DOC.

NO: HDOL/ETP/6907/JP/MECH-TANK-002B /Rev-01

PROCEDURE FOR

POST WELD HEAT TREATMENT

PROJECT

: EFFLUENT TREATMENT PLANT

CLIENT

: Bramputra Cracker and Polymer Limited

CONSSULTANT

: Engineers India Limited.

CONTRACTOR

: Hindustan Dorr-Oliver Limited

PROCEDURE NUMBER
DOC. NO: HDOL/ETP/6907/JP/MECH-TANK- 2B /Rev-01

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ABBREVIATIONS:
AFC

Approved for Construction

BM

Bench Mark

CI

Cast Iron

CPT

Cone Penetration Test

GI

Galvanized Iron

IBR

Indian Boiler Regulation

Id

Identification

IQI

Image Quality Indicator

IRC

Indian Road Congress

JB

Junction Box

MS

Mild Steel

MT

Magnetic Particle Testing

NDT

Non Destructive Testing

OMC

Optimum Moisture Content

PCC

Plain Cement Concrete

P&ID

Piping & Instrumentation Diagram

PQR

Procedure Qualification Record

PT

Penetrant Testing

PVC

Poly Vinyl Chloride

PWHT

Post Weld Heat Treatment

RCC

Reinforced Cement Concrete

RF

Reinforcement

RMC

Ready Mixed Concrete from Batching plant / external agency

SPT

Standard Penetration Test

U/G

Under Ground

WBM

Water Bound Macadam

WPS

Welding Procedure Specification

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CONTENTS
0.0 PURPOSE
2.0 SCOPE
3.0 REFERENCES
4.0 TERMS & DEFINITIONS
5.0 RESPONSIBILITIES
6.0 METHODOLOGY
7.0 HEALTH, SAFETY & ENVIRONMENT
8.0 QUALITY ASSURANCE & QUALITY CONTROL
9.0 DOCUMENTATION

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1.0 PURPOSE
The need for PWHT is driven by code and application requirements, as well as the service environment.
In
general, when PWHT is required, the goal is to increase the resistance to brittle fracture and relaxing
residual stresses .Other desired results from PWHT may include hardness reduction, and material strength
enhancements

2.0 SCOPE
This procedure states explicitly in detail the minimum requirement for Post Weld Heat
Treatment (PWHT) by the electrical resistance method for nozzles, pipes & piping supports by
use of Microprocessor/computer controlled system.
This procedure covers description of the equipment, method of heating, location and type of
heating elements temperature measurement and thermocouple location.
Post Weld Heat Treatment (PWHT) shall be in accordance with ASME B31.3,&EIL
Specification/Standards.
3.0 REFERENCE DOCUMENTS
1 ) EIL Specification No : 6-77-0001 Rev-3, and 6-77-0005 Rev-1
2 ) ASME Sec. VIII, Div 1 : Boiler & Pressure Vessels code.
3) ASME B31.3
: Chemical Plant and Petroleum Refinery Piping

4.0 TERMS & DEFINITIONS

For the purpose of this document the term:
1. Shall, indicate a mandatory requirement and should indicate a
Recommended practice.
2. All terms used in the development of this procedure are defined in :
above reference documents.
HSE shall mean Health, Safety & Environment.
EPCC shall mean Engineering Procurement Construction and Commissioning.
QA/QC shall mean Quality Assurance & Quality Control.

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ITP shall mean Inspection & Test Plan.

PM shall mean Project Manager.
5.0 RESPONSIBILITIES
Following are the responsibilities and reporting structure of personnel involved in the scope of the
procedure:

Project Manager

Shall provide all necessary resources to implement this procedure.

Initiate corrective action referred by QA/QC with the production
personnel from time to time.

Site Engineer

Shall report to Project Manager, shall be responsible for day to day

handling of construction and related records.

Shall be responsible for pre-planning of all Structural steel work

pre-fabrication & fabrication works activities in sequential method.

Shall execute the work and report as per approved procedure and
quality plan.

QA/QC Engineer

1.Shall report to Project Manager.

2.Shall be responsible for overall control of QA/QC activities,

implementation of Quality and Inspection Test Plan.
3.Shall be responsible for issuing corrective action reports
based on

periodical audits carried by him

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6.0 METHODOLOGY
6.1 Person handling the PWHT activities
Qualification
The basic requirement for PWHT operator shall be that he should either be a science/technical graduate
or an electrical apprentice high school graduate with basic electrical knowledge to undertake the heat
treatment at the site.
6.2 Description of Required Equipment & Materials
Equipment The equipment shall be of a proper make & it should be bearing proper
electrical power input/output. Power distribution (supply) shall be of 380/440V Ph, with either single
phase secondary output or step down transformer secondary output (heat treatment unit) supplying low
voltage circuits. The temperature control equipment shall be operated manually or through regulators or
it shall be (made) operated automatically with the help of modular controls. The chart type temperature
recorder shall be used for recording temp. The frequency of calibration of temp recorder shall be three
months & a proper valid sticker shall be displayed on the temp recorder.
Materials
All the connection materials required for the heat treatment, shall be of standard quality & it shall be
selected free of defects.
6.3 Surface Conditions
The welds to be heat treated shall be prepared free of greases, lubricants dust and coatings to avoid
damage & short circuiting of accessories equipments. During heat treatment it shall be necessary to
protect from oxidation the mechanical surfaces line flange faces, threaded holes, threads by the
application of coating such as deoxaluminite or any other suitable coating material.

