KEMAMAN

DEO20032 Process Plant Operation

DPV40223/50223 Plant Operation & Maintenance
Chapter 7:
Process Unit Shutdown

KEMAMAN
© 2018 Majlis Amanah Rakyat and © 2018 KKTM Kemaman
All rights reserved. No part of this document maybe reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording or otherwise) without the permission of the copyright owner.
 Learning Outcome
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• List five reasons that may require a unit shutdown.

• List five expenses of a unit shutdown.
• State when the greatest number of injuries and accidents occur on
a process unit.
• List five hazards associated with a unit shutdown.
• Explain why training is important to a successful unit shutdown.
• Discuss the planning and preparation required for a unit shutdown.
• List three methods of purging equipment.
• Explain the purpose of blinding.
• Explain the purpose of gas testing a purged vessel.
 Introduction
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• Shutdown and start-ups of processing units

can be costly and time consuming.
• Reasons for shutdown:
i. Schedule turnaround
ii. Unit inspections
iii. Major equipment problems
iv. Emergency situations
v. Business downturns
 Introduction
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• Schedule turnaround:
– Unit process faced corrosion, erosion, wear, and fatigue along
the operation.
– Schedule of planned shutdowns for maintenance and repairs.
– A planned shutdown of this type is called a turnaround (TAR)
– May last for 15 to 30 days or longer, depending on the extent of
repairs needed.
 Introduction
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• Unit inspections:
– When do the major inspection of unit equipment, shutdown is
needed.
– Such as to check vessel integrity and corrosion rates.
 Introduction
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• Major equipment problems:

– Most major equipment (i.e., pumps) is spared but not all.
– Compressors are very expensive, and it is uncommon to have
compressors spared.
– If key critical equipment fails between scheduled turnarounds, it
will by necessary to shut down the unit.
 Introduction
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• Emergency
situations:
– Emergencies such as a
major fire, explosion, or a
complete electrical power
failure may require the
shutdown of a unit.
– To prevent more worst
situation
 Introduction
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• Emergency situations:
 Introduction
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• Business downturns:
– Sometimes production exceeds product sales because of
business downturns.
– In this situation, process units reduce production rates or, if
necessary, circulate for a period of time.
– In the worse case scenario, the unit is shut down and its
operators are sent to other units or the maintenance division
until the business climate becomes more favorable.
 Introduction
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• Business downturns:
 1. Hazard of Unit Shutdown
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• Opening the lines and equipment during

shutdown, increase the risk of hazard.
• Preparation and training for shutdown and start-
up is critical to avoid accidents and incidents.
 1. Hazard of Unit Shutdown
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Action when hazard cannot
be eliminated

1 2

Must be recognized and Procedures must be

all personnel must be created to include hazard
trained on hazard avoidance or hazard
avoidance and avoidance must be
prevention included in existing
procedures
 1. Hazard of Unit Shutdown
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• The hazards encountered most frequently in

shutdown are detailed below:
i. Mixing of air and hydrocarbons to form explosive mixtures
ii. Water contact with hot oil
iii. Freezing of residual water in pipes
iv. Contact with corrosive or toxic liquids and gases
v. High pressures
vi. Vacuums
vii. High temperature
viii. Poorly trained contract workers
ix. Anxiety to meet deadlines
x. Poor communication
xi. Pyrophoric materials
xii. Uncontrolled sources of energy
 2. Normal Shutdown Process
Planning
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• Shutdown process planning should included:

