Pressure safety valve selection and sizing

 API Standard 520 –Sizing, Selection, and Installation of Pressure-relieving

Devices, Part I – Sizing and Selection. Ninth Edition. Washington D.C., 2014.
 API Standard 521 –Pressure-relieving and Depressuring systems. Sixth Edition.
Washington D.C., 2014.
 API Standard 526 – Flanged Steel Pressure-relief Valves. Seventh Edition.
Washington D.C., 2017.
 Firoozi, B. Wetted surface area calculation for fire-relief sizing in ASME
pressure vessel. Hydrocarbon Processing, August 2015.

The function of a pressure relief valve is to protect pressure vessels, piping systems, and
other equipment from pressures exceeding their design pressure by more that a fixed amount.
The aim of safety systems in processing plants is to prevent damage to equipment, avoid
injury to personnel and to eliminate any risks of compromising the welfare of the community
at large and the environment.
The pressure relief valve must open at a predetermined set pressure, flow a rated capacity at a
specified overpressure, and close when the system pressure has returned to a safe level.
The standard design safety relief valve is spring loaded with an adjusting ring for obtaining
the proper blowdown.
Blowdown is the difference between the pressure at which a safety relief valve opens (set
pressure) and the pressure at which its re-closes (reseating pressure) — usually expressed
as a percentage of the set pressure.
Let’s say a valve is set to open at 10 BARS
 If it closes at 9 BAR the blowdown is:
Blowdown= (10−9)/10×100=10%

 If the valve closes too soon (small blowdown), system pressure may rise again
quickly and cause chatter (repeated opening/closing), which wears out the valve.
 If it stays open too long (large blowdown), it wastes fluid and energy.
 The adjusting ring fine-tunes this balance to optimize performance.

Pilot-operated valves are available with the set pressure and blowdown control located in a
separate control pilot.
This type of valve uses the line pressure through the control pilot to the piston in the main
relief valve and thereby maintains a high degree of tightness, especially as the set pressure is
being approached.
Another feature of the pilot-operated valve is that it will permit a blowdown as low as 2 %.

EQUATION NOMENCLATURE

A = Valve effective orifice C = Flow constant G = Specific gravity referred

area, in² determined by the ratio of to water = 1.0 at 70°F
specific heats, see Table 2
(use C = 315 if k is
unknown)

K = Coefficient of discharge Kb = Correction factor due Kn = Correction factor for

obtainable from valve to back pressure. This is saturated steam at set
manufacture (K = 0.975 for valve specific; refer to pressures > 1,500 psia
many nozzle-type valves manufacturer’s literature

Kp = Correction factor for Ksh = Correction factor due Kv = Correction factor for
relieving capacity vs. lift for to the degree of superheat in viscosity (use Kv =1.0 for
relief valves in liquid service steam (Ksh = 1.0 for all but highly viscous
saturated steam) liquids)

Kw = Correction factor due M = Molecular weight P1 = Upstream pressure,

 to back pressure for use with psia (set pressure +
balanced bellows valves overpressure + atmospheric
pressure)
P = Differential pressure Q = Flow, gpm T = Inlet vapor temperature,
(set pressure, psig - back °R
pressure, psig)

Rne = Reynolds numbers, Z = Compressibility factor = Liquid dynamic

(use Z = 1 for ideal gas) (absolute) viscosity,
centipoise

SIZING AND SELECTION

In pressure relief valve sizes are determined by merely matching the size of an existing
available vessel nozzle, or the size of an existing pipeline connection.
 Each piece of equipment in a process should be evaluated for potential overpressure
scenarios.
 An appropriate design basis must be established for each vessel.
 Choosing a design basis requires assessing alternative scenarios to find the credible
worst-case scenario.
 The design basis is then used to calculate the required pressure relief valve size.
 If possible, the sizing calculations should use the most current methodologies
incorporating such considerations as two-phase flow and reaction heat sources.
The data required to perform pressure relief valve sizing
The equipment dimensions and physical properties must be assembled.
Modeling heat flow across the equipment surface requires knowledge of the vessel material’s
heat capacity, thermal conductivity, and density (if vessel mass is determined indirectly from
vessel dimensions and wall thickness).
The vessel geometry – vertical or horizontal cylinder, spherical, etc. – is a necessary
parameter for calculating the wetted surface area, where the vessel contents contact vessel
walls.
The properties of the vessel contents must be quantified. This includes density, heat capacity,
viscosity, and thermal conductivity.
Values of each parameter are required for both liquid and vapor phases. Boiling points, vapor
pressure, and thermal expansion coefficient values also are required.
Ideally, the properties will be expressed as functions of temperature, pressure, and
compositions of the fluid.
Determination of the Worst-Case Controlling Scenario
As process plants become larger and are operated closer to safety limits, a systematic
approach to safety becomes a necessity.
The most difficult aspect of the design and sizing of pressure relief valves is finding out the
controlling cause of overpressure. This is sometimes referred to as the worst-case
scenario.
Each cause must be investigated for its magnitude and for the probability if its occurrence
with other events.
The usual causes of overpressure:
 Heat from external fire
 Equipment failure
 Failure of Condenser system
 Failure of Cooling Medium
 Failure of Control system
 Chemical reactions
 Entrance of Volatile Fluid
 Closed Outlets
 Thermal Expansion of Liquids
 Operating error

AS per API,
 Single relief device: 10% MAWP
 Multiple relief device: 16% MAWP
 Fire case: 21% MAWP

