{"operation":"document","citation":"15-0155","title":"UBH International — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation","source_type":"guidance","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"guidance","official":true,"published_on":"2016-05-23","effective_on":null,"summary":"15-0155 response to UBH International concerning 178.275.","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-15-0155.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-15-0155.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-15-0155","source_url":"https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/legacy/interpretations/Interpretation%20Files/2016/150155.pdf","body":"<<<PAGE 1>>>\n\nof Transportation\nU.S. Department\n1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE\nWashington, D.C. 20590\nMaterials Safety\nPipeline and Hazardous\nAdministration\nMAY 2 3 2016\nMr. Alex McGonagle\nUBH International\nOrrell Lane\nBurscough\nL40 OSL\nUnited Kingdom\nRef. No. 15-0155\nDear Mr. McGonagle:\nThis is in response to your July 22, 2015 e-mail, and follow discussion with a member of my\nstaff, in which you requested written clarification of the Hazardous Materials Regulations\n(HMR; 49 CFR parts 171-180) concerning transport provisions for portable tanks. You ask\nfor clarification of the requirements in §§ 178.275(f)(1) and 178.275(g)(1) as they relate to\nvacuum-relief devices and pressure relief devices. Specifically, you ask if a portable tank is\nnot fitted with a vacuum-relief device, does the requirement to prevent rupture of the shell due\nto a vacuum provided in § 178.275(g)(1) apply.\nFor the purposes of functions covered by the HMR (i.e., transportation functions), the answer\nto your question is yes. When the portable tank capacity is not less than 1,900 liters (501.9\ngallons) section 178.275(g)(1) defines the functions of a pressure relief device. Included is\nthe requirement that pressure relief devices must have sufficient capacity to prevent rupture of\nthe shell due to over pressurization or vacuum resulting from filling, discharging, heating of\nthe contents, or fire. Whether or not the portable tank has a vacuum relief valve, the portable\ntank design must protect against rupture due to vacuum per § 178.275(f)(1) of not less than\n0.4 bar (40.0 kPa).\nI trust this information is helpful. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any\nquestions.\nSincerely,\nDuane Pfund\nInternational Standards Coordinator\nStandards and Rulemaking Division\n\n<<<PAGE 2>>>\n\nWebb\n$178.275\nSpecification. for UN\nDodd, Alice (PHMSA)\nPortable tanks\nFrom:\nGeller, Shelby CTR (PHMSA)\n15-0155\nSent:\nTuesday, July 28, 2015 12:32 PM\nSubject:\nTo:\nHazmat Interps\nFW: Interpretation of 49 CFR 178.275\nDear Shante and Alice,\nSee below for the request for a formal letter of interpretation. Mr. McGonagle spoke with Neil Suchak.\nHis mailing address is:\nUBH International\nOrrell Lane\nBurscough\nLancashire\nL40 OSL\nThanks,\nShelby\nFrom: Alex McGonagle [mailto:amcgonagle@ubh.co.uk]\nTo: Geller, Shelby CTR (PHMSA)\nSent: Tuesday, July 28, 2015 9:33 AM\nSubject: RE: Interpretation of 49 CFR 178.275\nDear Shelby\nThank you for your reply. I spoke to your colleague, Neil, who provided me with useful verbal advice. However, in the\ncircumstances, we do need a written interpretation of this question, so please accept this e-mail as our formal request\nfor a written interpretation.\nBest Regards\nAlex\nSent: 22 July 2015 21:55\nTo: Alex McGonagle\nSubject: RE: Interpretation of 49 CFR 178.275\nDear Alex McGonagle,\nWe have received your inquiry about the hazardous materials regulations (49 CFR Parts 171-180). The hazardous materials\nregulations are available at the following URL:\nhttp://phmsa.dot.gov/regulations\n1\n\n<<<PAGE 3>>>\n\n...\nA hazardous materials regulatory specialist would be happy to speak with you regarding your inquiry. You may contact the\nHazardous Materials Information Center, which is staffed with regulatory specialists who can quickly answer your questions by\nphone, Monday through Friday, 9 AM - 5 PM EST at +1 (202) 366-4488.