With our experience, BakerRisk provides technical advice, engineering design support, and inspection recommendations to improve equipment lifespan and reliability, as well as host third-party laboratory examinations. Our expert team is also available to perform material forensic services to ensure the safety of your workplace and personnel. Our ultimate goal is to understand and help explain why accidents have occurred and to provide advice for preventing them in the future.
Mechanical Asset Integrity
We deliver a wide range of services in materials engineering, mechanical integrity assessments, and material failure analysis and prevention for equipment and structures. These services are carried out in our state-of-the-art materials laboratory using optical and scanning electron microscopes, hardness testers, and fracture analysis and inspection equipment. Our lab technicians are not only expertly trained but work to ensure our clients walk away feeling confident and better equipped.
Equipment and Process evaluation
We provide extensive support and assessment services for worksites, structures, and equipment. When metallurgical or destructive analysis is required, we perform this work at the BakerRisk Metallurgical Laboratory in San Antonio, Texas, or another BakerRisk testing facility.
Testing and Analysis
We are very proud of our state-of-the-art, fully-equipped materials testing lab which includes a scanning electron microscope, Keyence microscope, hardness testers, tensile and Charpy impact testers, and sample mounting and polishing equipment. Third-party laboratory examinations are conducted at our Materials Laboratory in San Antonio, Texas. BakerRisk’s Examination Room is suitable for housing interested parties of up to 20 individuals and their photographic equipment. When metallurgical or destructive analysis is required, the work will be performed in the BakerRisk Materials Laboratory or another BakerRisk testing facility.
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Related Resources
Dan Benac discusses the dangers of carbamate corrosion damage and the different mitigation methodologies available for urea equipment.
Both well-known and not so common corrosion mechanisms found in Urea Plant piping and equipment can result in equipment failures and costly downtime. Examples of corrosion damage mechanisms are presented, including carbamate corrosion, and stress induced intergranular corrosion cracking. Discussion considers both short- and longer-term impacts, as those conditions affect the Mechanical Integrity planning and inspection management programs.
Discover how laboratory examination and analytical techniques can answer important questions during forensic investigations, failure analysis, and root cause analysis efforts with BakerRisk's latest Webinar.
Because of their inherent complexity, industrial equipment such as pressure vessels or storage tanks are not usually amenable to analysis using simplified analytical techniques
We have stayed open and continue to safely and remotely provide materials testing and analysis services to support industry needs. We have listened to feedback and concerns about not being able to observe the analysis being performed and provide real-time feedback and now offer remote-viewing services for live materials analyses!
Catastrophic or major incidents are typically investigated immediately, but what about the near misses or minor failures that might be precursors to major incidents? Are they investigated? Major failures often do not occur as one isolated issue or event; there are often less severe precursors to a major event. This paper presents a best practice and reasons for reviewing minor equipment failures in order to avoid major events as demonstrated through the judicious analysis of minor failures. Several case histories and the lessons learned from these minor equipment failure investigations are presented to encourage investigation of what may initially appear as insignificant failures, for their value in prevention of major incidents.
An investigation of an incident that occurred at a Nitric Acid Plant was conducted. The incident involved a ruptured 18-inch (457mm) diameter Type 304L stainless steel pipe from the Converter to the Tail Gas Catalytic Reactor. The ruptured line had been in service for approximately 18 years. The rupture resulted in ejection of pipe fragments through the roof of the building and damage to equipment in the vicinity of the pipe. No injuries occurred. This article summarizes the findings of a very unusual condition of intergranular stress corrosion cracking (IGSCC) due to sensitization of a low carbon stainless steel. The lessons learned from this failure are important for those who regularly work with stainless steel components, to help manage and avoid cracking failures in such equipment.
The catastrophic or major incident is immediately investigated, but what about the near misses or precursors to major incidents? Are they investigated? Major failures often do not occur as one iso-lated issue or event; there are often less severe precursors to a major event. This paper presents a best practice and arguments for reviewing apparently minor ammonia plant failures in order to avoid ma-jor events as demonstrated through the judicious analysis of small equipment failures. Multiple small equipment case histories and the lessons learned from these failure investigations are presented to encourage investigation of what may initially appear as insignificant failures, for their value in pre-vention of major incidents.
Ensuring the initial and ongoing integrity of process equipment, including instrumentation and safety systems, has become known as asset integrity management or AIM. Asset integrity is a fundamental component of successful, risk-based process safety programs. However, facilities continue to be challenged to develop and maintain successful AIM programs. CCPS’ Technical Steering Committee commissioned Guidelines for Asset Integrity Management as an update and expansion of the previous CCPS document Guidelines for Mechanical Integrity Systems, to continue assisting facilities in meeting this challenge. The change in terms from mechanical integrity to asset integrity reflects international usage, consistent with the elements in CCPS’ more recent Guidelines for Risk Based Process Safety, and a recognition that a much broader set of assets needs to be properly designed, installed and maintained at process facilities than those requiring “mechanical” integrity.
An incident occurred at a Nitric Acid Plant when a failed 18-inch (457mm) diameter 304L stainless steel pipe connecting the Converter to the Tail Gas Catalytic Reactor ruptured. The rupture resulted in thrown fragments and some damage to equipment in the vicinity of the pipe. Normally, pipe operating conditions are about 80 psig (0.55 MPa) and 850 to 900 °F (454 to 482 °C), and the nominal thickness of the pipe was 0.180-inch (0.46mm). This article summarizes the discovery of a very unusual condition of intergranular stress corrosion cracking (IGSCC) due to sensitization of the low carbon stainless steel used in manufacture of the pipe. The lessons learned from this failure investigation are vital to those who use stainless steel in Tail Gas systems.
A Secondary Urea Reactor (R3404) in an urea plant experienced a rapid depressure event due to failure and launching of the top flange head. The failure of the top flange head was attributed to environmental stress cracking. The event caused the complete contents of the reactor to be released to atmosphere. The event also caused external damage to the vessel, vessel foundation, and surrounding equipment and buildings. This paper discusses the causes of the failure, the effects on the facility, the process of investigating the incident, and the detailed metallurgical findings, including welding parameters for the low alloy steel reactor.
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