WORK PROCEDURE FOR COLUM

1. Get Permit
2. Blind the inlet and out let pipes and pipes and
pipes as per blind list.
3. Open the man ways
4. Fix exhausts fans and ejectors for venting and to
evocate gases inside column
5. Make gas test and safe oxygen level (By
Operation)
6. Get confined space work permit
7. Enter inside the column at top for preliminary
inspection. when enter inside wear all personal
protective equipments like nose mask, helmet,
coverall, Gloves, Goggle ,Before Enter inside,
enter your name with hole watcher standing at
the man way. without hole watcher knowledge
nobody should eater inside
8. Open the tray man bolts/clamps from top and
come down in steps to bottom
9. Clean the trays and tray supports
10. Buff the welding joints of the column by buffing
machine for inspection (NDT)
11. If any damage in the trays like bend repair that
one. If crack found in the tray repair them as per
Gasco procedure of replace them.
12. Offer the column for inspection
Check , remove and clean the Demister pads if

available .Demister
pads to be cleaned
either by air or steam or condensate or any recommended
chemical cleaning recommended by Gasco. Check the
demister pad fixing clamps bolts for any damage.fix back
the demister pad (if any damage found in the demister pad
fix new demister pad.)
13. Check and inspect the inside raiser pipes.
14. Check all the bottom nozzles for any choke and
clear them
15. After inspection fix the tray man ways
16. Offer the column for final inspection
17. If ok box up column man ways with new
gasket .before closing ,clean the gasket area good
without damaging them
18. Tight the many bolts as per procedure .adopt
bolt torturing principle
19. Make good housekeeping
20. Work safely.
What are types trays usually in columns?
1. Bubble cap tray
2. Valve tray
3. Trays with perforated holes
4. Chimney trays
What is the material of construction of trays?
1. Stainless steel
2. Carbon steel
3. Alloy

WORK PROCEDURE FOR VESSELS

1. Get permit
2. Blind the inlet and out let pipes and pipes as per
operation requirement
3. Open the man ways
4. Fix exhaust fans and ejectors for venting and to
evacuate gases inside column
5. Make gas test and safe oxygen level (By operation)
6. Get confined space work permit
7. Enter inside the column at top for preliminary
inspection when enter inside wear all personal
protective equipments like nose mask, helmet,
coverall, Gloves, Goggle, Before enter inside ,enter
your name with the hole watcher standing at the
man way. Without hole watcher knowledge nobody
should enter inside
8. Clean the vessel inside with cloth. Some time scrapers
to be used to clean the thick sediment sat the bottom
of the vessel.
9. After cleaning if needed clean by water jet as advised
by the inspection/supervisor
10. Make buffing of all weld joints . cleaning of buffing
weld joints to be done by with either by stainless steel
wire brushes or buffing machines with ss wheel brush.
11. Offer the welding joints to NDT inspection (inspection
of NDT will be QA/QC)
12. Checks remove and clean the Demister Pads.
Demister pads to be cleaned either by air or steam or
condensate or any recommended chemical cleaning by
Gas co .check the demister pad fixing clamps bolts for
any damage .fix back the demister pad (if any damage
found in the demister pad fix new demister pads.)

13. Check all the bottom nozzles for any choke and clear
them.
14. Offer to final inspection
15. If ok prepare to close the man ways. Remove the
waste materials.
16. Clean the man way gasket area without damage.
17. Box up the man way with new gasket.
18. Torque the bolts using torturing tool as per procedure
19. De blind
20. Make good housekeeping.
21. Work safety.
2. What is the material of construction of Demister pads?
Stainless steel and carbon steel.
3. How demister pads are fixed inside the vessel or in
column?
By clamps, bolts and nuts and stainless steel binding
wire.
4. Normally what type defects found inside vessel during
shut down maintenance?
After clean the vessel inside with wire brush and cloth
the vessel is
offered to inspection. Pitting is the
major defects we find inside the vessel. The pitting area
marked by the inspection will be grinded and Bellona
compound will be applied. Sometimes if the pitting is
more in depth then it will be filled with welding

