Facility Startup Research Articles

The INFN-LNF Astrophysics and Cosmology Integrated Test Facility Startup

The INFN-LNF Astrophysics and Cosmology Integrated Test Facility Startup

Обеспечение безопасности одновременных работ на морской платформе

The purpose of the work is to analyze measures to ensure safety during the simultaneous performance of various high-risk works on the Prirazlomnaya offshore ice-resistant stationary platform. Due to the high requirements for ensuring industrial and environmental safety, almost all the works performed on the Prirazlomnaya offshore ice-resistant stationary platform are classified as high-risk works. The most dangerous periods from the point of view of the development of accidents are the periods of commissioning work on working environments during the completion of construction and the startup of facilities after repairs. During the current operation of the Prirazlomnaya offshore ice-resistant stationary platform, more than 90 work permits are issued daily for work, with more than 50 people involved in the preparation and approval of them. There are technological operations that should not be carried out simultaneously for safety reasons. To manage the safety of simultaneous works, Gazprom neft shelf LLC developed the matrix of simultaneous operations on the Prirazlomnaya offshore ice-resistant stationary platform. The matrix allows the work production manager to quickly navigate the existing restrictions, which minimizes the occurrence of errors. To automate this process, Gazprom neft shelf LLC implemented the Electronic work order — approval module. The IT solution integrates a matrix of simultaneous operations and introduces algorithms to prevent conduct of conflicting operations. When approving and issuing work permits, the system signals the presence of conflicting operations, as a result of which a prompt decision is made on the division of works in time. At the same time, the work managers do not face the situations related to downtime of a team arriving at a work site where it is prohibited to carry out work. This made it possible to optimize the work of the teams, directing them to perform other work. The implemented solution allowed to ensure controllability of high-risk works, improve the quality of work planning, and reduce the risks of conducting conflict operations by minimizing the influence of the human factor.

Passenger spatiotemporal distribution prediction in airport terminals based on insect intelligent building architecture and its contribution to fresh air energy saving

As the essential infrastructure and important transportation hubs, airport terminals play a strategic role in sustainable cities and urbanization. Due to the strict service requirement and round-the-clock operation, the high energy consumption poses unprecedented challenges to developing environment-friendly airport terminals. Actually, passenger flow as a root cause decides the startup and operation of service facilities including air-conditioning systems. But due to spatial connectivity, parameter coupling, and passenger mobility, resource allocation and system tuning have not been effectively related to passenger travel. In this work, Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport Terminal 2 was taken as an object, and a passenger spatiotemporal distribution model was developed and its contribution to fresh air energy saving was estimated. Among them, zone partition and expression rules were formulated based on insect intelligent building (I2B) architecture to construct Wi-Fi positioning system; Next, for domestic and international passenger, their arrival patterns were fitted by Chi-Square distribution with R2 > 0.993, and their spatiotemporal distribution was predicted with R2 over 0.74 and 0.67 respectively; Lastly, a hybrid reset strategy for fresh air volume set-point combing fuzzy and linear rules was proposed with results showing that HVAC systems running on variable occupancy would lead to considerable energy savings.

DISTRIBUTION OF THE BEAM DENSITY AT THE TARGET OF SUBCRITICAL FACILITY “NEUTRON SOURCE”

NSC KIPT subcritical facility “Neutron Source” uses rectangular tungsten or uranium target of 6464 mm top cross-section. To generate maximum neutron flux, prevent overheating of the target and reduce thermal stress during the facility power operation one should provide uniform electron beam distribution at the target top surface. During the facility design three different possibilities of electron beam density redistribution above the target surface were considered. These were the fast beam scanning with two dimensional scanning magnets; the method of uniform beam distribution formation with linear focusing elements (dipole and quadrupole magnets) and nonlinear focusing elements (octupole magnets), when final required rectangular beam shape with homogeneous beam density is formed at target; and combined method, when one forms the small rectangular beam with homogeneous beam density distribution and scan it over the target surface with scanning magnets. In the paper the all three methods are considered and discussed taking into account the layout of the transportation channel of NSC KIPT subcritical facility “Neutron Source”. For the first stage of the facility start-up and pilot operation the fast scanning method was chosen, realised and tested. The results of the beam distribution measurements over the surface of the target during the facility adjustment and start up are presented.

