1910.106(b)(1): Design and construction of tanks

(1) Design and construction of tanks — 4 citations

(i) Materials. Open (b)(1)(i) 1 citations

(a) Tanks shall be built of steel except as provided in paragraphs (b)(1)(i) (b) through (e) of this section.

(b) Tanks may be built of materials other than steel for installation underground or if required by the properties of the liquid stored. Tanks located above ground or inside buildings shall be of noncombustible construction.

(c) Tanks built of materials other than steel shall be designed to specifications embodying principles recognized as good engineering design for the material used.

(d) Unlined concrete tanks may be used for storing flammable liquids having a gravity of 40° API or heavier. Concrete tanks with special lining may be used for other services provided the design is in accordance with sound engineering practice.

(e) [Reserved]

(f) Special engineering consideration shall be required if the specific gravity of the liquid to be stored exceeds that of water or if the tanks are designed to contain flammable liquids at a liquid temperature below 0 °F.

(ii) Fabrication.

(a) [Reserved]

(b) Metal tanks shall be welded, riveted, and caulked, brazed, or bolted, or constructed by use of a combination of these methods. Filler metal used in brazing shall be nonferrous metal or an alloy having a melting point above 1000 °F. and below that of the metal joined.

(iii) Atmospheric tanks. 1 citations

(a) Atmospheric tanks shall be built in accordance with acceptable good standards of design. Atmospheric tanks may be built in accordance with the following consensus standards that are incorporated by reference as specified in § 1910.6:

(1) Underwriters' Laboratories, Inc., Subjects No. 142, Standard for Steel Aboveground Tanks for Flammable and Combustible Liquids, 1968; No. 58, Standard for Steel Underground Tanks for Flammable and Combustible Liquids, Fifth Edition, December 1961; or No. 80, Standard for Steel Inside Tanks for Oil-Burner Fuel, September 1963.

(2) American Petroleum Institute Standards No. 650, Welded Steel Tanks for Oil Storage, Third Edition, 1966.

(3) American Petroleum Institute Standards No. 12B, Specification for Bolted Production Tanks, Eleventh Edition, May 1958, and Supplement 1, March 1962; No. 12D, Specification for Large Welded Production Tanks, Seventh Edition, August 1957; or No. 12F, Specification for Small Welded Production Tanks, Fifth Edition, March 1961. Tanks built in accordance with these standards shall be used only as production tanks for storage of crude petroleum in oil-producing areas.

(b) Tanks designed for underground service not exceeding 2,500 gallons capacity may be used aboveground.

(c) Low-pressure tanks and pressure vessels may be used as atmospheric tanks.

(d) Atmospheric tanks shall not be used for the storage of a flammable liquid at a temperature at or above its boiling point.

(iv) Low pressure tanks.

(a) The normal operating pressure of the tank shall not exceed the design pressure of the tank.

(b) Low-pressure tanks shall be built in accordance with acceptable standards of design. Low-pressure tanks may be built in accordance with the following consensus standards that are incorporated by reference as specified in § 1910.6:

(1) American Petroleum Institute Standard No. 620. Recommended Rules for the Design and Construction of Large, Welded, Low-Pressure Storage Tanks, Third Edition, 1966.

(2) The principles of the Code for Unfired Pressure Vessels, Section VIII of the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessels Code, 1968.

(c) Atmospheric tanks built according to Underwriters' Laboratories, Inc., requirements in subdivision (iii)(a) of and shall be limited to 2.5 p.s.i.g. under emergency venting conditions.

This paragraph may be used for operating pressures not exceeding 1 p.s.i.g.

(d) Pressure vessels may be used as low-pressure tanks.

(v) Pressure vessels. Open (b)(1)(v)

(a) The normal operating pressure of the vessel shall not exceed the design pressure of the vessel.

(b) Pressure vessels shall be built in accordance with the Code for Unfired Pressure Vessels, Section VIII of the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code 1968.

(vi) Provisions for internal corrosion. When tanks are not designed in accordance with the American Petroleum Institute, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, or the Underwriters' Laboratories, Inc.'s, standards, or if corrosion is anticipated beyond that provided for in the design formulas used, additional metal thickness or suitable protective coatings or linings shall be provided to compensate for the corrosion loss expected during the design life of the tank. 2 citations