dry-docking with plenty of maintenance time in ports
And the twins never meet!

Topsides at one level, built in modules around a central
pipeway
 Half Deck to Full Deck Modules 800-2,500t; stick build 150t, 1990s;
Pallet build 500-800t, 2000s
 FPSO’s Movements & Shipping Terms
FPSO undergo axial, rotational & static motions affecting equipment & structural design.
Turret mooring minimizes Surge, Sway and Yaw TLP mooring allows Surge and Sway
Direction Axial Rotational Static
X, Longitudinal Surge Roll (3-4°) List (1°)
Y, Transverse Sway Pitch (2-3°) Trim (1°)
Z, Vertical Heave Yaw
Transient Rotational Motions
Roll- Side to side rotation, about the fore-aft axis
Transient Lateral Motions Pitch- Rotation about beam/ transverse axis, fore and aft ends rise & fall
Surge: Fore and aft Yaw- Rotation about vertical axis, fore and aft ends to swing from side to side
Sway: From side to side Stable Tilt
Heave: Up and down Listing- Lasting, stable tilt, lean or heel, along longitudinal axis, due to
Heave

flooding or improperly loaded or shifted cargo

Trim- Ship's hull to waterline tilt
Z
Aft, Stern, Astern Yaw

P or
t Si List
y de
Swa Sta
Y rb o Trim
Pitch ard
Roll Hog – Ballast; wave crest amidships
X
Bow, Fore
Su r Sag – Full load; trough amidships
ge
Motion Impact on humans

FPSO is always in motion – in calmer or moderate
or severe sea conditions. May induce sea sickness

No acclimatization period on landing on FPSO
and onshore after spell of duty

Difficult to maintain balance while moving
around. In moderate and severe weather,
attention is more focused on self-protection and
avoiding injury

Sea sickness and motion impact may impair
decision making

Recommend: Human Response Analysis to
ensure that risks arising out of motion sickness
are clearly identified and the effects managed
Motion impact on Equipment

Separation, Liquid levels, Weight & Center-of-gravity

Vessels: Even after shut down, vessels, tanks and columns
may contain liquid. Internals should withstand likely loads
from sloshing liquid inventory

Forces while transiting to site & after mooring at site
 Structural members suffer deflections, stresses and fatigue
 Hogging and sagging of deck plates during transit and at site
 Equipment support, tie-down and liquids impact acceleration loads

Equipment spec should identify site specific motions and
accelerations
 Equipment should be sized to meet motion impact – high values for
non-operational and moderate values for operational cases
 Wind tunnel and model tank tests recommended to verify analytical
modeling
Motion Impact-Liquid levels

Separators & Columns
 Liquid remix, foam on motion. Use Inlet devices/perforated baffles
 Internals fail due to liquid acceleration load, sloshing, fatigue of internals.
Provide good support
 Poor separation. Locate in center along ship length
 Sloshing uncovers liquid outlet, leads to gas blowby. Specify high LALL
Uncovered vapor outlet leads to liquid carry-over. Use outlet devices

Storage Tanks: Sloshing leads to damaged coating and accelerated
corrosion of floor and wall plates

Packed columns and stripper towers:
 Packing, trays and demisters may move. Potential loss or degradation in
function. Design support rings, foundations and holding down bolting to suit
 Poor liquid distribution. Use high pressure drop distributor and high liquid
circulation rate. Used packing instead of trays

GDU Reboiler: High pressure drop distributor for rich glycol; higher level
to submerge heating coils
Motion Impact-Liquid levels

Level control & trip:
 Liquid levels may not be same at opposite ends of long vessels. Alarms and
trips should consider this to avoid spurious action
 Floats affected by acceleration. Use DP switches
 Have time delay or averaging to smooth trip readings
 Provide additional nozzles on top with stilling wells

Line slope: Pitch and roll + list and trim affects free draining of liquids

Drain system:
 Static slope due to FPSO trim affects gravity flow / self-draining. May lead to
backflow and overflow
 Provide check valves in liquid outlets. Provide baffles in tank. Check seal loop
levels

Flare header liquid hold-up may reduce blow down capacity and increase
back pressure on PSV/BDV/RV. Provide drip legs in flare header to remove
collected liquid to eliminate liquid accumulation
Motion Impact-Liquid levels