If any crack found in the vessel walls. That will be

grinded, welded and after welding post weld heat
treatment (PWHT) will be done.
4. What are types of gasket used in flanges?
a. Spiral wound gasket (SPW)
b. RTJ(Ring type joint) gasket
c. Graphile sheet metallic gasket/graphile sheet non
metallic gasket.
d. Teflon gasket
e. Rubber gasket
f. Double jacketed gasket filled with graphite
6. How we specify spiral wound gasket?
By flange size and pressure rating of the flange.
For example 4 inch x 300,4 inch x 600, 3 inch x 150
like that
4 inch x 300: 4 inch represented the flange size and
300 represented the pressure rating of the flange.
4 inch x 600: 4 inch represented the flange size and
600 represented the flange pressure rating.
3 inch x 150: 3 inch represented the flange size and
150 represented the flange pressure rating.
7. What is the material of construction of spiral
wound gaskets?
Outer rings are made up of carbon steel/ stainless
steel 304/stainless steel 316/stainless steel 321/alloy
steel.
Gasket wounds are made up of stainless steel 304
with graphite.
Some big size gaskets are with inner rings. Inner
rings are made up of stainless steel, alloy.

8. How we specify RTJ gaskets

RTJ gaskets are specified by R nos. for example
R10.R12, R20, like that.
9. What is the nomenclature of the RTJ gaskets?
Oval shape and Octagon shape.
10. What is the material of construction of RTJ
gaskets?
RTJ gaskets are made up of soft Iron, carbon steel,
stainless steel 304, stainless steel 316, and alloy.
Sometimes brass are also used.
11. How we change gaskets and tight the flange
bolts?
Loose all bolts remove the half no of bolts from the
flanges. Remove the old gasket. Clean the gaskets
area well without damage .check the old gasket
speciation (size, rating, and material of construction
of for SPW gasket outer and inner ring etc)
Bring new gasket as per old gasket from stores.
Checks the drawing also.fix go for torque tightening
procedure. Ensure the gap at the flanges and it
should be equal.
12. What is torque tightening of flange bolts?.
Tight the bolts with torque tools. Two types of
torque tools are available.
1. Hand torque tools and
2. Air operated hydraulic torque tools.
The tightening torque depends upon the size of
the bolts. For example: for inch diameter bolt we
have to give 150 foot pounds as torque. This torque

to be given in 3 equal phases. In first phase we give

50 foot pounds (1/3 of the require torque)
And tight all bolts opposite.
In second phase we give 100 foot pounds (2/3 of
require torque)
And tight all the bolts opposite to opposite.
in third phase we give 150 foot pounds (100% of the
require) and tight all the bolts in the same sequence.
13. What are types of heat exchangers?
Fixed tube type, floating head type, u tube type.
14. How many gaskets are in floating head heat
exchangers?
5 Gaskets. (1,at floating head, 2,floating end cover,
3,at tube sheet inner,4,at tube sheet outer is
channel, 5,at channel end cover)

Procedure for Heat Exchangers.

1, Follow Safety Procedures
2, Get Work Permit
3, Blind the inlet outlet of the shell side pipes and
inlet & outlet of the tube side inlet and out let pipes.
4, Remove the channel end cover and channels.
5, Offer the channels and heat exchanger for
preliminary inspection.
6, Arrange crane and bundle puller.
7, Remove tube bundle with the help of crane and
tube bundle.
8, Offer the tube bundle to inspection.
9, Hydro jet the outside of the bundle and tube.
10, Clean the Shell inside. Buff the welding joints and
offer for NTD test by Gasco.

11, After hydrojeting Offer the tube bundle to Gasco

inspection
12, Clean the channel covers and buff welding joints
for Gasco inspection.
13, Clean the gasket areas good without damaging
them.
14, Fix the shell side gasket in the shell.
15, Fix the bundle with help bundle puller and crane.
16, Fix the bolts and tight as per Torturing procedure.
17, Hydro test shell to the require pressure. For hydro
test fill the shell from bottom and fix the vent at top.
18, Identity the tube leak if any tube leak plug the
leaky tubes and hydro test shell side again.
19, if no tube leak offer to inspection.
20, Fix the channel and channel covers with new
gasket.
21, hydro test tube side to require pressure and
check for any gasket leak.
22, offer to inspection.
23, if ok drain the water.
24, De blind
25, Make good house keeping
26, work safely
Note: u tube type exchanger the hydrotest to
be made 3 times as follows
1, fix the u tube bundle inside the shell with new
shell side gasket
2, fix the test ring
3, tight all the bolts as per procedure (Torque
tightening)
4 , fill water in the shell side and hydro test as per
procedure
5, Raise the pressure to the require valve.

6, check the tube leak and shell side gasket leak.