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CSP practice question: Process safety: materials of construction
Question of the Day for Tuesday, 3 November 2026
CSP · Advanced Application of Safety Principles
A refinery crude unit built in 1976 has a carbon steel sidecut line carrying sulfur-bearing gas oil at about 650 F. Ultrasonic thickness readings at its condition monitoring locations show acceptable corrosion rates, but construction records show the circuit was built from mixed pipe specifications, some of which may contain less than 0.10 percent silicon. Which recommendation BEST applies process safety principles to this circuit?
Explanation
After the 2012 Chevron Richmond sidecut rupture, the CSB found that sulfidation corrosion can be significantly faster in individual low-silicon carbon steel components, those with less than 0.10 percent silicon, so readings at a few monitoring locations do not represent every component; it recommended 100 percent component inspection of such circuits or replacement with a steel alloy more resistant to sulfidation, the inherently safer choice. Shortening the interval at the same locations is the tempting answer, but it keeps measuring the wrong pieces of pipe. Detection and deluge only mitigate a release; they do not prevent the loss of containment. Source: CSB Final Investigation Report, Chevron Richmond Refinery Pipe Rupture and Fire (2015).Practise more questions like this
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