Rotating equipment, (centrifugal and reciprocating pumps
and compressors along with their drivers, turbines, diesel
engines and cranes)
 Lube oil, seal oil and hydraulic oil reservoirs should be able to handle
excessive sloshing of liquids, without damaging internal baffles or loss
of pump suction
 Bedplates and holding down bolts should be designed accordingly

Compressor:
 Compressor KOD could get flooded momentarily, by liquid hold-up in
pipes that causes slugs and poor performance
 Liquid carried over to compressor:

cokes on blades. Results in unbalanced loads and shaft/ bearing failure

Gas seal failures

Cracked pistons due to liquid carry-over

Repeated bundle change-outs
 Install larger scrubbers than normal
FPSO Trim Impact
Trim

Lube oil Tanks / Flare KOD/ Drain Vessel

 Pumps lose suction

Provide deeper tanks and baffles in tanks. Provide
high LALL

Pipe-work, especially larger size liquid lines at higher
elevations above main deck - check forces
 Topside Modules

Deck Deflection Impact Elevated Deck

Foundation Hull Deck

Deck deflections affect Rotating equipment supports Transverse Frame

 Provide 3 point mounting with gimbals or soft support towards hog/ sag
 Provide inclinometers or accelerometers for equipment protection

Piping supports
 PAU (Pre-Assembled Units) structures & supports
 Excessive vibration of Recip compressors and pumps transfer noise to hull, flexing of
compressor supports, excessive PAU stiffness
 Cracks in deck, pipework stresses due to moving independent of PAU
 Design for vessel movement, machinery vibration, vessel roll, wind and live liquid load
and construction tolerances

Recip compressor vibration:
 Poor mounting, failure to fit bellows and flexi hoses may result in potential leaks and
failures
 Vibration affects drive motors with isolating pads coming loose and damaging rotors.
Noise is also a problem for personnel

Towers and columns: Consider higher over turning moments

Flare Tower: Consider motion effects on structure

Instrument and electrical control panels and cubicles: Adequately support to
withstand motion forces and any associated vibrations
Layout Issues

Hull might be to shipyard codes and topsides to IP/ Other
codes. Main deck classification conflict. Use a single approach

Generators close to LQ, exhaust and flare radiation
 Module overcrowded vis-à-vis others
 Poorly placed vents
 Access and escape routes restricted by cable and pipework
 Poor workshop and store locations

Cold venting of hydrocarbons
 Gas detectors are provided to trip process units. To avoid spurious
trips, route all vents up flare stack; on thrusters controlled FPSOs,
downwind
 Size and locate vent lines to minimise risk of explosion or tripping gas
detectors under all weather conditions
Safety Issues

Topsides Safety
 There are 2 different school of thoughts:
 1. “North sea”: UK/North sea/ Australia go by ‘goal-setting' regulations
- that all hazards are identified, risks evaluated, and measures taken to
reduce risks to persons to as low as reasonably practicable (ALARP)
 2. “Gulf of Mexico”: US and rest of the world go by risk-based as
identified in API and other codes/ standards

Compliance to codes is not enough to meet North sea regulations

Hull is generally to classification society requirements
 to maintain class in service for insurance and mortgage
 Lloyd's, ABS, DNV have their risk-based rules
 Full compliance with Classification Society Rules may not meet UK/
Northsea regulations
HVAC Issues

HVAC design by shipyards is not adequate for a production facility
 Usual to consider only LQ and machinery spaces
 Include other hull compartments or superstructures used for control panels,
switchgear and storage. Include any enclosure in turret
 Provide smoke and gas detection; Prevent smoke ingress into accommodation
and control areas
 Ventilation of Temporary Refuge and main control areas in emergencies and
shutdown of non-essential users
 Provision of minimum life support in upset conditions
 Hazardous area classification. Dispersion of gas in areas where gas escapes
may occur and use of supplementary mechanical devices
 Controls, control stations and control system configuration (avoiding undue
complexity)
 Position of inlets and exhausts relative to hazardous areas (especially where
LQ is downwind of production facilities). Pressurization of spaces and airlocks
 Fire protection and rating of dampers and ductwork. Testing of fire and gas
and shutdown dampers
 Spare fans
Maintenance Issues

