Current through Register 2024 Notice Reg. No. 38, September 20, 2024
(a) All unfired pressure vessels, boilers,
and fired pressure vessels shall meet all applicable requirements of the
Unfired Pressure Vessel Safety Orders and the Boiler and Fired Pressure Vessel
Safety Orders unless the design, material and construction of the pressure
vessel or boiler is accepted by the Division as equivalent to the ASME
Code.
(b) Maximum allowable working
pressure.
(1) The employer shall establish, or
cause to be established, the maximum allowable working pressure of each boiler
or pressure vessel in accordance with the rules of recognized pressure vessel
codes applicable to the pressure vessel service involved.
(2) No pressure vessel shall be operated
above its maximum allowable working pressure at coincident design
temperature(s).
(3) The maximum
allowable working pressure for each vessel shall be evaluated at intervals
sufficiently frequent to give due consideration to corrosion and other factors
causing deterioration. The original code of construction shall be used to
establish the allowable stresses and joint efficiencies when re-rating,
de-rating or calculating the pressure boundary minimum thickness of a
vessel.
(c) Maintenance,
inspection, and repair procedures.
(1)
Maintenance, inspection, and repair procedures of unfired pressure vessels
shall comply with API 510, Pressure Vessel Inspection Code, Eighth Edition,
June 1997, Addendum 4, August 2003; API 580, Risk-based Inspection, Recommended
Practice, First Edition, May 2002; API 579, Fitness-for-Service, Recommended
Practice, First Edition, January 2000; or the National Board Inspection
Code/American National Standard ANSI/NB-23, 2004 Edition; which are hereby
incorporated by reference.
(2) A
written risk-based inspection program, as described in API 510-2003 and API
580-2002, may be used to increase the internal or on-stream inspection limits
required by API 510-2003 Section 6.4 to a maximum of 15 years, or the external
inspection interval described by API 510-2003, Section 6.3 to a maximum of 10
years, provided it is reviewed and accepted by the Division before the program
is implemented, and every three years thereafter. Any revisions made to the
accepted risk-based inspection program must also be submitted, reviewed, and
accepted by the Division prior to implementation of these revisions.
(A) The risk-based inspection program shall
not apply to pressure vessels and boilers that require "Permits to Operate"
issued by the Division.
(B) The
plan shall not apply to safety relief devices.
(C) The program shall indicate:
1. Acceptance by signature of plant
management.
2. Involvement of plant
operating, engineering, inspection, and maintenance personnel by
signature.
3. The type of vessels
covered.
4. The methodology used to
create the program.
5. A listing of
the vessels covered by the program, with a clear indication of those vessels
that have an inspection interval beyond the 10-year or half remaining life as
required by API 510-2003 Section 6.4.
(3) A written fitness-for-service program, as
described in API 510-2003 and API 579-2000, may be used to evaluate pressure
vessels for continued service when found to have degradation that could affect
their load carrying capability, provided it is reviewed and accepted by the
Division before the program is implemented, and every three years thereafter.
Any revisions made to the accepted fitness-for-service program must also be
submitted, reviewed, and accepted by the Division prior to implementation of
these revisions.
(A) The program shall
indicate:
1. Acceptance by signature of plant
management.
2. The type of vessels
covered.
3. How fitness-for-service
results are documented. As a minimum, this documentation shall include
acceptance of the fitness-for-service evaluation by signature of a technically
competent company employee that is designated to review and accept the
evaluation.
4. Involvement of plant
operating, engineering, inspection, and maintenance personnel by
signature.
5. The procedures in
place for notifying the Division within the next business day of initiating a
level 2 or 3 fitness-for-service evaluation as described in API 579-2000. Level
2 and 3 evaluations are subject to the acceptance of the Division. If the
review is subsequent to returning the vessel to service, the Division may, in
its reasonable discretion, require the unit be removed from
service.
(4)
Repair and alterations.
(A) Repair and
alteration of boilers and pressure vessels shall meet all applicable
requirements of the Unfired Pressure Vessel Safety Orders and the Boiler and
Fired Pressure Vessel Safety Orders.
