FERTILIZER, NITROGEN, & POTASH SERVICES
Control Costs & Improve Reliability
The global demand for fertilizer is growing, and the speed in which farmers can sow their crops during the planting season creates a high demand for safe and reliable asset performance in fertilizer, nitrogen, ammonia, and potash manufacturing facilities and terminals.
At Equity, we work with owner-operators to increase the long-term reliability and safety of all equipment and assets in a facility. Our multi-disciplinary team provides consulting services, software, and training to help prevent future failures, manage risk, control inspection costs throughout a facility’s lifecycle, and meet jurisdictional requirements.
- Improve safety & reliability
- Improve business continuity
- Avoid costly equipment downtime
- Increase inspection effectiveness
Learn More About Fertilizer, Nitrogen, & Potash From Equity's Experts
Fertilizer, Nitrogen, & Potash Consulting Service Areas
Extend an asset integrity management program to pipelines and facilities to ensure safe, efficient, and reliable operations.
Access the Equity Engineering Practices (EEPs) detailed and customizable platform to satisfy process safety management requirements.
Conduct proactive FFS to identify brittle fracture or other damage mechanisms and develop strategic inspection plans.
Establish measurement objectives and constraints to improve the safety and reliability of instrument and control systems.
Identify and understand potential HTHA and other damage mechanisms that may cause equipment failure or create adverse operating or maintenance issues.
Define anticipated damage and necessary maintenance to keep equipment or tanks in-service.
Verify safety critical pressure relieving systems, provide adequate protection, and meet the latest jurisdictional and RAGAGEP requirements.
Compare upfront costs of design improvements with the long-term risk reduction and inspection savings they generate.
Conduct onsite piping and structural vibration surveys to evaluate equipment, assess the risk of vibration, and mitigate vibration fatigue failures.
Ammonia Storage Tanks
Developing a repeatable, in-service inspection strategy for ammonia storage tanks will help improve operational reliability and minimize the probability of failure from several damage mechanisms, including ammonia stress corrosion cracking (SCC). Our consulting team helps to navigate the challenges of high-consequence ammonia storage tanks with a multidisciplinary approach to inspection strategies. We integrate risk-based inspection (RBI), fitness-for-service (FFS), and materials and corrosion expertise to provide a comprehensive and practical inspection strategy for your ammonia storage tanks.
Case Study: Establishing Optimal Inspection Strategy for Ammonia Storage Tanks
Issue
A North American-based fertilizer manufacturer asked us to develop appropriate inspection strategies and intervals for an ammonia storage tank, with a focus on non-intrusive inspection techniques given concerns with entering the tank and promoting ammonia SCC.
Solution
We performed a multidisciplinary assessment of the ammonia storage tank to determine the recommended inspection interval and method of inspection. This approach included RBI assessments per API RBI 581 and Fertilizers Europe, as well as an FFS evaluation per API 579.
Result
The integrated approach allowed for a deeper understanding of the tank’s probability of failure, which was incorporated into the RBI assessments and resulted in a recommended inspection interval of 10 years from commissioning. The client was also provided with inspection strategy recommendations to focus inspection efforts on critical tank locations without the need for tank entry. This strategy mitigates ammonia SCC while also reducing inspection costs and operational disruptions.
Software for Every Stage of the Asset Lifecycle
Our state-of-the-art software helps you make informed decisions to keep your plants safe and operating efficiently. Our cloud-native software platforms support all aspects of equipment lifecycle management by integrating the latest API and ASME codes and standards with the depth of Equity’s engineering experience.
- PlantManager 6.0 includes inspection planning and management tools and advanced engineering analysis calculators.
- eec offers more than 40 calculators and tools for conducting Level 1 and Level 2 fitness-for-service, fatigue analysis, and other design or in-service evaluations.
- IntelliJoint is a one-stop solution for evaluating and optimizing bolted joint assemblies.
- SIMFLEX-IV is a piping stress analysis software.
- eecHotTap assesses the risk of burn-through or cold cracking during a hot tap welding procedure.
Industry-Relevant Training
Equity offers virtual and in-person training courses to support your professional growth, wherever you are in your career — new hire, mid-career, or expert. You will learn from a team of highly skilled and knowledgeable engineers who have 20+ years of industry experience. All E2G training courses qualify as activities for API’s new CPD hours and align with the latest API and ASME codes and standards.
Testimonials
Our Experts
Equity employs some of the most talented engineers in the industry – we are your “go-to” consultants for the hard-to-solve problems. Equity is internationally recognized in the refining, petrochemical, and chemical industries as a leader on aging infrastructure services and support. Our team combines their extensive experience with state-of-the-art technology to help extend the lifecycle of your existing assets and create safe operating environments.
Our experts:
- Are the primary authors on WRC 528 and WRC 562
- Serve as lead investigators on API 579, API 571, and API 581
- Have served as the API 520 task force chairperson for more than 25 years
- Are members of API sub-committee of mechanical equipment (SOME)
- Are certified ISO VCAT-IV vibration analysts