i. Manpower
ii. Material
iii. Resources
• Critical path in the planned work have to be
determined.
– Critical path: A sequence in the planned work event, which if
not completed, may delay other work.
 2. Normal Shutdown Process
Planning
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• Turnaround Work Scope Planning:
– Planning on repair work and upgrades during the turnaround base on
safety, economics, operability and legal issues.
• Operation/Product Group Turnaround Planning:
– Planning for raw material consumption during turnaround period and
for start-up.
• Operation/SHE Departments Turnaround Planning:
– Planning on preparation and training for shutdown and start-up to
avoid accidents and incidents.
– Planning consideration:
i. Environmental issue
ii. Hazard during shutdown that normally not present during
routine operation.
 3. General Outline for Unit
Shutdown
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PHASE 1: Preparation
Management Engineering Logistics of A list is The Prepare Additional
determines planning, materials, prepared of shutdown shutdown operations
what repair diagrams and supplies, and equipment to schedule is procedures and
work and so on are tools needed be inspected. continually and all blind maintenance
upgrades are completed on for shutdown reviewed to lists personnel are
to be done repair and are determine scheduled for
during the project work determined. ways to the
turnaround. for the reduce shutdown.
turnaround. turnaround
time.

01 02 03 04 05 06 07
 3. General Outline for Unit
Shutdown
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PHASE 2: Unit Shutdown
Plans, including
training, are Insert blinds and use
prepared to minimize gas detectors to
the flaring of check the lower
materials, equipment explosive limits
damage, and (LEL) of each vessel
accidents. after equipment is
Unit vessels and hydrocarbon free.
1 piping are 5
deinventoried and
shutdown

2
Check vessels daily
for LEL before
4 allowing entry and 6
2 After all check hot work jobs Engineering and
hydrocarbons have while maintenance operations personnel
Unit feed and
been pumped out or and contractors are do a final inspection
temperatures are
drained from piping doing turnaround before equipment is
slowly decreased to
and vessels, purge work. closed up.
prevent damage
from thermal shock. with an inert gas.
 4. De-iventory and Equipment
Shutdown
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• After the process materials have cooled, they can

be transferred to storage tanks if they are
recoverable.
• Material designed as slop are sent to slop tank.
Slop can be reused to other process.
• Next, unnecessary auxiliary system and equipment
will be shut down or block:
– water systems, compressed air systems, steam systems, lube oil
systems, pumps and compressors, air cooled fans will be shut off
and block in.
 5. Unit Clear Up
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• Securing of equipment begin as:

– furnace fires are cut out,
– feed is discontinued, and
– product and reflux pumps are shutdown.
 5. Unit Clear Up
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• Pumps:
– Pump seal may damage during product pump out if pump are
allowed to run dry.
• It I importance to shutdown mechanical seal pumps immediately
before liquid levels are depleted.
• Furnace and Boiler:
– Fuel line must be blinded after fuel is shut off for protective
against a possible firebox explosion from inadvertently
introducing fuel into still hot fireboxes.
– When shutting down furnace fires, the master valve must be
closed and burner must be remain lighted in order to burn
residue fuel in fuel line.
 5. Unit Clear Up
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• Furnace and Boiler:

 5. Unit Clear Up
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• Steam Purging Precaution:

– All water should be drained from Water-cooled Heat Exchanger
and the vent should be opened before purging.
• The heat exchanger can be damage due too high pressure because
steam purging can cause water flash to steam when it is heated.
– Some equipment can be damage during steam purging cause by
high pressure and temperature.
• Instrumentation
• Turbine meter
• Pump seals
 5. Unit Clear Up
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• Process Chemical Injection Points:

– Injection of process treatment chemicals or additives into
equipment that has been shut down not only wastes valuable
chemicals but could be hazardous during draining procedures
when a technician encounter a line completely full of an
unexpected, hazardous, and sometimes flammable, materials.
 6. Clearing Process Equipments by
Purging
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• To clear equipment means to remove traces of flammable, toxic, or

corrosive materials from the equipment.
• Some process vapours and residual liquids or solids may be trapped
in hard to reach location. These materials must be removed before
piping and vessel are opened up for maintenance or inspection.
They are removed by purging with:
– Steam
– Inert Gas: Nitrogen / CO2
– Flooding the system with water
– Natural Gases / Fuel Gas
• A purge is a procedure in which an inert gas, such as nitrogen, is
used to remove undesired gases or vapors from a vessel so as to
reduce the concentration of the undesired gas to a safe and
acceptable level.
 6. Clearing Process Equipments by
Purging
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• Purging with steam:

