Valves for oil depots and tank farms
At a fuel depot valves serve both the process and fire safety. A wrong material or leakage class is expensive here.
TAZ Engineering Team · · 6 min
Tank root valves
Tank inlet and outlet nozzles get steel gate valves, not cast iron: cast iron is brittle under impact and in fire. The valve must reliably isolate the tank in an emergency, so body strength and seat tightness come first.
Process pipework
Pump manifolds, loading racks and transfer lines use steel wedge gate valves and ball valves. Ball valves on petroleum products should be fire-safe, tested to API 607 or an equivalent: if the polymer seats burn out, the valve still seals metal to metal.
Materials and seals
Carbon steel bodies, and for cold climates steel with proven low-temperature impact toughness. Seals and gaskets must resist hydrocarbons: petrol and solvents destroy rubber that is fine for water.
Actuation
Tank and pump valves are often fitted with explosion-proof electric actuators for remote emergency closure. State the hazardous area zone and the required Ex marking.
Checklist
- product and temperature
- DN and PN
- steel, not cast iron
- fire-safe design
- explosion-proof actuator
- minimum design temperature