Activity

  • Optimizing Pressure Relief Valve Lifecycle Management

    Jim Cahill
    Pressure relief valves (PRVs) are critical safety and equipment protection devices to prevent overpressure conditions. They need ongoing maintenance to assure that they operate as designed for their intended applications. In a Valve magazine article, Lifecycle Management of Pressure Relief Valves , Emerson’s Kevin Simmons and Marcelo Dultra describe considerations for effective and efficient PRV sizing, selection,…

  • Preventing Over-Pressurization with HIPPS

    Jim Cahill
    Wikipedia defines a High-integrity pressure protection system (HIPPS) as: …a type of safety instrumented system (SIS) designed to prevent over-pressurization of a plant, such as a chemical plant or oil refinery . The HIPPS will shut off the source of the high pressure before the design pressure of the system is exceeded, thus preventing loss of containment through rupture ( explosion ) of a line or vessel. Therefore…

  • Preventing Over-Pressurization with HIPPS

    Jim Cahill
    Wikipedia defines a High-integrity pressure protection system (HIPPS) as: …a type of safety instrumented system (SIS) designed to prevent over-pressurization of a plant, such as a chemical plant or oil refinery . The HIPPS will shut off the source of the high pressure before the design pressure of the system is exceeded, thus preventing loss of containment through rupture ( explosion ) of a line or vessel. Therefore…

  • Flame and Gas Detection in Layers of Protection

    Jim Cahill
    For manufacturing processes with hazardous substances that are combustible or can cause harm to people and property, flame and gas detection systems are often used as part of the risk mitigation strategy. This 11-minute video, Rosemount Flame and Gas Layers of Protection describes how these sensors are used in layers of protection for the process safety requirements. The video opens explaining why flame and gas…

  • Flame and Gas Detection in Layers of Protection

    Jim Cahill
    For manufacturing processes with hazardous substances that are combustible or can cause harm to people and property, flame and gas detection systems are often used as part of the risk mitigation strategy. This 11-minute video, Rosemount Flame and Gas Layers of Protection describes how these sensors are used in layers of protection for the process safety requirements. The video opens explaining why flame and gas…

  • Flame and Gas Detection in Layers of Protection

    Jim Cahill
    For manufacturing processes with hazardous substances that are combustible or can cause harm to people and property, flame and gas detection systems are often used as part of the risk mitigation strategy. This 11-minute video, Rosemount Flame and Gas Layers of Protection describes how these sensors are used in layers of protection for the process safety requirements. The video opens explaining why flame and gas…

  • Managing Storage Tank Pressure and Overfill Prevention

    Jim Cahill
    Across the energy supply chain bulk petroleum storage terminals play an important role in managing supply and demand. A critical safety function is to prevent an overfill condition in each of the storage tanks. Another critical function is to manage the pressure inside the tank to avoid overpressure or vacuum conditions that could damage the structural integrity of a tank. In this one-hour recorded webinar, Tank Pressure…

  • Filling Gaps in Global Safety Standards

    Jim Cahill
    A safety instrumented function (SIF)’s purpose is to reduce the risk of a specific hazard. For example, an upset condition in an oil and gas production separator may cause a series of SIFs within a safety instrumented system (SIS) to shut in the wells feeding the separator. A SIF contains a sensor, logic solver and final control element—often an emergency shutdown valve. As a mechanical component of this safety loop…

  • Enabling Safer Operator-Machine Interactions through Enhanced Control of Machine Stoppages

    Jim Cahill
    Authors: Enrico De Carolis , Mike Johnson As packaging line machinery has become more sophisticated, it’s also become more complex. This increased complexity, coupled with a high number of interactions between operators and machines, increases the potential for safety incidents. For example, in the packaging world, production lines may stop for manual loading 10-30 times per shift, each time necessitating some…

  • Enabling Safer Operator-Machine Interactions through Enhanced Control of Machine Stoppages

    Jim Cahill
    Authors: Enrico De Carolis , Mike Johnson As packaging line machinery has become more sophisticated, it’s also become more complex. This increased complexity, coupled with a high number of interactions between operators and machines, increases the potential for safety incidents. For example, in the packaging world, production lines may stop for manual loading 10-30 times per shift, each time necessitating some form…

  • Digital Transformation for Safe Operations

    Jim Cahill
    One of the big topics last week at CERAWeek 2018 was the role technology can play to improve business performance—especially in areas such as safety, reliability and efficiency. These advancing technologies coupled with improved work practices can deliver a digital transformation to companies that undertake this journey. At this week’s Safety Case Symposium 2018 Singapore conference, Emerson’s Jonas Berge is presenting…

  • Digital Transformation for Safe Operations

    Jim Cahill
    One of the big topics last week at CERAWeek 2018 was the role technology can play to improve business performance—especially in areas such as safety, reliability and efficiency. These advancing technologies coupled with improved work practices can deliver a digital transformation to companies that undertake this journey. At this week’s Safety Case Symposium 2018 Singapore conference, Emerson’s Jonas Berge is presenting…

  • Adding Wireless Level Switches for Storage Tank Overfill Prevention

    Jim Cahill
    Storage tanks holding volatile fluids must have reliable level measurements to avoid unsafe overfill conditions. A Control Engineering Asia article, Wireless vibrating fork technology enables Hengyang Petrochemical to implement cost-effective overfill prevention solution , describes how this petrochemical producer sought to reduce the risk of overfill conditions. The plant had existing non-contacting radar level measurement…

