(b) Safety relief valves officially rated as to capacity shall have pop action when tested by steam.
(c) O-rings or other packing devices when used on the stems of safety relief valves shall be so arranged as not to affect their operation or capacity.
(d) The design shall incorporate guiding arrangements necessary to insure consistent operation and tightness. Excessive lengths of guiding surfaces should be avoided. Bottom guided designs are not permitted on safety relief valves.
(e) Safety valves shall have a controlled blowdown of 2 psi to 4 psi (15 kPa to 30 kPa) and this blowdown need not be adjustable.
(f) Safety valves shall be spring loaded. The spring shall be designed so that the full lift spring compression shall be no greater than 80% of the nominal solid deflection. The permanent set of the spring (defined as the difference between the free height and height measured 10 min after the spring has been compressed solid three additional times after presetting at room temperature) shall not exceed 0.5% of the free height.
(g) There shall be a lifting device and a mechanical connection between the lifting device and the disk capable of lifting the disk from the seat a distance of at least 1/16 in. (1.5 mm) with no pressure on the boiler.
(h) A body drain below seat level shall be provided by the Manufacturer for all safety valves and safety relief valves, except that the body drain may be omitted when the valve seat is above the bottom of the inside diameter of the discharge piping. For valves exceeding NPS 2½ (DN 65) the drain hole or holes shall be tapped not less than NPS 3/8 (DN 10). For valves NPS 2½ (DN 65) or smaller, the drain hole shall not be less than ¼ in. (6 mm) in diameter. Body drain connections shall not be plugged during or after field installation. In safety relief valves of the diaphragm type, the space above the diaphragm shall be vented to prevent a buildup of pressure above the diaphragm. Safety relief valves of the diaphragm type shall be so designed that failure or deterioration of the diaphragm material will not impair the ability of the valve to relieve at the rated capacity.
(i) In the design of the body of the valve consideration shall be given to minimizing the effects of water deposits.
(j) Valves shall be provided with wrenching surfaces to allow for normal installation without damaging operating parts.
(k) The set pressure tolerances, plus or minus, of safety valves shall not exceed 2 psi (15 kPa), and for safety relief valves shall not exceed 3 psi (20 kPa) for pressures up to and including 60 psig (400 kPa) and 5% for pressures above 60 psig (400 kPa).
(l) Safety valves shall be arranged so that they cannot be reset to relieve at a higher pressure than the maximum allowable working pressure of the boiler.
HG-401.2 Material Selection
(a) Cast iron seats and disks are not permitted.
(b) Adjacent sliding surfaces such as guides and disks shall both be of corrosion resistant material.
(c) Springs of corrosion resistant material or having a corrosion resistant coating are required.
(d) Material for seats and disks should be such as to provide a reasonable degree of resistance to steam cutting.
(e) Material for valve bodies and bonnets or their corresponding metallic pressure containing parts shall be listed in Section II, except that in cases where a manufacturer desires to make use of materials other than those listed in Section II, he shall establish and maintain specifications requiring equivalent control of chemical and physical properties and quality.
(f) Synthetic disk inserts of O-ring or other types if used shall be compatible with the maximum design temperature established for the valve.
(g) No materials liable to fail due to deterioration or vulcanization when subjected to saturated steam temperature corresponding to capacity test pressure shall be used.
HG-401.3 Manufacture and Inspection
(a) A Manufacturer shall demonstrate to the satisfaction of an ASME designee that his manufacturing, production, and testing facilities and quality control procedures will insure close agreement between the performance of random production samples and the performance of those valves submitted for capacity certification.
(b) Manufacturing, inspection, and test operations including capacity are subject to inspections at any time by an ASME designee.
(c) A Manufacturer may be granted permission to apply, the HV Code Symbol to production pressure relief valves capacity certified in accordance with HG-402.3 provided the following tests are successfully completed. This permission shall expire on the sixth anniversary of the date it is initially granted. The permission may be extended for 6 year periods if the following tests are successfully repeated within the 6 month period before expiration.
(1) Two sample production pressure relief valves of a size and capacity within the capability of an ASME accepted laboratory shall be selected by an ASME designee.
(2) Operational and capacity tests shall be conducted in the presence of an ASME designee at an ASME accepted laboratory. The valve Manufacturer shall be notified of the time of the test and may have representatives present to witness the test.
(3) Should any valve fail to relieve at or above its certified capacity or should it fail to meet performance requirements of this Section, the test shall be repeated at the rate of two replacement valves, selected in accordance with HG-401.3(c)(1), for each valve that failed.
(4) Failure of any of the replacement valves to meet the capacity or the performance requirements of this Section shall be cause for revocation within 60 days of the authorization to use the Code Symbol on that particular type of valve. During this period, the Manufacturer shall demonstrate the cause of such deficiency and the action taken to guard against future occurrence, and the requirements of HG-401.3(c) above shall apply.
(d) Safety valves shall be sealed in a manner to prevent the valve from being taken apart without breaking the seal. Safety relief valves shall be set and sealed so that they cannot be reset without breaking the seal.
HG-401.4 Manufacturer's Testing
(a) Every safety valve shall be tested to demonstrate its popping point, blowdown, and tightness. Every safety relief valve shall be tested to demonstrate its opening point and tightness. Safety valves shall be tested on steam or air and safety relief valves on water, steam, or air. When the blowdown is nonadjustable, the blowdown test may be performed on a sampling basis.
