Design of fire dike for liquid ammonia spherical tanks
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For these 2 project liquid ammonia spheres with a capacity of 2000 m3 each, is it necessary to install a dike between the two spheres? Due to a regulation issued by the Work Safety Administration in 2014, flammable liquids must be stored in separate tanks, with fire dikes or fire barriers installed ； The fire dikes for liquid ammonia are designed based on liquefied hydrocarbons; since liquid ammonia is treated as a liquefied hydrocarbon (and liquefied hydrocarbons are not considered flammable liquids), is it then not necessary to have a separate dike for each tank? However, liquid ammonia is classified as Category B-A and is also a flammable liquid, so it seems that a dike is necessary. Since liquid ammonia leaks and evaporates into a gaseous state with no liquid remaining, dikes seem to be of little use. How to deal with it?
The properties of liquid ammonia are similar to those of liquefied hydrocarbons; in the event of a large-scale leak when stored at room temperature, it will vaporize promptly. As a result, the function of fire dikes is not significant, and generally no specific volume requirements exist. However, due to the requirements outlined in the documents issued by the Work Safety Administration, it is recommended to set up separate dikes; the requirements for these dikes can be relaxed slightly to save costs