  • Adding Wireless Level Switches for Storage Tank Overfill Prevention

    Jim Cahill
    Storage tanks holding volatile fluids must have reliable level measurements to avoid unsafe overfill conditions. A Control Engineering Asia article, Wireless vibrating fork technology enables Hengyang Petrochemical to implement cost-effective overfill prevention solution , describes how this petrochemical producer sought to reduce the risk of overfill conditions. The plant had existing non-contacting radar level measurement…

  • Vortex Flow Meters in Safety Instrumented Functions

    Jim Cahill
    Safety instrumented systems provide a layer of protection beyond the control system to safely shutdown the process during abnormal situations. A safety instrumented function (SIF) or “safety loop” includes the sensing device, logic solver and final control element to perform safety function upon demand. Flow measurement devices are often the sensing devices in these SIFs. Some flow measurement technologies may experience…

  • Vortex Flow Meters in Safety Instrumented Functions

    Jim Cahill
    Safety instrumented systems provide a layer of protection beyond the control system to safely shutdown the process during abnormal situations. A safety instrumented function (SIF) or “safety loop” includes the sensing device, logic solver and final control element to perform safety function upon demand. Flow measurement devices are often the sensing devices in these SIFs. Some flow measurement technologies may experience…

  • Proof Testing Level Measurement Devices

    Jim Cahill
    Safety instrumented systems (SIS) include the sensor(s), final control element(s) and logic solver(s) for each of the safety instrumented functions (SIFs) in the SIS. To verify the SIFs are performing the amount of risk reduction intended for their application, they must be periodically proof tested. PCN Europe magazine interviewed Emerson’s Teddy Tzegazeab on how proof testing has changed for SIFs with liquid level…

  • Proof Testing Level Measurement Devices

    Jim Cahill
    Safety instrumented systems (SIS) include the sensor(s), final control element(s) and logic solver(s) for each of the safety instrumented functions (SIFs) in the SIS. To verify the SIFs are performing the amount of risk reduction intended for their application, they must be periodically proof tested. PCN Europe magazine interviewed Emerson’s Teddy Tzegazeab on how proof testing has changed for SIFs with liquid level…

  • Level Sensor Safety Proof Testing

    Jim Cahill
    Backing up your computer or server is a waste of time if restoring the backup fails when you need it. Good practice is to test these backups on separate test systems periodically to make sure they restore properly. Similarly, safety instrumented systems (SISs) need to assure that each safety instrumented function (SIF)/safety loop does what it’s intended to do to bring the plant to a safe state in the event of a demand…

  • Level Sensor Safety Proof Testing

    Jim Cahill
    Backing up your computer or server is a waste of time if restoring the backup fails when you need it. Good practice is to test these backups on separate test systems periodically to make sure they restore properly. Similarly, safety instrumented systems (SISs) need to assure that each safety instrumented function (SIF)/safety loop does what it’s intended to do to bring the plant to a safe state in the event of a demand…

  • Safety Instrumented Function Valve Selection

    Jim Cahill
    Valves are critical components inside of safety instrumented functions (SIFs) since they do the work of touching the process flows to bring the plant to a safe state in the event of a safety demand. In a Valve magazine article, How Valve Selection Can Impact SIS in Refining Applications , Emerson’s Janine McCormick describes the important criteria in finding the right valve for the required safety performance. Janine…

  • Remote Partial Proof Testing Level Sensors

    Jim Cahill
    For safety instrumented functions (SIFs), proof testing is the process of identifying undetected dangerous failures in the sensor, final control element and logic solver which comprise the SIF. Dangerous failures are those that could put the safety instrumented system (SIS) in a hazardous or fail-to-function state. If undetected, in the case of level measurements, this could lead to an overfill and spill, with potentially…

  • Instrumentation Diagnostics and Safe, Reliable Operations

    Jim Cahill
    As technology has advanced in power and sophistication, its ability to self-diagnose and perform predictive diagnostics has too. In a Plant Engineering article, Using diagnostic functions to improve system safety , Emerson’s Mark Menezes shares examples of how these diagnostics are used to self-diagnose instrumentation problems as well as those in the surrounding production process. He opens highlighting the benefits…

  • Optimizing Safety Instrumented System Proof Testing

    Jim Cahill
    If you are new to the world of process safety, you quickly learn that it has its own jargon with phrases such as safety instrumented functions, proof test intervals, PDFavg, etc. A Flow Control magazine article, Ensuring safety compliance with optimized proof testing , written by Emerson’s Afton Coleman , Erik Mathiason and Tonya Wyatt does a great job of introducing and explaining these concepts. They open describing…

  • 5 Questions for Digital Valve Controller and Safety Expert Riyaz Ali

    Jim Cahill
    Let’s continue our 5 Questions for an Emerson Expert podcast series with our guest, Riyaz Ali . You may recall Riyaz from numerous posts about digital valve controllers and final control elements in safety instrumented system applications. He has almost 40 years’ experience in process control instrumentation and holds numerous patents related to use of digital valve controllers for process industries. Please leave…

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