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Pressure management safeguards production

An Elfab product story
Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Dec 9, 2005

Methyl methacrylate supplier Lucite is using pressure-management systems from Elfab to safeguard production processes at its Billingham site in Stockton-on-Tees.

Methyl methacrylate (MMA) supplier Lucite is using pressure-management systems from Elfab to safeguard production processes at its Billingham site in Stockton-on-Tees.

Lucite claim its safety performance is over ten times better than the European and US chemical industry average.

When Lucite wanted to recomission an old section of its plant, it needed to update the autoclave's pressure-relief device, which relied on a traditional type of detector activated by fluid flow following an overpressure event.

To avoid spurious alarms, Elfab supplied an Opti-Gard reverse-acting bursting disc assembly with an integral Flo-Tel sensor.

This is an Atex-approved, non-invasive burst detection system, based on magnetic field-sensing.

"Apart from being much more durable and reliable," said Barry Johnson, Lucite Engineering Surveyor, "the best thing about the Opti-Gard system is that you can check the operation of the sensor without interrupting your process".

The Flo-Tel detector can be replaced and tested without removing the bursting disc unit; there is no potential for damage during installation or spurious alarms that can cause unnecessary downtime.

Previously, in another area of the plant, the cable of a membrane-type detector fitted above a bursting disc had been accidentally broken by mechanical work carried out in an adjacent area.

A complete shutdown of the manufacturing facility was required so that the detector could be replaced, which cost the company about £40,000 in lost production.

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