6.4 Method
The procedure for PWHT has to be followed for the various steel grades as mentioned

Basic Requirements to carryout PWHT and the methodology

Thermocouples
a) The thermocouples shall be of the type K i.e. nickel-chromium / nickel aluminum type in
accordance with BS 1041. Part 4. The thermocouples should have initial calibration check.
All the thermocouple wires should have valid certificate of conformance with a tolerance of <+/0.75% between the temperature ranges 4000C to 8000C.
The general K type thermocouple wire shall have dimension 1/0.71 mm of Ni-Cr/Ni-A1. The

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+ve & -ve charges should be marked properly.

Compensating Cable
The cable recommended shall be twin type wore PVC coated copper/constantan connection to
thermocouple, with proper plug & socket. Copper constantan compensating cable shall be used for
connecting thermocouple wires & the temperature recorder.
The compensating cable specification should conform to international thermocouple reference tables
BSEN 60584 1 of 1996 and colour code as per BS 1843.
No. of Thermocouple
Minimum numbers of equally spaced recording thermocouple (T/C), which are required for any local
Post Weld Heat Treatment (PWHT) shall be as follows:
I. For pipes having diameter 6 or less;- 1 T/C.
II. For pipes having diameter up to 10 2 T/C.
III. For pipes having diameter greater than 12 3 T/C.
IV. . For pipes having diameter greater than 20 4 T/C
The thermocouples & positions shall be identified on the particular temperature recording
chart by number of colour / symbol of stamp
After the completion of PWHT remove the thermocouples & ground smoothly the area, to
clean & we thus achieve sound metal. As per the specification / instruction of the
inspector the areas are to be examined by MT or PT after grinding.

Insulation Cover
i)
The circumferential band width which has to be heated shall be minimum Six (6) times
the thickness of the shell material being welded from each edge of the weld, but not less
than25mm, whichever is greater.
ii)
The insulation distance shall be up to a minimum distance of 305mm beyond the edges
of the heating bands or up to a distance determined by the product of bore radius times
the maximum wall thickness whichever is less.
iii)
Through out the cycle of heat treatment the portion out side the heated band shall be suitably
Wrapped under insulation so as to avoid any harmful temperature gradient at the exposed surface of
pipe. For this purpose temperature at the exposed surface should not be allowed to exceed 50% of peak
temperature.
iv)
v)

Thermal insulation should be achieved by following means. Wool, mineral with minimum densit
of 80Kg /m3 With ceramic fiber, usually in stainless steel mesh as form of mat, minimum density
of 96Kg /m3
The number of layers & extent of insulated area shall be dependent on

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* Wall thickness
* Pipe or fitting diameter
* Gradient requirement
* Site conditions
In all cases the minimum requirement shall be two (2) layers for densities (80Kg / m3 & 96Kg / m3)
vi)

Insulation shall be fixed using black annealed iron wire taking care, not damaging or
cutting into the insulation.
vii)
By following proper PWHT cycles, the item or the particular joint shall be completed & the
cooling rate should be controlled under insulation.
Temperature Recording
Temperature shall be measured using the thermocouples to be attached on the work piece during
the heat treatment proceedings.
i)
ii)

iii)
iv)

v)

Temperature recorders shall be calibrated after every three months or after repair. The
calibration
certificate should be kept & a sticker should be stuck on the instrument.
Control of temperature shall be done by using Microprocessor/Computer controlled system.
The
desired Time-Temperature cycle shall be entered into the Microprocessor/Computer. Automatic
Temperature Recorders, which have been suitably calibrated, shall be employed for measuring
and recording temperature. Both the actual Time-Temperature graph and designed time tempe
rapture graph shall be available on chart.
Manufacturer test certificate shall be submitted for thermo-couple materials and record shall
be
maintained by contractor.
Immediately on the completion of the heat treatment, the post weld heat treatment
charts/records
along with the Hardness test results on the weld, points where as required as per the welding
specification charts, shall be submitted to Engineer-in charge for his approval.
Each weld joint shall bear a unique identification number , which shall be maintained in the
piping
Sketch to be prepared by the contractor. The weld joint identification number should appear on
the corresponding post weld heat treatment chart. The chart containing the weld identification
number and piping sketch shall be submitted to the engineer-in charge.

PWHT (Post Weld Heat Treatment)

i)

Stress relieving time temperature shall be applicable over an area of min 6t inches (t = wall
thickness of pipe) on both sides of the weld but it should not be less than 2 on both sides.
ii)
Start the heat treatment cycle on an auto program where in heating rate shall not more
than 2000C per hour.
iii)
The cooling rates should not be more than 2000C / hr.

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iv)

The soaking time shall be as per EIL Spec , 6-77-0005 & Established WPS.
Before start of actual PWHT work at site, a written procedure as per Exhibit-B of EIL
Specification is to demonstrated and documented.

7.0 HEALTH, SAFETY & ENVIRONMENT

All personals working in the heat treatment shall be trained and cautioned about the
possible plungers in PWHT work. It shall be the responsibility of the employed PWHT operator
to ensure personal
safety & to ensure whether the facilities with respect to scaffolding, lighting are fully sufficient,
before commencement of any job. All cables shall be tied up properly & neatly to avoid damages
to cables & personnel injuries to operators

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8.0 QUALITY ASSURANCE & QUALITY CONTROL

Quality Assurance & Quality control of radiography works shall be as per Quality Plan and
corresponding Inspection Test Plan. All quality records as appended to this procedure shall be
maintained for all execution activities.

9.0 DOCUMENTATION
ITP - as per PWHT procedure.

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Notes : In case of any conflict between the requirement of this procedure and EIL specification , the letter shall govern

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