Fireproofing facilities

The fire zone drawings serve as an aid in determining which areas need special protection measures such as adequate fireproofing, firewater protection systems, drainage facilities, etc. 

Following an explosion incident, local fires develop which it left uncontrolled, result in a conflagration of the entire facility and its destruction. Fire protection measures are provided as required to control these occurrences. The ideal fire protection measure is one that does not require addition action to implement and is always in place. These methods are considered passive protection measures and the most familiar is fireproofing. 

Water sprays are sometimes used instead of fireproofing where the fireproofing application may be considered detrimental to the situation or uneconomical to achieve. Typical examples are the surface of pressure vessels or piping where metal thickness checks are necessary, structural facilities that cannot accept additional loads of fireproofing materials due to dead weight or wind loads, inaccessibly of the surface for application of fireproofing, or impracticability of fireproofing application. 

Water spray systems for hydrocarbon facilities are routinely specified because of the rapid application means the system can provide and the excellent heat absorption a water based system represents. Water sprays are also used when passive fire protection measures (i.e., fireproofing, spacing, etc.) cannot practically be utilized. The key to providing an effective system is to ensure the surfaces to be protected receive adequate water densities and that the arrangements to activate the system are equally fast acting. By far the highest... 

The most important aspect of fireproofing installation is using a contractor who is experienced in the type of fireproofing being applied. Dense concrete fireproofing can be applied satisfactorily by suitably trained facility personnel or... 

The oven is contained within a solid brick structure with fittings of wrought and cast iron. Considering that the fireproof brickwork of the double-muffle cremation oven of the type installed at Auschwitz weighed about 10,000 kg (22,000 lbs),104 it is clear that the three-muffle oven was a more economical facility, as one can also deduce from the considerably lower price. The third double-muffle oven of Auschwitz cost RM 7,332 and included a forced-air blower and a conveyance, with the appropriate rails, to introduce the body into the muffle. The ovens of crematorium II of Birkenau cost... 

In the cremation ovens in the concentration camps, the problem of wear and tear on the fireproof brick was greater, not only because of the lesser mass of this fireproof material and its lower quality, but also because of the greater rate of use of the facility, and also due to its operation by untrained personnel whose hostile attitude to their work may very well have been reflected in the carelessness they showed in performing that work. 

Structural steel begins to soften at 316°C (600°F) and at 538°C (1000°F) it loses 50% of its strength. Therefore the minimum accepted steel temperature for structural tolerance, with fireproofing application for process facilities, is normally set to 400°C (752°F) for a period of 2h, exposed to a high temperature hydrocarbon fire (Ref UT Standard 1709) (see Figure 16.3). 

Anchors encased in insulation or fireproofing required for equipment within enclosed facilities may not require corrosion protection depending on service location or if in... 

Of these four, structural steel is generally the most preferred. It is economical and can be readily modified or strengthened to cater for additional loads on the structure. However, unlike the first three materials in the list, unprotected structural steel members do not possess inherent fire resistance. They lose about half of their strength at 500°C and rapidly lose more strength as the temperature rises. This is a critical drawback given that the temperatures of pool fires can reach 1,100°C very quickly. In order to overcome this problem, structural steel is covered in a fireproofing material in those parts of the facility where it could be exposed to fire. 

During a major fire, the fireproofing will itself eventually be destroyed. Therefore, it is important to decide how long it is intended that the fireproofing be effective. A working number of 3 hours for onshore facilities and 2 hours for offshore structures are often used, but this number can be reduced if it can be shown that the fire wiU burn itself out before then because the inventory of flam-mables will have been consumed. 

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