Containment for Process Structures and Areas

The design of process structures or areas should consider the management of liquid spills and releases, rain water, and fire water. The provision of appropriately selected and designed drainage and containment is particularly important for those areas handling flammable and combustible liquids. The options are  

Local containment is a passive mitigation system intended to retain liquid spills or releases from process systems within the immediate area of the release. Local containment may be appropriate where the quantity of potential flammable or combustible liquid spills is well defined and small to moderate. Where larger quantities of liquids are involved, e.g. continuous process operations, local containment alone is usually not an appropriate design. Containment systems are commonly used for the following purposes  

Local containment systems are designed to retain the spilled or released material within the process structure or area. Hence, the structure, equipment, vessels, and piping in that area will be exposed to any fire resulting from the contained material. Usually the exposed portion of the structure will require appropriate fire protection, unless it is considered of low value and expendable. 

Drainage systems are passive mitigation systems intended to collect, control, and route spilled process liquids, rainfall, and fire water out of the process structure or area. Drainage systems provide gravity drainage of these liquids from the process structure or area in order to  

Within practical limits of plant and individual unit layout, the high point of grade should passthrough process buildings and areas, large equipment pads and centerlines of roadways and pipeways so that drainage will be away from these facilities and equipment. 

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