Historical Development of a Standard to Reduce Risk From Pressure Systems Failure— Part II: The ASME HPS-2003 Section 6000 “Hazardous Release Protection”

The ASME High Pressure System (HPS) Standard Section 6000 (as well as Sections 1000–5000) was begun with a draft outline in 1981 and released in 2003. Section 6000 “Hazardous Release Protection” of the HPS standard provides a risk-based criterion to assess the pressure system internal and external kinetic energy and degenerative hazards and permits a number of ways to lower risk to personnel and structures (e.g., redesign of the pressure system (improve system performance), protection, (reduction of consequences), improved inspection (reduction of event probability), etc.). This Part II paper examines the scope and intent of the various paragraphs of the ASME Section 6000 of the HPS standard, its relationship to Sections 1000–5000 of the HPS, and some incidences of system failures that identify a need for guidance regarding tolerable risk, and some references that document its development.