(b) A Manufacturer shall have a well-established program for the application, calibration, and maintenance of test gages.
(c) Testing time on safety valves shall be sufficient, depending on size and design, to insure that test results are repeatable and representative of field performance.
(d) Test fixtures and test drums shall be of adequate size and capacity to assure representative pop action and accuracy of blowdown adjustment.
(e) A tightness test shall be conducted at maximum expected operating pressure, but not at a pressure exceeding the reseating pressure of the valve.
HG-401.5 Design Requirements. At the time of the submission of valves for capacity certification, or testing in accordance with this Section, the ASME Designee has the authority to review the design for conformity with the requirements of this Section, and to reject or require modification of designs that do not conform, prior to capacity testing.
HG-402 DISCHARGE CAPACITIES OF SAFETY AND SAFETY RELIEF VALVES
HG-402.1 Valve Markings. Each safety or safety-relief valve shall be plainly marked with the required data by the Manufacturer in such a way that the markings will not be obliterated in service. The markings shall be stamped, etched, impressed, or cast on the valve or on a nameplate, which shall be securely fastened to the valve.
(a) The markings shall include the following:
(1) the name or an acceptable abbreviation of the Manufacturer
(2) Manufacturer's design or type number
(3) NPS size _____ in. (DN) (the nominal pipe size of the valve inlet)
(4) set pressure _____ psi
(5) capacity _____ lb/hr (kg/hr), or capacity _____ Btu/hr in accordance with HG-402.7 (a)
(6) year built or, alternatively, a coding may be marked on the valves such that the valve Manufacturer can identify the year the valve was assembled and tested, and
(7) ASME Symbol as shown in Fig. HG-402
(b) Nameplates of safety or safety-relief valves may be marked solely in metric units under the following conditions:
(1) The pressure-relief device will be installed in a location where metric units are required or accepted by local authorities, if any.
(2) Metric units shall be those required by the user when not mandated by enforcement authorities.
(3) The Manufacturer's quality control system shall provide for the conversion from U.S. customary units to the metric units that will be marked on the nameplate.
HG-402.2 Authorization to Use ASME Stamp. Each safety valve to which the Code Symbol (Fig. HG-402) is to be applied shall be produced by a Manufacturer and/or Assembler who is in possession of a valid Certificate of Authorization. (See HG-540.) For all valves to be stamped with the HV Symbol, a Certified Individual (CI) shall provide oversight to ensure that the use of the “HV" Code symbol on a safety valve or safety relief valve is in accordance with this Section and that the use of the “HV" Code symbol is documented on a Certificate of Conformance Form, HV-1.
(a) Requirements for the Certified Individual (CI). The CI shall
(1) be an employee of the Manufacturer.
(2) be qualified and certified by the Manufacturer. Qualification shall include the following as a minimum:
(a) knowledge of the requirements of this Section for the application of the “HV" Code Symbol
(b) knowledge of the Manufacturer's quality program
(c) training commensurate with the scope, complexity, or special nature of the activities to which oversight is to be provided
(3) have a record, maintained and certified by the Manufacturer, containing objective evidence of the qualifications of the CI and the training program provided
(b) Duties of the Certified Individual (CI). The CI shall
(1) verify that each item to which the Code Symbol is applied meets all applicable requirements of this Section and has a current capacity certification for the “HV" symbol
(2) review documentation for each lot of items to be stamped, to verify, for the lot, that the requirements of this Section have been completed
(3) sign the Certificate of Conformance Form (HV-1) prior to release of control of the item
(c) Certificate of Conformance Form (HV-1) (see Appendix N)
(1) The Certificate of Conformance shall be filled out by the Manufacturer and signed by the Certified Individual. Multiple duplicate pressure relief devices may be recorded on a single entry provided the devices are identical and produced in the same lot.
(2) The Manufacturer's written quality control program shall include requirements for completion of Certificates of Conformance forms and retention by the Manufacturer for a minimum of 5 years.
HG-402.3 Determination of Capacity to Be Stamped on Valves. The Manufacturer of the valves that are to be stamped with the Code symbol shall submit valves for testing to a place where adequate equipment and personnel are available to conduct pressure and relieving-capacity tests which shall be made in the presence of and certified by an authorized observer. The place, personnel, and authorized observer shall be approved by the Boiler and Pressure Vessel Committee. The valves shall be tested in one of the following three methods.
(a) Coefficient Method. Tests shall be made to determine the lift, popping, and blowdown pressures, and the capacity of at least three valves each of three representative sizes (a total of nine valves). Each valve of a given size shall be set at a different pressure. However, safety valves for steam boilers shall have all nine valves set at 15 psig (100 kPa). A coefficient shall be established for each test as follows:
The average of the coefficients KD of the nine tests required shall be multiplied by 0.90, and this product shall be taken as the coefficient K of that design. The stamped capacity for all sizes and pressures shall not exceed the value determined from the following formulas:
For 45 deg seat,
(US. Customary Units)
W = 51.5 pDLP × 0.707K
(SI Units)
W = 5.25 pDLP × 0.707K
For flat seat,
(U.S. Customary Units)
W = 51.5 pDLPK
(SI Units)
W = 5.25 pDLPK
For nozzle,
(U.S. Customary Units)
W = 51.5APK
(SI Units)
W = 5.25APK
where
A = nozzle-throat area
D = seat diameter
K = coefficient of discharge for the design
L = lift