(B) Repairs and alterations of pressure
vessels performed in a state other than California shall be done by a company
with a valid National Board 'R' stamp and inspected by an inspector holding a
valid National Board Commission and Certificate of Competency (or equivalent)
for the state in which the work is being performed. The repair or alteration
shall conform to all the requirements of this section and be stamped in
accordance with ANSI/NB-23-2004.
(C) Repairs.
1. Repairs shall be performed by one of the
following:
a. An organization in possession of
a valid ASME Certificate of Authorization;
b. An organization in possession of a valid
National Board Certificate of Authorization;
2. The API 510-2003 Code shall not be used
for the repair of boilers and pressure vessels as follows:
a. Boilers and fired pressure vessels as
defined in the Boiler and Fired Pressure Vessel Safety Orders;
b. Vessels as defined in the Unfired Pressure
Vessel Safety Orders, Section
460;
c. Vessels used in compressed air, LPG, CNG,
LNG, and NH3 services as defined in the Unfired Pressure Vessel Safety
Orders.
3. The employer
making the repair in accordance with API 510-2003 or ANSI/NB-23, 2004 shall
provide for inspection, documentation and certification of the work and shall
ensure prior authorization for the repair by a Qualified Inspector as defined
in the Unfired Pressure Vessel Safety Orders.
4. Inspection and certification of repairs
shall be made by an inspector, regularly employed by one of the following:
a. The Division;
b. A City or County;
c. The Authorized Inspection Agency of the
organization making the repair;
d.
The Authorized Inspection Agency which insures the boiler or pressure vessel;
or
e. The owner/user inspection
Agency.
5. Fillet weld
patches shall not be permitted unless acceptable to the Division. Acceptance by
the Division will be based on the materials, design and construction providing
safety equivalent to the original code of construction.
(D) Alterations.
1. Alterations to pressure vessels shall be
performed in compliance with ANSI/NB-23-2004, unless the material design and
construction are accepted by the Division as equivalent to the ASME
Code.
2. No alteration to a
pressure vessel shall be made until authorized by a Qualified Inspector as
defined in the Unfired Pressure Vessel Safety Orders.
3. Alterations shall be performed by one of
the following:
a. An organization in
possession of a valid ASME Certificate of Authorization, provided that the
alteration is within the scope of such authorization, and provided that the
organization's alteration program has been reviewed and accepted by the
Division.
b. An organization in
possession of a valid Certificate of Authorization issued by the National Board
of Boiler and Pressure Vessel Inspectors to use the National Board "R" symbol
stamp provided that the alteration is within the scope of such authorization,
and provided that the organization's alteration program has been reviewed and
accepted by the Division.
4. For alterations performed at a field site,
the scope of such authorization shall include field fabrication.
5. The employer making the alteration shall
provide for inspection, documentation, and certification of the work and shall
ensure prior authorization of the alteration by a Qualified Inspector holding a
valid Certificate of Competency issued by the Division.
6. Inspection and certification of
alterations shall be made by a Qualified Inspector, employed by one of the
following:
a. The Division;
b. A City or County;
c. The Authorized Inspection Agency of the
organization making the alteration;
d. The Authorized Inspection Agency which
insures the boiler or pressure vessel; or
e. The owner/user inspection agency, provided
the work was not performed by the Qualified Inspector's
employer.
7. A pressure
test shall be applied after an alteration as required by the applicable ASME
Code section. An alternative test or examination may be used subject to prior
acceptance by the Division.
1.
Repealer of subsection (e)(3) and new subsections (e)(3)-(e)(3)(F) and NOTE
filed 2-26-93; operative 3-29-93 (Register 93, No. 9).
2. Amendment
of article heading and section heading, repealer and new text filed 9-6-94;
operative 10-6-94 (Register 94, No. 36)
3. Amendment of section
heading and section filed 6-26-2006; operative 7-26-2006 (Register 2006, No.
26).
Note: Authority cited: Section
142.3, Labor
Code. Reference: Section
142.3, Labor
Code.