Submersible pumps
 Debris in tanks, pipework and leaks in pipework

Hose care, when sliding in and out of the chute,
 Better procedures to handle messenger line reduces offloading issues

Provide sand and solids handling in separation system
 Water production increases sand load
 Clean up wells directly through test separator

Blanketing:
 Hydrocarbon to replace inert gas
 Eliminates venting or flaring
 Reduced use and maintenance of inert gas generator
Maintenance Issues

Tanks:
 Internal cracks between tanks: stiffening and fatigue analysis

Ship standards for cargo and ballast pipework:
 Inadequate for FPSO’s: weld failures, leaks and corrosion. Reinforce
GRE pipes poor jointing
 Shipyards use butterfly valves in hull; limited life and damaged by
marine growth. Use gate valves with provision to blank off externally
for servicing

Sea water pumps:
 Deep in hull (forward or aft of main tanks). Cavitation when vessel is at
shallow draft or rough weather
 Difficult to access and maintain
 Inboard mounted caisson installed pumps. Reduces pipework, easy
access, less cavitation and easy maintenance and marine growth
removal
Maintenance Issues

Sea chests:
 Ideal location for marine growth and difficult to clean
 Difficult to blank off sea chests when main seawater valve
leaks
 Fitting blanking plate: Time consuming and weather
sensitive. Relying on a single blanking plate may be
unacceptable.
 Review if sea chests, good in ships, are required in FPSO.
Submersible pumps in a caisson are OK

Slops tank: Install one for high solids & drop out
 Route paint stripping or tank cleaning solids to this tank
 Provide jetting lines and solids/slurry handling pumps for
easy cleaning
Hull – Marine Issues

Hull Capacity:
 Typical shuttle tankers are 900,000 bbls
 Match storage volumes to planned tankers to avoid waiting and a
second hook up. Extra waiting time is expensive

Power Generation:
 Diesels are reliable and flexible but not good for dual fuel; high
maintenance and noise
 LM 2500 engines are most successful in FPSOs
 Larger LM 6000, inappropriate for offshore use with variable loads
(from thrusters) and demands of low NOx and dual fuel
 Best: Smaller gas turbine packages in combination with a large back-
up diesel generator
 Gas turbines provide ample waste heat for crude heating. Diesel for
main power is OK only for smaller FPSO’s
Hull – Marine Issues

Green water waves over bows:
 Damage stairways, fire stations, LQ windows, cable trays & pipework

Shape:
 Sharp bow reduces mooring loads but less space for machinery, storage.
Transition zone is prone to cracking
 Blunt bow increases spray and wave impact and mooring loads

Workshops:
 Should be accessible via forklift, same level and close to stores, with
mechanical handling equipment, separate from accommodation (noise) and in
a safe area for welding (forward)
 Good environment, access reduce repair costs, as crew gets confident to repair
and service equipment on board

Tank entry for inspection and repair:
 Costly - time & resources. Tank washing, gas freeing, solids removal, tank and
pipework isolation, and personnel access, repair and recoating methods
 Design crude and ballast tanks for maintenance
Hull – Marine Issues

Cranes:
 Select cranes, forklifts, layout, storage and landing areas and protection,
hydraulic manipulators, lifting beams and appliances in the hull
 Derate cranes. Hull moments: Allowances on crane hook load
 Op guidelines: Inefficient cranes, poor crane coverage and inadequate lay-
down areas, bumper bars and mechanical handling capabilities
 Solid boom are affected by wind; poor response due to their weight while
offloading a supply vessel or working on equipment

Tank corrosion:
 Coatings in tanks base minimise free water corrosion
 Cracks in coating allow SRB build up leading to pitting
 Difficult area to inspect and damage becomes extensive before detection
 Inspection programme - bottom coatings and wall thickness measurement
 High risk areas: slops tanks, areas under solids build up and where coatings
may crack due to hull strains
Hull – Marine Issues

Painting:
 Shipyards allot low priority and time
 Poor quality control of preparation and finishing. Painting in tropical
countries is poor due to humid conditions
 Topsides paint system failure - premature thickening of paint leads to
remedial work

Inability to dry dock and limited LQ
 Initial painting should be to highest standard
 Painting is conducted late when the pressure for sail away is high
 Develop painting technology and methods compatible with project life
of 20- years in offshore

