Guidelines for Seismic Evaluation and Design of Petrochemical Facilities

Prepared by the Task Committee on Seismic Evaluation and Design of the Petrochemical Committee of the Energy Division of ASCE.

This report offers practical recommendations regarding the design and safety of petrochemical facilities during and following an earthquake. For new facilities, the recommendations focus on interpreting of the intent of building codes as applied to petrochemical facilities; the report also gives practical guidance on design details and considerations that are not included in building codes. For existing facilities, the guidelines offer evaluation methodologies that rely heavily on experience from past earthquakes, coupled with focused analyses.

These guidelines will be valuable to structural design engineers, local building authorities, and operating personnel responsible for establishing seismic design and construction standards.