Section 15 — Inspection

In-Plant Inspection of Existing Fired Heaters

IPE Engineering Practice IPE-EP-15-4-6

Document number: IPE-EP-15-4-6 · Section: 15 — Inspection

SCOPE

• This Practice defines the requirements and specifies responsibilities for the internal and external inspection of fired process heaters.
• Any deviation from this Practice must be approved by the procedure described in EP 1–1–3.
• An asterisk (*) indicates that an action by the Owner or the Inspection Authority is required.

2.0 REFERENCES

The latest edition of the following standards and publications are referred to herein:

STANDARDS AND PUBLICATIONS

DEFINITIONS

• Heater External Inspection – Visual inspection of the heater external parts while heater either is in or out of operation.
• Heater Internal Inspection – A combination of visual and NDE examination of the internal parts of the heater while it is out of service and entry to the fire box, convection section, breaching, and stack are possible.
• Stationary Equipment Inspection Authority – For the purposes of this Practice the Stationary Equipment Inspection Authority is the Plant Chief Inspector, Inspection Supervisor, or Chief Inspection Engineer as defined by the Plant management.

INSPECTION PERSONNEL

• Personnel performing inspection of heaters and their components shall be qualified in accordance with EP 15–3–1.

GENERAL

• Refer to API 573 for detailed guidance for the inspection of fired process heaters.

EXTERNAL INSPECTION

• External inspection of heaters may be performed while the unit is in operation.
• Ladders, walkways, platforms, and stairways shall be inspected for the following conditions:
• Corroded, bent, broken, or missing structural parts.
• Loose, corroded, or missing bolting.
• Worn stair treads and rungs.
• Foundations of heater supports shall be inspected for evidence of spalling, cracking, settling, and deterioration.
• Furnace walls shall be examined for evidence of corrosion, warpage, discoloration, or excessively high surface temperature. Thermographic scans of the exterior surfaces of the heater shell may be beneficial in identifying possible hot spots caused by refractory failure, inadequate, or improper refractory installation.
• Piping connections shall be examined for leakage, and distortion
• Refractory shall be checked for evidence of erosion and spalling.
• Heater tubes shall be observed through observation ports for evidence of deterioration including:
• Sagging, or bowing or tubes
• Bulges
• Oxidation and scaling
• Cracking or splitting
• Corrosion and deposits
• Tube supports shall be observed for sagging, breakage, or bending.
• Burners shall be observed for proper operation.
• Soot blowers shall be examined for packing leaks and evidence of warpage.
• Breaching, ducts, and stacks shall be inspected for evidence of leaks, oxidation, buckling, and cracked weld seams.
• Air preheaters and ancillary equipment shall be observed for operability and examined for evidence of fouling or corrosion.
• Forced draft fans shall be inspected for evidence of excessive vibration or noise.

INTERNAL INSPECTION

• A detailed inspection shall be made of heater tubes and fittings for evidence of damage and deterioration.
• All tubes and fittings shall be inspected for evidence of overheating, corrosion, and erosion as follows:
• Tubes shall be examined for bulging, blistering, cracking, sagging, and bowing.
• Wall thickness measurements of selected heater tubes shall be made where wall losses are most likely expected to occur and the results shall be recorded.

• Carbon and chromium alloy steel tubes should be examined periodically for evidence of carburization using hardness testing and/or metallography if possible.
• Tubes should be examined for evidence of creep by measuring their diameter and/or metallography.
• When tubes are cleaned by turbining, the tube I.D. shall be examined for evidence of excessive metal removal. It is advisable that tube thicknesses be measured after turbining is completed. Radiography is often helpful in verifying suspected areas of severe gouging caused by the cutting.
• Tube rolls and header plugs shall be examined for evidence of leakage.
• Tube supports and furnace support girders shall be examined for evidence of deterioration or failure. Supports and support connection shall be examined for cracking, oxidation, corrosion, distortion, and bowing.
• Refractory and insulation shall be examined for evidence of spalling, cracking, or other deterioration. Refer to EP 15–4–8 for more detail on refractory inspection.
• Breaching, duct, and stack linings shall be examined for evidence of deterioration.
• The stack damper shall be examined for evidence of deterioration from corrosion, wear, and excessive heat. The damper operation shall be checked to assure free movement throughout full range.

REPAIRS AND ALTERATIONS

• Fired heater repairs and alterations shall be performed in strict conformance with the requirements of applicable company standards, as well as industry codes and standards.

FINAL INSPECTION

• Upon completion of all inspection and required repair work, the heater shall receive a re– inspection of all work to ensure the completeness and adequacy of repair and to verify heater cleanliness prior to closing.
• During closing, the heater shall be inspected to ensure that proper closing procedure is followed.
• If necessary, final pressure tests of the heater tubes shall be witnessed and recorded.

RECORDS AND DOCUMENTATION

• During inspection, the heater shall be marked in such a manner as to permit correlation of inspection findings to specific heater locations to ensure that areas noted during inspection findings may be positively relocated. A drawing, sketch, or inspection form shall be made which accurately identifies points which have been marked on the heater.
• Inspection findings shall be reported by marking directly upon a drawing or sketch of the heater, or the appropriate inspection form. The findings shall be reported in sufficient detail to permit relocation and evaluation of the reported condition.
• Additional notes, sketches, or documents shall be appended to the heater drawing or inspection form if required to more fully describe the inspection findings.

• The recorded information shall be filed in the heater inspection file for future referral.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• The Inspection Authority or his delegate shall be responsible to:
• Serve as final authority on all matters concerning inspection, including final acceptance.
• Assign personnel associated with the Inspection Operation
• The Maintenance Supervisor (Resource Allocator) or his delegate shall be responsible to:
• Notify the inspector when a heater has been opened, cleaned, and is ready for internal inspection.
• Support any required operations involving heater repair or alteration.
• The Inspector shall be responsible to:
• Perform external and internal inspection of the heater and components in accordance with this procedure.
• Take digital ultrasonic thickness readings of tubes and associated equipment.
• Provide a sketch of the heater marked to indicate inspection findings and the location of findings.
• Witness all repairs and alterations that might be required.
• Perform final inspection of the heater before closing.
• Observe the final pressure test of the heater, if required.
• Perform a cursory inspection to determine if additional cleaning is needed to achieve a satisfactory thorough inspection.
• Evaluate inspection findings, and evaluate potential repairs.
• Prepare required Inspection Repair Scopes.
• The Operations Department Representative shall be responsible to:
• Determine cleanliness for satisfactory operation of heaters.
• Witness closing of heater manways, and sign–off for heater closing.

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