Commissioning of GPU–Accelerated Monte Carlo Code FRED for Clinical Applications in Proton Therapy

We present commissioning and validation of Fred, a graphical processing unit (GPU)–accelerated Monte Carlo code, for two proton beam therapy facilities of different beam line design: CCB (Krakow, IBA) and EMORY (Atlanta, Varian). We followed clinical acceptance tests required to approve the certified treatment planning system for clinical use. We implemented an automated and efficient procedure to build a parameter library characterizing the clinical proton pencil beam. Beam energy, energy spread, lateral propagation model, and a dosimetric calibration factor were parametrized based on measurements performed during the facility start-up. The Fred beam model was validated against commissioning and supplementary measurements performed with and without range shifter. We obtained 1) submillimeter agreement of Bragg peak shapes in water and lateral beam profiles in air and slab phantoms, 2) <2% dose agreement for spread out Bragg peaks of different ranges, 3) average gamma index (2%/2 mm) passing rate of >95% for >1000 patient verification measurements using a two-dimensional array of ionization chambers, and 4) gamma index passing rate of >99% for three-dimensional dose distributions computed with Fred and measured with an array of ionization chambers behind an anthropomorphic phantom. The results of example treatment planning study on >100 patients demonstrated that Fred simulations in computed tomography enable an accurate prediction of dose distribution in patient and application of Fred as second patient quality assurance tool. Computation of a patient treatment in a CT using 104 protons per pencil beam took on average 2′30 min with a tracking rate of 2.9×105p+/s. Fred was successfully commissioned and validated against the clinical beam model, showing that it could potentially be used in clinical routine. Thanks to high computational performance due to GPU acceleration and an automated beam model implementation method, the application of Fred is now possible for research or quality assurance purposes in most of the proton facilities.

Determination of parameters for automatic decompression of heat and power facility cylinders

This paper analyzes various types of startup systems used for the heat and power facility start-up. Factors impacting startup characteristics of the heat and power facility were considered. Methods for the modernization of the startup system and possible revamping of auxiliary starting aid devices of locomotive diesel engines without significant design changes by means of cylinder test valve opening were identified. Kinematic diagrams of device gearing for automatic decompression of the heat and power facility cylinders were developed and analyzed. The device requirements were determined, namely, response time, cylinder test valve open and closing torque overriding Tmin=11 Nm. Based on the necessity of torque backup at least 30 % the gear ratio required for the selected engine and its dimensions was calculated.

Calibrated Low-Order Transient Thermal and Flow Models for Robust Test Facility Design

This paper describes an upgrade to high temperature operation of the Engine Component AeroThermal (ECAT) facility, an established engine-parts facility at the University of Oxford. The facility is used for high-TRL research and development, new technology demonstration, and for component validation (typically large civil-engine HP NGVs). In current operation the facility allows Reynolds number, Mach number, and coolant-to-mainstream pressure ratio to be matched to engine conditions. Rich-burn or lean-burn temperature, swirl and turbulence profiles can also be simulated. The upgrade will increase the maximum inlet temperature to 600 K, allowing coolant-to-mainstream temperature ratio to be matched to engine conditions. This will allow direct validation of temperature ratio scaling methods in addition to providing a test bed in which all important non-dimensional parameters for aero-thermal behaviour are exactly matched. To accurately predict the operating conditions of the upgraded facility, a low order transient thermal model was developed in which the air delivery system and working section are modelled as a series of distributed thermal masses. Nusselt number correlations were used to calculate convective heat transfer to and from the fluid in the pipes and working section. The correlation was tuned and validated with experimental results taken from tests conducted in the existing facility. This modelling exercise informed a number of high-level facility design decisions, and provides an accurate estimate of the running conditions of the upgraded facility. We present detailed results from the low-order modelling, and discuss the key design decisions. We also present a discussion of challenges in the mechanical design of the working section, which is complicated by transient thermal stress induced in the working section components during facility start-up. The high-temperature core is unusually high-TRL for a research organisation, and we hope both the development and methodology will be of interest to engine designers and the research community.

