Drain System Modifications Enhance Platform Safety

Abstract

ABSTRACT The paper describes EPMI's efforts to eliminate potentially catastrophic hydrocarbon liquid and gas discharge from the open drains of its platforms located offshore Peninsular Malaysia in the South China Sea. The hydrocarbon discharges were largely precipitated by equipment failure and related events but were made physically possible by the use of a cannon discharge caisson by both the open and pressured drain systems. For platforms containing major processing equipment, the modifications to separate the open drains from the pressured drains involve the installation of a second drain caisson. For other platforms, the systems were separated by returning the pressure drains discharge to the process stream. As a result of the. described modifications, high pressure crude clumped to the drains even at very high flowrates cannot result in hydrocarbons to be discharged from the open drains. All EPMI platforms have been modified and the installed systems are operating satisfactorily. EPMI now requires the complete separation of the pressured drains from the open drains in all its offshore installations..