Develop methods to safely clean, prepare and paint hulls at
splash zone while on location and in production
Hull – Marine Issues

Moorings:
 Individual anchor winches allow winter installation and active
management of mooring system + movement of the chain wear point
 Permanently stopped design is simpler, reduced maintenance and
lower capex.
 Wear could be a problem. Difficult to inspect top of chain and service
the fairlead. Good experience may lead to increased use
 No problems with mooring lines and anchors

Helicopters:
 Forward accommodation and helideck: Not optimum for landing -
misaligned approach, no forward visual reference-point and increased
vertical movement (cf. aft helidecks).
 Advantage: Clean air, no vessel-induced turbulence and no take off
obstructions
 Provide reliable weather and heave monitoring equipment
Hull – Risers, Swivels, Drag Chains

Risers:
 Damage to outer sheath and seawater ingress reduce fatigue life
 Gas permeation leads to collapse; HP gas flow induces vibration or loosening of inner
carcass
 Monitoring systems, ability to flush annulus and protect from damage

Swivels:
 Good performance, no significant leaks; 2 failures and explosion in the oil filled 11KV-
power transfer swivel, due to water entering insulation oil medium
 Long term wear and repair worries

Drag Chains:
 An alternative to swivel. Simpler. Hose and electric cable failure due to wear from
bending, wear pads worn out, difficulty of access
 Drag chain limits free rotation requiring thrusters to be serviceable at all times
 High maintenance and operability problems indicate swivels a better option

Thrusters:
 Failure in winter impact safety and production
 Most thrusters have to be withdrawn externally and ROV work is weather sensitive and
high risk
 Thrusters should be designed for internal retrieval and service
Turret Issues

Location:
 Vessel with turret at > 75% of hull length, weather-vanes free
 At 65%, thrusters are required to maintain/control heading
 Thrusters lock turret and reduce bearing / swivel wear. But introduce demand
on thrusters, safety critical items and crew to mange turret repositioning
 Lower maintenance and crew demand with free turrets
 Safety of accommodation ensured by a firewall
 Free turret with swivel and thrusters for offloading only gives lowest Opex

Turret Design:
 3 types of bearings

Wheel and rail type - unsatisfactory - high point loading from wheels, excess
construction tolerances, vessel deflection, poor rail heat treatment  surface
cracking and inadequate wheel lubrication

Hydraulic turret bearings - pad wear, high starting friction, gripper failures, hydraulic
imbalance and difficulty to access and repair components

Heavy duty rails and multiple bogies with rubber pads spread the load

Hydraulic pads for high mooring loads on a large turret, effective - no downtime but
maintenance has been excessive

All components must be easily serviceable and replaceable.
Capex & Schedule Overruns

Shipyards run to a tight schedule. Can not accept changes.
Minimize changes to ship and topsides once hull is awarded
 Penalty: quality and opportunities to improve design at low cost
 Work with shipyard to maintain quality and assist to improve efficiency

Functional Specifications:
 Designer and shipyard - unable to interpret correctly. Too little
guidance. Select key equipment and spell clearly in specification

Inadequate documentation:
 Delayed documentation, missing data, paperless systems not running
even one year after start-up, missing as built drawing and loop
diagrams, incompatible tags and poor links to maintenance databases.
 Specify documentation requirements at order placement and ensure
before paying suppliers
Hazop/ Hazid Session

Add here project title

 Presentations on

Process Scheme … Process Engineer

Layout……………….. Piping Engineer

Structures ……….. Structural Engineer

Safety Alerts from similar facilities
C:\Kumar\FPSO\FLNG Shell6.jpg

Hazop/ Hazid on Topsides only.