The Current Role of Microfluidics in Radiofluorination Chemistry.

The current utilization of positron emission tomography (PET) imaging is limited due to the high costs associated with production facility start-up and operations; subsequently, there has been a movement towards microfluidic synthesis of radiolabeled imaging pharmaceuticals (tracers). In this review, we summarize the current status of microfluidic radiosynthesis units for producing fluorine-18 labeled PET imaging tracers, including a discussion of the relative strengths and weaknesses of such devices. In addition, we provide a brief overview of the radiotracers that have been produced using microfluidic devices to date. Finally, we discuss the prospects for the future of this field, including the potential of newly envisioned devices developed that may allow operators to easily synthesize specialized tracers for individual patient doses.

Status of ITER Safety Issues

The decree authorizing the creation of the ITER facility was published on November 9, 2012, with the provisions adopted having been considered mostly acceptable. However, it is the first fusion facility of this kind to require a creation decree and the design of some of the systems had not yet been finalized. Moreover, while some equipment, with their associated safety requirements, are indeed classic and well known, others are uncommon and their safety requirements, although considered acceptable, are requesting justification.Therefore, the decree was supported by about 200 requests, which have to be met during the facility startup schedule. This paper takes stock of the current situation and presents the current status of the main expected answers, taking into account the design evolution which has been further proposed by the operator (e.g., the new vacuum vessel pressure suppression system, etc.).Some safety issues have already been considered as solved (the tokamak support design, accident within the neutral beam cell, etc.). Others are estimated not to be completely satisfactory (e.g., explosion within the vacuum vessel). Before moving on to commissioning, a few issues are still pending (detritiation system efficiency, radiation protection, etc.) and additional studies regarding the final design are expected (hot cells, tritium and waste buildings, etc.).

Scanned carbon-ion beam therapy throughput over the first 7 years at National Institute of Radiological Sciences

IntroductionIn the 7 years since our facility opened, we have treated >2000 patients with pencil-beam scanned carbon-ion beam therapy. MethodsTo summarize treatment workflow, we evaluated the following five metrics: i) total number of treated patients; ii) treatment planning time, not including contouring procedure; iii) quality assurance (QA) time (daily and patient-specific); iv) treatment room occupancy time, including patient setup, preparation time, and beam irradiation time; and v) daily treatment hours. These were derived from the oncology information system and patient handling system log files. ResultsThe annual number of treated patients reached 594, 7 years from the facility startup, using two treatment rooms. Mean treatment planning time was 6.0 h (minimum: 3.4 h for prostate, maximum: 9.3 h for esophagus). Mean time devoted to daily QA and patient-specific QA were 22 min and 13.5 min per port, respectively, for the irradiation beam system. Room occupancy time was 14.5 min without gating for the first year, improving to 9.2 min (8.2 min without gating and 12.8 min with gating) in the second. At full capacity, the system ran for 7.5 h per day. ConclusionsWe are now capable of treating approximately 600 patients per year in two treatment rooms. Accounting for the staff working time, this performance appears reasonable compared to the other facilities.

Economic Assessment of 4 Approaches to the Diagnosis and Initial Treatment of Sleep Apnea.

