Section VIII - Div. 1 exemption for pipe vessel?

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I'm designing a 10-inch oil reservoir about 40-inches long. It'll be made with Sch. 80 pipe and weld end caps. Three nozzles will be attached with 150# flanges. These are all standard piping components. Looking at UG-11, specifically UG-11©(5), is there an exemption for code stamping a vessel made from standard piping components if the calculations show that it is adequate? The piping system itself doesn't get code stamped so why would a vessel made from pipe?

Any insight?

 
The intent of UG-11 is really to dictate what parts of fabrication don't have to show up on your P4 data reports, i.e, I don't have to have a data report for some standard product forms. That does NOT exclude you from having to stamp a vessel that is fabricated from these parts.

What you really need to look for is right up front in the scope, specifically U-1©(2). If this is just a reservoir being designed to Sec. VIII, if its rated under 15psi, its exempt from stamping 99% of the time, barring laws from local jurisdiction (of which LA plays pretty dang loose.) Even then, there are a bunch of exemptions (such as those extrapolated for commercially manufactured compressed air tanks, etc.) When in doubt, check with your AI.

 
The guidance I was once given is that if no process/reaction is taking place inside the vessel it is fine to classify as piping (or reservoir if appropriate), and so the stamp is not needed. I never confirmed this interpretation with the Code though...

 
It's my experience that the stamping is a means to lead back to the paper work that is required to be maintained by whoever designed the vessel. Design calcs referencing sec.VIII, drawings, u- forms (u1, u1a, u2, etc...) all in an effort to ensure that someone did their due diligence in manufacturing the vessel. There are also instances where the vessel does not need to be asme certified but still stamped with a federal code reference (DOT 406 for example for a transport vehicle) that typically follows some version of asme. Some vessels are even "non-code" but are not allowed to contain hazardous materials. you might check PHMSA (http://www.phmsa.dot.gov/public) to see exactly what you need in order to minimize liability for a vessel that will contain hazardous materials (oil). Sorry to complicate this but it's never as simple as just attaching a sticker. As soon as you cross over to hazmat, the Feds get nervous for explosions for some reason!!!

 
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