Course detail

Design of Equipment for Process Industry

FSI-KSZAcad. year: 2026/2027

The course focuses on the ageing and lifetime management of process equipment operating under real service conditions. It provides a comprehensive overview of material degradation mechanisms and their mathematical descriptions, including fatigue, creep at elevated temperatures, and corrosion.
Special attention is given to hydrogen technologies, with emphasis on material damage processes in hydrogen environments. Topics include the assessment of allowable growth of defects identified through non-destructive examination, evaluation of hydrogen-caused defects, and methodologies for assessing material resistance to brittle fracture.
The course also covers the development of damage scenarios for process equipment, including the selection of independent variables and their statistical distributions required for the computation of failure probabilities and risk assessment of major equipment accidents

Language of instruction

Czech

Number of ECTS credits

6

Mode of study

Not applicable.

Guarantor

prof. Dr. Ing. Marcus Reppich

Department

Institute of Process Engineering (ÚPI)

Entry knowledge

Basic knowledge from elasticity and strength of structures, mechanics, limit states and theory of materials.

Rules for evaluation and completion of the course

Active attendance at computer-assisted exercises.

Final exam consists of written and oral parts, where students must prove acquired theoretical and practical knowledge, level of which is reflected by final grade (A-F).

Aims

After completing the course, the student will:

  • be able to apply acquired theoretical as well as practical knowledge in solving real problems
  • have enhanced his/her knowledge in structural design of process equipment
  • be familiar with damage mechanisms a lifetime management of process equipment
  • be acquainted with design requirements for equipment intended for cyclic as well as creep temperature services according to European standards and with crack growth assessment possibilities
  • have overview around hydrogen damage mechanisms and hydrogen influence on strength as well as lifetime of equipment
  • be familiar with hydrogen damage assessments using standard API 579-1
  • improve the ability to use expert literature and be acquainted with specific technical terms

Course absolvents will be able to utilize acquired knowledge and come to realization that process equipment damage can be affected by operating conditions. They will be aware of available tools and of the need for continuous development. They will get an overview of extent and quality of initial information for design as well as lifetime management of process equipment.

Study aids

Not applicable.

Prerequisites and corequisites

Not applicable.

Basic literature

Anderson, T.L.: Fracture Mechanics Fundamentals and Applications. CRC Press, Inc. 1995 (EN)
C. F. Andreone and S. Yokell, Tubular heat exchanger inspection, maintenance, and repair. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1998. (EN)
DOWLING, Norman E. Mechanical behavior of materials: engineering methods for deformation, fracture, and fatigue. 3rd ed. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, 2007, 912 s. ISBN 0-13-186312-6 (EN)
G. A. Antaki, Fitness-for-service and integrity of piping, vessels, and tanks: ASME code simplifed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2005. (EN)
LEE, Yung-Li, Mark E BARKEY a Hong-Tae KANG. Metal fatigue analysis handbook: practical problem-solving techniques for computer-aided engineering. Waltham: Butterworth-Heinemann, 2012, l, 580 s. ISBN 978-0-12-385204-5. (EN)
Lemaitre, J. & Chaboche, J.L.: Mechanics of Solid Materials. Cambridge University Press, 1990 (EN)
R. D. Port and H. M. Herro, The Nalco guide to boiler failure analysis. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1991. (EN)

Recommended reading

Němec, J.: Prodlužování životnosti konstrukcí a předcházení jejich haváriím, , 0
POPOV, Branko N., Jong-Won LEE a Milos B. DJUKIC. Hydrogen Permeation and Hydrogen-Induced Cracking. In: Handbook of Environmental Degradation of Materials [online]. B.m.: Elsevier, 2018 [vid. 2023-07-17], s. 133–162. ISBN 978-0-323-52472-8. Dostupné z: doi:10.1016/B978-0-323-52472-8.00007-1  (EN)
SAN MARCHI, Chris, Joseph A. RONEVICH, Paolo BORTOT, Matteo ORTOLANI, Kang XU a Mahendra RANA. Technical Basis for Fatigue Crack Growth Rules in Gaseous Hydrogen for ASME B31.12 Code Case 220 and for Revision of ASME VIII-3 Code Case 2938-1. In: ASME 2024 Pressure Vessels & Piping Conference [online]. B.m.: American Society of Mechanical Engineers Digital Collection, 2024 [vid. 2025-07-24]. Dostupné z: doi:10.1115/PVP2024-122529  (EN)
Vejvoda, S. - Suchánek, M. - Majer, L. - Podhora, J.: Navrhování a posuzování svařovaných konstrukcí a tlakových zařízení, , 0
Vejvoda, S. - Vlk, M.: Stavba chemických zařízení IIb. Pevnost a životnost tlakových nádob., , 0

Classification of course in study plans

  • Programme N-PRI-P Master's 2 year of study, summer semester, compulsory

Type of course unit

 

Lecture

26 hod., optionally

Teacher / Lecturer

prof. Dr. Ing. Marcus Reppich

Syllabus

Basic requirements for structures and options for designer and stress engineer, lifetime management of process equipment.

Damage mechanisms of materials at operational conditions.

Material response to loading.

Stresses categories. Assessment of strength of structures at the monotonic growth load.

Assessment of damage of material at cyclic loading, high-cycle and low-cycle fatigue.

Assessment of material resistance to brittle fracture.

Allowable defect growth.

Assessment of material damage due to elevated temperature (creep).

Assessment of material damage by stress corrosion cracking.

Process equipment design philosophy according to ASME code and ČSN standards.

Using damage assessment in lifetime/ageing management systems.

Influence of hydrogen on strength and residual lifetime of process equipment – Introduction, hydrogen damage mechanisms

Influence of hydrogen on strength and residual lifetime of process equipment – Crack growth in hydrogen environment

Computer-assisted exercise

26 hod., compulsory

Teacher / Lecturer

prof. Dr. Ing. Marcus Reppich

Syllabus

Topic units:
1. Plasticity of materials
- description of the behavior of steels in tensile tests and under real loading
- plasticity of materials and material models of plasticity
- limit state of stress and theory of plasticity
- shakedown, ratcheting
2. Fatigue of materials
- main factors influencing fatigue
- stress cycles, Wöhler curve
- low-cycle fatigue, Manson-Coffin life curve
- calculation of fatigue life of a pressure vessel according to ČSN EN 13445-3 chapter 17
- damage accumulation hypothesis
- high-cycle fatigue, Haigh diagram
- counting cycles under general loading
3. Fracture mechanics and crack growth
- brittle fracture, transition temperatures
- fracture toughness and stress intensity factor
- Griffith fracture criterion
- crack growth, Paris-Erdogan relationship
4. Creep
- main factors influencing creep
- creep curves
- calculation of creep damage according to European standards
5. Hydrogen damage
- evaluation of hydrogen blisters and suitability of damaged equipment for further operation according to standard API 579-1
- crack assessment and growth in hydrogen environment according to standards ASME BPVC.VIII.3 a API 579-1

This course was created by the project Akcelerace zelených dovedností a udržitelnosti na VUT v Brně with registration number NPO_VUT_MSMT-2143/2024-5.