A dilemma faced by health-care administrators is that need greatly outstrips capacity for diagnosing and treating sleep apnea, with such decisions carrying significant economic consequences. Our objective was to develop an economic model to estimate the relative costs of 4 approaches for diagnosis and initial treatment of sleep apnea. The analysis consisted of developing a mathematical model depicting possible diagnostic and treatment approaches to the care of patients with sleep apnea; developing 4 clinical scenarios to describe distinct approaches to the management of sleep apnea patients (in-laboratory, unattended, direct-to-autotitrating PAP [auto-PAP], and mixed); and identifying costs associated with each scenario. We created a hypothetical cohort of 1,000 patients with 85% prevalence of sleep apnea to generate cost estimates. The driver of per-patient costs was the total number of sleep studies, which varied widely across scenarios: from 425 for the direct-to-auto-PAP approach to 1,441 in the unattended approach. The scenarios also differed in per-patient costs: Per-patient costs excluding facility startup costs were $456 for direct-to-auto-PAP, $913 for in-laboratory, $991 for mixed, and $1,090 for unattended. Approaches to diagnosing and treating sleep apnea that emphasized early application of auto-PAP had lower per-patient costs.

A New Hydrogen Processing Development System

The design of many of the process systems at the Savannah River Site (SRS) Tritium Facilities were developed at the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) in the 1980’s and early 1990’s for Cold War production requirements. Most of the process systems developed used cold (non-radioactive) test systems to reduce the cost of developing pilot and full-scale test systems. The metal hydride (MH) based process technologies developed for the Replacement Tritium Facility (RTF) allowed tritium process equipment to be confined in tritium stripped glovebox systems which greatly reduced tritium emissions to the public. Facility start-up in 1994 was considered state-of-the art technology for the world’s largest metal hydride based tritium process facility. The end of the Cold War reduced production requirements, but increased maintenance is needed for the 20 year old process systems. The Hydrogen Processing Development System (HPDS) is a new, non-radiological R&D system to be built for testing and demonstrating improved process systems for SRS Tritium Facilities. Experience gained from facility operations and new concepts from fusion fuel cycle development programs will be used to develop improved processes and restore base capabilities of the SRS Tritium Facilities. The HPDS will be designed to test systems such as a Revised Unloading Purification System (RUPS), an optimized advanced storage and isotope separation (OASIS) System, a Reduced Area Confinement and WAter Processing (RACWAP) System, and some components of a separate breeding and extraction program. New processes would retain the desirable features of the current/existing technologies while creating “right-sized” and flexible advanced or hybrid system to meet current and future tritium processing needs. Testing in the HPDS will reduce the cost and risk of deploying new technologies into the SRS tritium production process.

Bioreactor-based fuel systems. I: Optimal production capacity considering start-up dynamics

Traditional capacity sizing models based on production cost minimization do not consider the impact of facility construction and start-up time scale on the profitability of plant. For production facilities that link substantially different scales, such as biofuel production facilities that connect large numbers of small bioreactors to large scale processing equipment, the ramp-up to full production may be a significant consideration in the decision on facility scale. This paper presents a modified discounted cash flow method incorporating production growth during start-up, to determine the optimal production scale of systems that may operate at less than full capacity for a substantial period of time. For a case study of ethanol produced by blue-green algae, global sensitivity analysis using Sobols method indicates how exogenous and endogenous variables, including the ramp-up rate, affect the optimal scale and financial viability of the production system. Conditional-value-at-risk minimization shows how the optimal decision depends on the risk inclination of the decision-maker; a risk-neutral decision maker would choose a basic optimal production scale of 59million liters (ML) of ethanol per year, while a risk-averse decision-maker might prefer to choose a capacity 30% less.

Site specific risk assessment of an energy-from-waste thermal treatment facility in Durham Region, Ontario, Canada. Part A: Human health risk assessment