Set Pressure (SP) Maximum Relieving Pressure

(MRP)
Description Non-fire Fire Non-fire Fire
Conditions Conditions Conditions Conditions
Single valve 100% of DP 100% of DP 110% of DP 121% of DP
(Design
Pressure)
Multiple valves One valve 100% 110% of DP 110% of DP 121% of DP
of DP (This fire valve
is allowed, only
Other at 105% of if the system
DP (for set
already has
pressures below
1000 kPa (10 bar)
relief protection
staggering of set for non-fire
pressure becomes cases)
impracticable

Staggering Set Pressures in Multi-PSV Systems

When a system has multiple PSVs, sometimes they are set at slightly different pressures so:
  The first valve opens at 100% of DP,
 The next opens at 105%, etc.
This is called staggering, and it helps manage flow distribution during pressure relief events.
Set Pressure Tolerance (ASME VIII UG-134)
According to ASME code:
For set pressures below 1000 kPa (10 bar), the allowed manufacturing tolerance for PSV
set pressure is ±3%.
That means, if a valve is supposed to open at 10 bars it might:
 Open anywhere from 9.7 bar to 10.3 bar
So, you can’t rely on it to open exactly at 10 bars.

100 barg, Design pressure / MAWP

Contigency Single device installations Multiple device installations

Max. set pressure, Max. accumulated Max. set Max. accumulated
barg pressure, barg pressure, barg pressure, barg
Non-fire case
First relief
device 100 110 100 116
Additional
devices 105 116
Fire case
First relief
device 100 121 100 121
Additional
devices 105 121
Supplemental
device 110 121

Estimate the fire heat duty using API 521 correlations (Both approaches depend on the vessel
wetted area, environmental parameters, heat transfer coefficients, etc.)
Calculate the thermophysical properties of the fluid at relief (set point) temperature and
pressure.
In particular, the latent vaporization heat (λv) is required for sizing.
Follow the procedure described in API 520 to obtain the orifice size.
The flowrate to be relieved is determined as,
  Q̇ fire is the fire heat flow in kJ/h (Btu/lb)
 λv is the latent heat of vaporization in kJ/kg (Btu/lb)
 ṁrelief Is the relieving fluid flow rate in kg/h (lb/h)

A conservative estimate of the orifice size must consider an adequate estimate of the mass
flowrate at relief conditions, but still not too high that oversize the PSV.

 In a fire scenario, the heat transfer to the vessel is much more intense than during
normal operations.
 The standard (API 521) assumes very high heat flux from the fire — because you
must size for the worst case to prevent vessel rupture.
 So, the heat input (Q) used in fire PSV calculations is intentionally conservative
(high).
 This ensures the PSV can handle extreme pressure rise due to rapid vapor generation.
Minimum latent heat of vaporization
Latent heat of vaporization (λ) = the energy needed to turn 1 kg of liquid into vapor at
boiling point.
When sizing the PSV, we assume the lowest realistic value for λ (even if real value may be
higher).

So lower λ → more vapor generated → larger PSV required

What latent heat of vaporization should be used to estimate the relief load?
In a multi-component mixture, the latent heat of vaporization changes as the liquid is
vaporized and the composition of the liquid in the vessel changes.
Size for the “worse” case fire scenario: assume no insulation, drainage, or firefighting
equipment available. This is in fact a common case in many smaller processing facilities.
Assume there is a maximum heat transfer area: The area available to transfer heat to the fluid
is clearly described by API 521 (wetted area).
During a fire scenario the fluid vaporizes, so the wetted area decreases over time.
Steps 1: PSV Sizing and Selection
1. Identify All Potential Overpressure Scenarios
Goal: Determine why a PSV is needed, what could cause pressure to rise.
Examples:
 Blocked outlet
 Fire exposure (external fire case)
 Utility failure (cooling water, power)
 Thermal expansion
 Valve failure or operator error
Step 2: Establish Design Basis for Each Scenario
Goal: For each scenario, define:
 Set pressure
 Allowable accumulation
 Relief temperature & pressure
 Heat input (especially for fire cases)
 Fluid properties (density, MW, Cp, Cv, etc.)
Step 3: Determine Relief Load (Required Capacity)
Fire case:

Where, Q = Heat input to the vessel, A = Wetted surface area, C: Constant (fire heat flux
factor) F: Environmental factor

A (Wetted Area)
The part of the vessel that’s in contact with liquid — this absorbs heat most effectively in fire.
 If vertical vessel: area below liquid level.
 If horizontal: calculate based on geometry.
 For fire case, maximum wetted area = area up to 25 ft (7.6 m) height per API 521.

C (Constant)
This is a fixed value from API 521. Commonly:
  For SI Units:
C=43,200 (W/m²)
 For US Customary Units:
C=21,000 (BTU/ft²-hr)

where, W = required vapor flow rate, λ\lambdaλ = latent heat

Non-fire case:
Use mass/volumetric balance, process design, or system flow limits

Step 4: Calculate Required Effective Orifice Area

Inputs needed:
Flow rate (mass or volumetric) Back pressure
Set pressure Gas or liquid properties
Overpressure

Ensure apply correction factors:

Kᵇ for backpressure (vapor) Kᵥ for viscosity (liquid)
Kₚ for overpressure (liquid) Kₙ for nozzle coefficient

Step 5: Select PSV Type and Size

Service (gas, vapor, liquid, two-phase)
 Backpressure handling needs:
1. <10% → Conventional valve
2. 10–40% → Balanced bellow valve
3. >40% → Pilot-operated valve

1. Identify overpressure scenarios

2. Set design basis
3. Calculate relief load
4. Determine orifice area
5. Select valve type/size
6. Check install & backpressure