– Suited for purging:
i. waxes,
ii. sticky materials,
iii. highly viscous materials,
iv. heavy crude oils, and
v. polymers from process systems.
– Must heat piping or equipment before purging, to prevent steam from
condense when contact with ambient temperature metal surface.
– The hot steam will also vaporize hydrocarbon liquids and drive these
gases out of the system
– Technicians should periodically drain steam condensate from low
points in the system to prevent liquid buildup.
 6. Clearing Process Equipments by
Purging
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• Purging with steam:

– Steam purging accomplishes the following:
i. Removal of air
ii. Evaporation of water trapped in equipment
iii. Removal of hydrocarbon liquids and gases
iv. Revealing plugged drains and vents
– Once purging is completed, the system should be blinded,
opened and gas tested to verify that purging has removed all
traces of process material. General rule for system contains
hydrocarbon:
• Hydrocarbon <1% of tested vented purge stream – safe to open
• Hydrocarbon > 1% of tested vented purge stream – additional purging
will be required.
 6. Clearing Process Equipments by
Purging
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• Purging with Inert Gases:

– Steam cannot be used to purge certain areas of a process unit
because it may heat the equipment or instruments above design
temperatures.
– Inert gases such as nitrogen or carbon dioxide may be used.
– Inert gases should be introduced from the top of a vessel and
allowed to flow down to the lowest drain valve.
– Nitrogen gas is colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic, and a
poor conductor of heat and electricity
 6. Clearing Process Equipments by
Purging
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• Purging by water flooding:

– Suitable for vessel and lines contained water-soluble materials.
• Ammonia, alcohol, and acid bases.
– Water is introduce from lowest level of the system or equipment
and allowed to flow up and out the highest part of the system or
equipment.
– Usually water purging is performed with water heated to a
100°F because warm water does better job of removing
hydrocarbon.
 6. Clearing Process Equipments by
Purging
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• Purging with Natural Gas or Fuel Gas:

– Sometimes equipment is purged with natural gas or propane
because it contains a catalyst or some material that would be
harmed by nitrogen or steam.
– When purging with natural gas, the gas must enter from the top
of the equipment and the air withdrawn from the bottom.
– Propane, being heavier than air, should be introduced at the
bottom of the equipment and the air withdrawn at the top.
 7. Blinding, Opening and Gas
Testing for Entery
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• Vessel and equipment must be blinded, opened

and inspected before work can be begun or
worker allowed inside vessel.
• Workers doing gas testing of vessels should wear a
breathing apparatus prior to opening any vessel
that may contain hydrocarbon or hydrogen sulfide
gas.
 7. Blinding, Opening and Gas
Testing for Entery
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• Blinding:
– A Blind must be installed to keep unwanted materials out of the
recently purged systems.
• Blinds are metal plates that completely block flow in piping and
vessels.
– Install at piping or before equipment entrance.
– All required blinds have been installed before anyone enters
equipment.
– All blinds are removed before unit startup.
 7. Blinding, Opening and Gas
Testing for Entery
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• Blinding:
 7. Blinding, Opening and Gas
Testing for Entery
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• Opening Equipment & Testing for Entry:

– After blinded, they must be vented and fully opened and then
tested to ensure free of hazardous materials.
• Explosive mixture
• Toxic gases
• Oxygen level
– Blower should be setup to ventilate the equipment to be
entered.
– Constant monitoring of all confined space permitted for entry
must be maintained at all times.
 KEMAMAN

THANK YOU KEMAMAN

© 2018 Majlis Amanah Rakyat and © 2018 KKTM Kemaman
All rights reserved. No part of this document maybe reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording or otherwise) without the permission of the copyright owner.