The regions of Durham and York in Ontario, Canada have partnered to construct an energy-from-waste thermal treatment facility as part of a long term strategy for the management of their municipal solid waste. This paper presents the results of a comprehensive human health risk assessment for this facility. This assessment was based on extensive sampling of baseline environmental conditions (e.g., collection and analysis of air, soil, water, and biota samples) as well as detailed site specific modeling to predict facility-related emissions of 87 identified contaminants of potential concern. Emissions were estimated for both the approved initial operating design capacity of the facility (140,000 tonnes per year) and for the maximum design capacity (400,000 tonnes per year). For the 140,000 tonnes per year scenario, this assessment indicated that facility-related emissions are unlikely to cause adverse health risks to local residents, farmers, or other receptors (e.g., recreational users). For the 400,000 tonnes per year scenarios, slightly elevated risks were noted with respect to inhalation (hydrogen chloride) and infant consumption of breast milk (dioxins and furans), but only during predicted ‘upset conditions’ (i.e. facility start-up, shutdown, and loss of air pollution control) that represent unusual and/or transient occurrences. However, current provincial regulations require that additional environmental screening would be mandatory prior to expansion of the facility beyond the initial approved capacity (140,000 tonnes per year). Therefore, the potential risks due to upset conditions for the 400,000 tonnes per year scenario should be more closely investigated if future expansion is pursued.

Site specific risk assessment of an energy-from-waste/thermal treatment facility in Durham Region, Ontario, Canada. Part B: Ecological risk assessment

The regions of Durham and York in Ontario, Canada have partnered to construct an energy-from-waste (EFW) thermal treatment facility as part of a long term strategy for the management of their municipal solid waste. In this paper we present the results of a comprehensive ecological risk assessment (ERA) for this planned facility, based on baseline sampling and site specific modeling to predict facility-related emissions, which was subsequently accepted by regulatory authorities. Emissions were estimated for both the approved initial operating design capacity of the facility (140,000tonnes per year) and the maximum design capacity (400,000tonnes per year). In general, calculated ecological hazard quotients (EHQs) and screening ratios (SRs) for receptors did not exceed the benchmark value (1.0). The only exceedances noted were generally due to existing baseline media concentrations, which did not differ from those expected for similar unimpacted sites in Ontario. This suggests that these exceedances reflect conservative assumptions applied in the risk assessment rather than actual potential risk. However, under predicted upset conditions at 400,000tonnes per year (i.e., facility start-up, shutdown, and loss of air pollution control), a potential unacceptable risk was estimated for freshwater receptors with respect to benzo(g,h,i)perylene (SR=1.1), which could not be attributed to baseline conditions. Although this slight exceedance reflects a conservative worst-case scenario (upset conditions coinciding with worst-case meteorological conditions), further investigation of potential ecological risk should be performed if this facility is expanded to the maximum operating capacity in the future.

Supporting start-up of BNR facilities: the role of dynamic modeling

Supporting start-up of BNR facilities: the role of dynamic modeling

Technology Focus: Production and Facilities (December 2012)

Technology Focus Commissioning and startup of major oil and gas projects is a project in its own right, running in parallel with the main project. It requires years of advance planning. The management and detailed planning of this phase are crucial to the smooth transition from construction to operation. There are several reasons that, in recent years, the commissioning and startup phase is becoming more challenging. The size, complexity, and costs of projects have increased steadily. Facilities costs now represent a substantial amount of the development costs. For example, for a typical new onshore development in the Middle East, the total investment costs are roughly split equally between drilling and facilities. More stringent environmental regulations and the increased emphasis on safety and automation have also contributed to making startup more challenging. The industry needs to learn from past experience to continuously improve performance of megaprojects. A recent study of major industrial projects by Ed Merrow of Independent Project Analysis was published in the April edition of SPE’s new bimonthly magazine, Oil and Gas Facilities. It showed that oil industry megaprojects fared very poorly compared with nonexploration and production (E&P) projects. The study found that the majority of E&P projects were schedule driven to minimize the time to first oil. It noted that “the drive for unobtainable speed to first oil is crippling the industry.” Because startup is the last phase of the project, there is little margin for schedule slippage. To shareholders and management, the all-important date of first oil represents the turning point in the project cash flow. All parties—project team, contractors, and vendors—are under immense pressure to meet this date. As the industry moves into deeper water, commissioning and startup of offshore and subsea facilities requires special attention. Earlier this year, the Norwegian classification foundation Det Norsk Veritas (DNV) published a new recommended practice, DNV-RP-A205. This publication gives the best practice for commissioning topside process facilities in mobile marine units such as floating production, storage, and offloading units. Precommissioning and commissioning of subsea production systems is addressed in American Petroleum Institute Recommended Practice 17A, which is also International Organization for Standardization standard 13628-1. In reviewing papers for this month’s feature on production and facilities, more than a dozen papers contained the words “commissioning” or “startup” in the paper title. I hope the selected papers, as well as the ones listed for further reading, will give readers an appreciation of the complexities associated with the commissioning and startup of major oil and gas projects in different parts of the world. Recommended additional reading at OnePetro: www.onepetro.org. IPTC 14518 Virtual Measurement Value During Startup of Major Offshore Projects by R. Cramer, Shell, et al. (See JPT, September 2012, Page 89.) OTC 22754 Precommissioning of First Interfield Pipeline of Brazilian Presalt Projects by Sergio R. Feitosa, Weatherford, et al. SPE 157642 Starting Up Megaprojects—Experiences With the Startup of Pearl GTL by Roel Cornelisse, Qatar Shell, et al. SPE 155143 ONGC’s C-Series Trunk Pipeline Commissioning by P.V. Sateesh Kumar, Oil & Natural Gas Corporation, et al.

