Assessment of components operating in the creep range is introduced to Part 10 of API 579-1⁄ASME FFS-1 Code. The assessment procedures in this Part can be used to determine the suitability for continued operation and the remaining life of components operating in the creep range. The use of these procedures is not normally required for equipment designed to a recognized code or standard that is operating within the original design parameters. The main aim of this assessment is to conduct creep evaluation when problems arise such as operational upsets or metal loss beyond the original design.

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A guideline of fitness-for-service assessment to fire damage is introduced to API 579-1⁄ASME FFS-1 Code. Since the fire damage evaluation is based on the material degradation associated with heat exposure, the identification of heat exposure zone will be essential. The Code provides guidance to judge the heat exposure zone and one of useful information is temper colors of steels vary according to the exposed temperature. And also, further investigations may be carried out to test such mechanical properties as tensile strength, hardness, impact energy, ductility and so on for the damaged material. Interpretation of those test results should be endorsed by metallurgical analysis. In the 2016 edition, the temper color reference shows several photographic examples of different exposed temperature, elapsed time and cooling rates for carbon steel and stainless steel. And references are added to annex 11A, procedures for investigating cause and organization replica evaluation are added annex 11B. As a result, it was improved to make it easier to use.

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The Fitness-For-Service Joint Committee published the second edition of API 579-1⁄ASME FFS-1 in 2016. This standard was originally published for the refinery and petrochemical industry as a Recommended Practice 579 from the American Petroleum Institute (API) in 2000. At that time the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) also began to discuss post-construction issues. ASME and API determined to establish the joint committee to avoid the possibility of overlap, duplication and conflict in two parallel standards. Then the first edition was published for wider range of users including process, manufacturing and power generation industries in 2007.
This standard covers quantitative engineering evaluations of the structural integrity for an in-service pressure equipment that may contain a flaw or damage. This report focuses the assessment of dents, gouges and dent-gouge combinations. Typically in the transmission pipeline industry two of the common damage mechanisms are dents and gouges. Some technical background and the outline of assessment procedures are introduced in accordance with API 579-1⁄ASME FFS-1. The evaluation of gouges was included in the local metal loss assessment of the first API version. Also the evaluation of dents was in the assessment of shell distortion. From the 2007 version of the standard, these were described in Part12 as an independent part of the assessment.

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This article outlines the fatigue evaluation method, which has been newly included into the third edition of API 579-1⁄ASME FFS-1 Fitness-For-Service as Part 14, for in-service components. The fatigue damage assessment procedure of this new part adopts a multi-tiered approach, similar to the other parts, covering screening as Level1 assessment, current design code methods based on ASME Div. 2 as Level 2 assessment, and advanced methods based on a strain life damage modeling along with critical plane approach as Level 3 assessment. In addition, detailed multiaxial cycle counting methods and multiaxial incremental plasticity correction procedure are introduced to determine the loading history accurately. This article summarizes the features of those methods with schematic assessment flow and shows typical fatigue curves used in the Level 2 and 3 assessments in a diagram for comparison.

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There are many vibration sources in plant and harmful vibration could occur related to these vibration sources. Therefore assessment and management of the vibration in plants is quite important to keep safety in plant operation. From this viewpoint, now“Assessment of Piping Vibration”has been planning to add as a new part of API 579-1⁄ASME FFS-1 Code. There are several vibration mechanisms and effective countermeasures to control the vibration levels within the allowable limit would depend on these mechanisms. Therefore it is important to know many kinds of vibration patterns related to vibration source and mechanisms in order to apply appropriate measures to control the vibrations in plants. In this paper the following items relating to the piping vibrations in plant are explained.
• Vibration mechanisms and effective countermeasures with some examples.
• Assessment and management method for vibration
• Information on　discussion of“Assessment of Piping Vibration”as a new part of API 579-1⁄ASME FFS-1 Code in API meeting

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The author has been engaged to technologies for construction such as materials, design, manufacturing, QA and inspection and testing and also for post construction such as maintenance, Fitness-For-Service, Risk Based Inspection after operation for pressure vessels for 54 years after 1964.
During the last 54 years, I have been also continuously worked for international collaboration and standardization for pressure vessel technologies such as ASME, API, PVRC, ICPVT ISO.
On the opportunity of receiving API recognition for 30year services at 2018 Fall Meeting, recent international activities for collaboration and development of code⁄standards from Japan are overviewed for future improvement by young engineer.

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