Abstract
Pressure relief devices (PRDs) are used to protect system components from high pressures. Appropriately sized devices eliminate these high pressures while relieving a minimal amount of process fluid. As a result, they are frequently found in both incompressible and compressible systems to relieve overpressures. However, relief devices are historically known to be ineffective for handling surge overpressures. While PRD standards and sources simply encourage the avoidance of surge, it is an inevitability within most systems and the interaction between surge and PRDs, both conventional and surge-mitigating, are investigated here within.
This paper discusses the basics of PRD terminology, mathematical PRD models, and PRD computer simulation modeling with associated examples. Basic design principles, guidelines for identifying at-risk-for-surge systems, and relief valve selection criteria for surge mitigation are presented.
