Question

The chemical reactor shown below has a cover (called a head) that is held in place by a series of bolts. The head is made of stainless steel (SG = 8.0), is 3in. thick, has a diameter of 24in., and covers and seals an opening 20 in. in diameter. During turnaround, when the reactor is taken out of service for cleaningand repair, the head was removed by an operator who through thereactor had been depressurized using a standard venting procedure.However, the pressure gauge had been damaged in an earlier processupset (the reactor pressure had exceeded the upper limit of thegauge), and instead of being depressurized completely, the vesselwas under a gauge pressure of 30Psi.

(a). What force ( lb_f ) were the bolts exerting onthe head before they were removed? (Hint : Don't forget that apressure is exerted on the top of the head by the atmosphere.) What happened when the last bolt was removed by the operator? Justify your prediction by estimating the initial acceleration of the headupon removal of the last bolt.

(b). Propose an alteration in the turnaround procedure to prevent recurrence of an accident of this kind.

**Please be detailed as possible.Thank you in advance!**

Answer 1

1y. 7 ma f is densiy 383 1blcu.in F: vea Ve