Pump piping: what are point to be consider while do the Pump piping

Pump piping: The following point shall be taken care of while doing layout for pump piping.

Pump location affects the piping routing and its supporting. Pumps dedicated for hydrocarbon services and carrying materials above 230ºC shall not be located below pipe rack, structures, air fin coolers and vessels. Pumps which are dedicated for non – flammable service may be located beneath the pipe rack without obstructing the access bay and other maintenance requirements of the respective process unit.

Pump shall be located as close to the source of suction in order to minimize pressure drop in the system.

A preliminary piping layout (study layout) shall be made to determine the requirement of spacing between pumps especially in case of side suction/ side discharge, top suction/ top discharge pumps where straight length requirement/ platform /CPS requirement etc have to be considered.

Eccentric reducer in pump piping suction lines shall be flat on top side in order to prevent cavitations.

Reducers in pump suction lines shall be as close as possible to the pump suction nozzle.

Normally reducers in pump piping discharge line shall be concentric type. Eccentric reducers may be used in both suction and discharge piping for top suction/ top discharge pump in order to obtain clearance between suction and discharge piping.

Piping for lube oil and seal oil system of pump shall be such that it shall not block access to the pump seal and bearing. For very large pumps these may be separate on skids.

As per OSID- 118 (Oil industries Safety Directorate stipulation) there shall be minimum 1 meter spacing between pumps e. g a minimum space of 1 meter must be provided in between the pumps and any potential obstructions (large block valves, steam turbine piping and tee type support from grade.)

Auxiliary piping shall be such that it shall not obstruct inspection covers, bearing caps, upper halves of casing or any other items which require access for operation or maintenance. Piping for lubricating oil, seal oil etc shall not be routed in the vicinity of hot process or hot utility pipes in order to avoid fire hazard.

Cooling water lines to pumps and compressors shall not be less than 20NB. Pipes 25NB or less shall have the take-off connection from the top of the header in order to prevent plugging during operation.

Every efforts must be made to minimize maintenance obstructions by running the piping either outside the area directly over the pump or at high enough elevation to permit the removal of the pump or driver.

The pump shall be placed in such a manner that the suction nozzle elevation is always below the vessel /tank nozzle and suction pipe shall be routed to prevent any pockets in the line.

Pump in the vacuum service operates at a negative pressure and very high temperature shall be located very close to the suction source. This is often directly below the tower or immediately outside the tower support column. Pumps located directly beneath the tower can be mounted on a special spring base.

what is pump suction piping

The pump piping suction line has a positive shut-off valve ( Gate Valve). The temporary tee-type strainer which catches any foreign particles that may have collected in the piping during the construction. After the suction and discharge valves have been shut off, the blind flange is unbolted and put aside and the strainer is pulled out. This strainer is generally used only for start-up.

Note:-The arrangement of pump suction piping and discharge piping depends upon the space availability in the plant. Typical Pump suction piping and discharge piping is shown the picture

Pump piping

 

which indicates the items used in the pump suction and pump piping discharge line. The piping arrangements entirely depends upon the layout designer, in which he has to consider the operation and maintenance of the pump and pump related piping.

Check here for pump related questions here
Pump questions