Contract Extension and SIL Approval Secured for Instrumentation Ball Valve Range

Parker Hannifin (UK) has achieved an industry first by securing SIL 2 approval for its HiPro Ball Valves.

Safety Integrity Level (SIL) is the level of risk reduction provided by safety instrument functions. In this case, the HiPro valves were required to meet the IEC 61508:210 standard.

SIL2 approval was required for Parker to secure an extension to its major frame agreement contract to supply instrumentation fittings, tubing, manifolds and valve solutions to Norwegian oil and gas company Statoil Aasta Hansteen Gas via EPC contractor Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI).

HHI’s Engineering Contractors CB&I had specified Parker’s automated instrumentation HiPro Ball Valve system for 10 emergency chemical injection shut-down applications.  The critical nature of the emergency shut down system isolating environmentally harmful Defoamer, Emulsion Breaker, Scale inhibitor and flocculant meant it needed to be fully SIL2 approved. The valves will be used within the chemical injection on the Aasta Hansteen platform which is situated in the Norwegian Sea at a depth of 1,300 metres in the Voring area, 300 km from land.

Rigorous tests were carried out on the valve design by independent test company CSA Group, which included both qualitative and quantitative assessments. The assessments involved a detailed FMEA (Failure Mode & Effects Analysis) of the valve design, considering each internal component.

It also included a physical site audit of the functional safety management system in place at Parker and also a review of the design lifecycle of the product. These assessments were carried out to ensure the valve design met the requirements of IEC61508:2010, parts 1 & 2.

The review also included verification of the functional safety management system procedures, design documents, verification documents, test reports and procedures as well as the safety manual to support the product when it is shipped to clients to ensure the requirements of annex D of IEC61508:2010-2 were met. The result was that the HiPro ball valve received safety integrity level (SIL) 2 approval for 1oo1 architecture and SIL3 for 1oo2 architecture.

In addition, Parker was required to automate its HiPro Ball Valve system. Working closely with Heap & Partners, based in Liverpool, Parker’s HiPro Ball Valves were fully integrated within an automated system. Peter Burnett from Heap & Partners said: “This was a straightforward process to automate Parker’s valves because they are manufactured to such a high standard. Our role was to ensure they worked effectively within a fully automated system.”

Parker’s manual, pneumatic and electrically actuated HiPro Ball Valves provide quick turn on-off control of fluids used in process and instrumentation applications. The free floating ball design provides seat wear compensation whilst the straight-through flow path ensures minimal pressure drop. The valves can be used in a wide range of pressure and temperatures and are available in 316 stainless steel or 6Mo construction.

The high performance two piece bi-directional HiPro Ball Valves offer working pressure ratings up to 10,000 psi (689 bar), giving 100% bubble tight shut off and continuous repeatable performance. They are suitable for the most demanding applications in the oil, gas and process control industries, meeting the requirements of ANSI B31.1 for use in power plants. The standard is mainly applied to electrical systems involved in critical applications but very rarely applied to instrumentation ball valves.