Without proper safety protocols in place, charging or evacuating flammable gas piping systems can be a dangerous endeavor. NFPA 56: Standard for Fire and Explosion Prevention During Cleaning and Purging of Flammable Gas Piping Systems provides a valuable foundation for making safety-related decisions while developing procedures for these activities.
NFPA 56 presents key requirements for ensuring the development of safe procedures for cleaning and purging flammable gas piping systems, including:
Protect your personnel and your facilities from hazards using the 2017 edition of NFPA 56.
Provisions for written procedures for cleaning and purging activities now cover additional topics. The procedures are now required to address nonconductive components in temporary piping assemblies to account for the static charge that might be induced by those components. Written procedures must also address protection and rescue of personnel, including the selection of fire-resistant clothing based on a hazard analysis in accordance with NFPA 2113: Standard on Selection, Care, Use, and Maintenance of Flame-Resistant Garments for Protection of Industrial Personnel Against Short-Duration Thermal Exposures.
Safety begins with adequate training on hazard mitigation.