Excludes:
• Hull & Marine systems; Turret &
Mooring;
• Flowline & Risers, Umbilicals
• Module fabrication, integration to
hull,
• Commissioning & Operation
handover
•Subsea systems, Mooring, CALM
Process Flow Scheme
Facility Layout
Exploded View of Decks
Key Project Information

Type of Facility :  Onshore  Offshore
:  LNG  Oil & Gas  Gas & Condensate
:  Refinery  Petrochemical  Chemical/ Fertilizer

Type of Field :  Marginal  Normal

Feed : Oil, Gas and Water

Products : Gas compressed, dehydrated and exported via pipeline
: Oil stabilized and exported via pipeline
: Condensate injected into gas pipeline
: Water deoiled and locally disposed

Gas : Daily Contractual Quantity (DCQ) XXX MMscfd
: Max Daily Quantity (MDQ) YYY (DCQ + 10%)
: Design ZZZ 125% MDQ

Condensate : Normal / Maximum XX,000 / YY,000 BPD

Produced Water : Normal / Maximum/ Design XX,000 / YY,000 BPD
Key Project Information

Platform :  Wellhead  Process Platform
: No of Decks XX No of Piles YY Weight ZZ,000 t
:  Single lift Modular lift  Float over
: Bridge linked  Wellhead  LQ  Flare Tripod
: Helipad on  LQ  on another location
:  Unmanned  Manned

Flare :  Vertical on platform  Cantilevered from platform
:  Separate bridge linked platform

Pressure : Highest 165 barg lift gas; 75 barg export gas

Temperature : Lowest (–) 40°C HP flare lateral;
: Highest - 550°C GT exhaust

Location :  Shallow Water  Deepwater

If Deep water, familiar with
:  Hydrate/ Wax Issues  MEG/Methanol Injection
:  Line Flushing  Wetwells  Drywells

If FPSO/ Semi-sub, familiar with or knows about
:  Impact of ship motion on topsides
Key Project Information

Hazardous & Corrosive Materials

Lethal, Toxic Components :  H2S 500 to 2,000 ppm  Mercury  Arsenic
If H2S :  Operator familiar. A few units in operation
:  Material Selection  Personal H2S Monitor  SCUBA
:  Familiar or knows pyrophoric issues
If Hg or As :  Removal  Handling Al MOC  Low accumulation points
:  Operator familiar  Discharge to sea with produced water

Corrosive :  CO2 4 – 6%  Acid cleaning - compressor piping
:  Wellfluids  High Temp CO2 - H2O from regenerator  Hypochlorite
If CO2 :  Operator familiar. A few units in operation  Material Selection
:  Knows about wet CO2 issues  Familiar or knows asphyxiation issues

Potential incompatibilities :  Solids  Sand  Drill mud  Acid/alkali handling  Wax

Catalysts :  Mercury Removal  Dehydrator Mol Sieves  None

Dust Handling :  None

Firewater system uses :  GRE pipes  PE/ Cement lined pipes  Alloy steel
Key Project Information

Owner-Operator :  First Installation  Operates similar units
:  Sub-contract operation  Operated by own crew
:  Isolation standards, including Double Block & Bleed
:  Sampling  Draining  Venting Philosophy
: PSVs are  spared  not spared
: Familiar with  Rupture disks, if used

Key Issues
: High Levels of H2S
: First of a kind for client??
Safety Studies

 Equipment and Building Location Study

 Smoke & Gas Ingress/ Toxic Gas Risk Analysis

 Fire & Explosion / Blast Risk Analysis

 EERA - Escape, Evacuation and Rescue Analysis

 ESSA - Emergency Systems Survivability Analysis

 Emergency Systems Reliability / Availability Analysis

 QRA - Quantitative Risk Assessment Studies

 EIA - Environmental Impact Assessment Studies

 Inherent Safety Analysis - Eliminate by process changes, minimize inventory

 Hazard Prevention - Overpressure protection, Area Classification, SIL

 Hazard Detection - Fire & Gas Detection, ESD stations

 Hazard Control - Isolation & Depressurization

 Hazard Mitigation - Active & Passive Fire Protection, Firewater/ Foam Systems

 Ship Collision Risk Analysis/  Dropped Object Risk Analysis

 AIV/ FIV Studies/  Noise Study/  Pipe Stress Study

 SIMOPS Study

 Human Factors  Human Response Analysis

 Model Tank Testing

 Gas Turbine Exhaust Plume Dispersion Analysis
 1) Feedback on FPSO issues http://olf.no/en/FPSO-Experience-Transfer/FPSO-Lessons-overview/
2) “Ship-shaped offshore installations: design, building, and operation” Jeom Kee Paik, Anil Kumar Thayamballi

Your every action in a day, considering its impact on you, your family,
your colleagues and friends, will make it a way of life!

THANK YOU - BE SAFE