DWPF Startup Frit Viscosity Measurement Round Robin Results

A viscosity standard is needed to replace the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) glasses currently being used to calibrate viscosity measurement equipment. The current NIST glasses are either unavailable or less than ideal for calibrating equipment to measure the viscosity of high‐level waste glasses. This report documents the results of a viscosity round robin study conducted on the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) startup frit. DWPF startup frit was selected because its viscosity‐temperature relationship is similar to most DWPF and Hanford high‐level waste glass compositions. The glass underwent grinding and blending to homogenize the large batch. Portions of the batch were supplied to eight laboratories for viscosity measurements, which were conducted following a specified temperature schedule with a temperature range of 1150°C–950°C, with an option to measure viscosity at temperatures below 950°C if their equipment was capable. Results were used to fit the Vogel‐Fulcher‐Tamman‐Hesse and Arrhenius equations to viscosity as a function of temperature for the entire temperature range of 460°C through 1250°C as well as the limited temperature interval of ~ 950°C through 1250°C. The standard errors for confidence and prediction were determined for the fitted models.

Resolving UV Hydraulic Issues During Facility Start-Up

Resolving UV Hydraulic Issues During Facility Start-Up

Shell R&D facility start-up soon

Background: PERB11 is a multicopy polymorphic gene family found in association with HLA Class I genes within the major histocompatibility complex (MHC). Although its function is unknown, PERB11 has sequence similarities to HLA Class I and other related proteins. To explore the possible functional roles for PERB11, homology models have been constructed using both HLA Class I and Class I-like protein structures as templates.Results: The models show that PERB11.1 appears to have an unusual distribution of charged residues that potentially give the molecule a distinct polarity. Furthermore, a cluster of negatively charged residues in the traditional P2 site may form a novel binding site for a positively charged ligand such as a metal ion or complex. Other charged residues line the floor and walls of the cleft and are able to form salt bridges, reminiscent of the closed cleft of the Class I-like mouse neonatal Fc receptor structure. The closely related PERB11.2 family has a different arrangement of charged residues in the cleft, but these residues are still able to form salt bridges. Unlike HLA Class I, the majority of polymorphic positions in the PERB11 family occur outside the cleft and on the surface of the molecule.Conclusions: Homology models for PERB11 suggest that the structure is capable of associating with β2 microglobulin or a similar molecule. Furthermore, not all of the potential glycosylation sites suggested by the PERB11 sequences appear viable. Importantly, the models suggest that the molecule has a less accessible cleft than HLA Class I and is not, therefore, able to bind peptides. Other small ligands, including metal ions, might be bound, however.