Ammonia storage transport

The facility stores ammonia to supply nearby fertilizer manufacturers. It is transported to the plant by ship, transferred and stored in the tank for transfer as needed. The facility mainly consists of a storage tank, a refrigeration system, a control system, and a pipe connecting the tank with the plants. Ammonia is transported and stored as a refrigerated liquid (-33 C) at atmospheric pressure. 

In like manner, for the United States one may mention safety manuals and standards for the storage, transport, and handling of anhydrous ammonia compiled... 

Natural rubber-based adhesives constitute many nsefnl types of adhesives. They have been made from the latex that is collected from the sap of rubber trees grown in Malaysia and other countries of Sonth East Asia. Rnbber of this type was first collected from the Hevea brasiliensis tree - seeds from the tree were first taken from the Amazon forests in Brazil, propagated in Kew in London, and then supplied, over a century ago, to Malaya and adjacent counuies, where there are now many millions of rubber trees, yielding cis-polyisoprene-based natnral rnbber. This has similar properties to the principal SBR synthetic rubber, derived from styrene and butadiene, both of which are obtained by the cracking process from crnde oil, with subsequent chemical reactions. Natural rubber is obtained from the uee by tapping the bark, when the latex flows out spontaneously as the tree is wounded. This latex is about 33% solids - most natural rubber latex is concentrated to 60% and preserved with ammonia for transport and storage. 

This section deals with certain physical and chemical data, which have particular reference to the safety in storage, transportation and use of ammonia. 

Accidents in which fire and/or explosion of ammonia-air mixtures have been reported to cause the death or injury of personnel are known [77, 78], but are not very frequent. Such accidents have occurred in cold storage warehouses in which ammonia was released in an enclosed space and ignition was caused accidentally. One reason that explosions and lire accidents have not been frequent is that upon release of ammonia from atmospheric or pressurized tanks, rapid evaporation of ammonia cools down the liquid and thereby reduces the vapor pressure of ammonia over the liquid. As noted above, even momentary fatal concentrations of ammonia are much lower than the lower explosion limit in air. Also the fairly high ignition temperature and the low normal flame velocity of an ammonia/air mixture (0.07 to 0.08 m/s) are important [12]. For protection against fire and explosion in ammonia storage or transportation vessels see [13]. 

Chapter 7 entitled, "Ammonia Storage and Transportation-Safety"" has been written by the undersigned. It was written with the objective of bringing together our current knowledge from the many sources dealing with this important topic. 

The third type of storage for anhydrous ammonia is pressurized storage without refrigeration. This is used at small terminals, ia some transport vehicles, and ia field appHcation equipment. For safety reasons, maximum allowable storage pressure ia vessels at retail locations and ia the field has been set at 1.83 MPa (265 psig) (8). This pressure is sufficient to prevent boiling at temperatures up to 46°C. Safety pop-off valves are provided to vent ammonia should higher temperatures be encountered. 

The mature Haber-Bosch technology is unlikely to change substantiaHy in the foreseeable future. The centers for commercial ammonia production may, however, relocate to sites where large quantities of natural gas are flared from cmde oil production, eg, Saudi Arabia or Venezuela. Relocation would not offset the problems for agriculture of high transportation and storage costs for ammonia production and distribution. Whereas the development of improved lower temperature and pressure catalysts is feasible, none is on the horizon as of this writing. 

The Mid-America Pipeline System (MAPCO) (77) for ammonia transportation contains 1763 kkometers of 101 mm, 152 mm, and 203 mm pipe having a pumping capacity of 3885 metric tons per day and supporting terminal storage fackities. Peak dehvery from the system is 4,216 metric tons per day. 

A. Josefson, "Transportation, Storage, Handling of Ammonia," Hmmonia Plant Saf. 27, 175—159, 1986. 

Transportation is by railroad tank vehiele, by tank truek, or by pipeline. In this ease, transportation at ambient temperature is the best ehoiee. The ehoiee of storing ammonia at an ambient temperature liquid or partially refrigerated liquid or an ambient pressure liquid depends mostly on eeonomie faetors. One of the faetors that determines the storage method is the quantity of ammonia to be stored. 

---