System pressure testing and leak checking
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During the initial startup of the methanol system, the operating pressure is 3.0 MPa. How is the system typically pressurized and leak-tested after it enters the plant? Currently, only nitrogen is available for this purpose. The pressure is only 0.7. If water is used for testing, too much water will be required; moreover, connecting additional equipment isn’t practical either. I would appreciate everyone’s advice
Buy a pressure testing machine; testing with air is sufficient. Considering factors such as density, the testing pressure does not need to be very high
Find a nitrogen tank truck and contact the pressure equipment; our facility is designed for a pressure of 8.1 Mpa, but medium-pressure nitrogen only reaches 6.5 Mpa
Methanol plants all have compressors to supply air; using soapy water for leak testing is inexpensive
The pipeline equipment has been pressure-tested; you mean the airtightness of the system, right!
If there is no medium-pressure nitrogen available, it’s indeed a problem; the method used on the 3rd or 4th floor can be applied. Why wasn’t a pipeline for supplying medium-pressure nitrogen designed into the system? Without it, subsequent operations will be very troublesome
If there is a recycle gas compressor, it can be used to apply pressure
The airtightness test still needs to be carried out. After purging the system, you can use a compressor to inject air or nitrogen in order to increase the pressure throughout the system and check for leaks; once air gets into the system, any leaks will be difficult to fix
We use nitrogen for leak detection, at low pressure – 3 kilograms – and the pressure remains stable for two hours; we also use soapy water to check for leaks.
The testing pressure should be at least equal to the operating pressure; otherwise, it might not leak during testing, but if leaks occur when the actual operating pressure is applied, that would be problematic