\nSincerely,\nShelby, Hazardous Materials Specialist\nAn e-mail response from this office is considered informal guidance. Formal guidance may be requested in accordance with\n49 CFR 105.20. http://phmsa.dot.gov/hazmat/regs/interps\nFrom: Alex McGonagle [mailto:amcgonagle@ubh.co.uk]\nSent: Wednesday, July 22, 2015 11:02 AM\nTo: INFOCNTR (PHMSA)\nSubject: Interpretation of 49 CFR 178.275.\nDear Sir/Madam\nWe are looking for assistance on an interpretation of 49 CFR 178.275, with relation to pressure relief devices. Under\nparagraph (f) (1), it states \"A shell that is not fitted with a vacuum-relief device must be designed to withstand, without\npermanent deformation, an external pressure of not less than 0.4 bar (40 kPa).\" However, under section (g) (1), the last\nsentence states \"The pressure relief devices must have sufficient capacity to prevent rupture of the shell due to over\npressurization or vacuum resulting from filling, discharging, heating of the contents or fire\".\nWe have always believed that this is intended to read that if a vacuum relief valve is fitted, it must fulfil the function\ndefined under (g) (1), but we have a customer who is saying that the wording of (g) (1) means that the tank should be\nable to be discharged by pump without opening an airline and not implode under vacuum.\nWe would appreciate if you could confirm the US DOT's interpretations of these 2 sentences.\nBest Regards\nAlex\nAlex McGonagle\nUBH International\nDirect: +44 (0) 1704 898508\nSwitchboard: +44 (0) 1704 898 500\nMobile: +44 (0) 7740 283739\n2\n\n<<<PAGE 4>>>\n\nWebb, Steven (PHMSA)\nFrom:\nTo:\nSent:\nAlex McGonagle <amcgonagle@ubh.co.uk>\nThursday, October 01, 2015 12:19 PM\nSubject:\nWebb, Steven (PHMSA)\nRE: DOT Interp\nHi Steve\nSorry, I missed responding to your message. Our answers to your questions are as follows:\n1. Our question relates to a tank with a pressure only relief valve, no vacuum relief valve.\n2.\nYes, this in essence sums up the question.\n3.\nTo give more background, most UN Portable tanks built worldwide are built designed to 0.4 bar vacuum and\nwith no vacuum relief valve. An end user of a tank container who is used to using road tankers in the US fitted\nwith vacuum relief valves steam cleaned the tank and locked off all valves and the manway. They say this is their\nstandard procedure, believing that it helps keep the tank internals clean. Normally, the vacuum relief valve will\nactivate, preventing the vacuum from imploding the tank (although this does let potentially contaminated air\ninto the tank, negating the benefit of closing the tank). However, as this tank did not have a vacuum relief valve,\nthe tank imploded. The customer is claiming that the tank does not meet clause 178.275 (g) (1).\nOur claim is that 178.275 (g) (1) is to define the function of a relief valve if present. Therefore, if the tank has a vacuum\nrelief valve, it must protect against rupture due to vacuum. However, if the tank does not have a relief valve, in line with\n178.275 (f) (1), we would argue that there can be no expectation that any valve would provide protection against\nrupture due to vacuum.\nWe would like you to confirm if you agree with our statement above or not.\nSorry, I know this is not the easiest concept to put into words. Please let me know if you need any further clarification.\nBest Regards\nAlex\nFrom: steven.webb@dot.gov[mailto:steven.webb@dot.gov]\nSent: 01 October 2015 16:46\nTo: Alex McGonagle\nSubject: RE: DOT Interp\nAlex,\nI'm still awaiting clarification of the below questions to progress a response for your interpretation request. I am unable\nto answer the questions as posed in your original email request. Please provide additional clarification on your\nquestions as requested below or I may have to close out this request.\nThanks in Advance\nSteve Webb\nTransportation Specialist- International Standards\nPipeline & Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) - U.S. DOT\nOffice of Hazardous Materials Safety\n1\n\n<<<PAGE 5>>>\n\nL40 OSL\nIf you are unable to post internationally, you could send it to our customer, their address is as follows:\nMike Smith\nExsif Worldwide\n2700 Westchester Avenue\nSuite 400\nPurchase\nNY 10577\nThank you for your assistance on this matter\nBest Regards\nAlex\nFrom: steven.webb@dot.gov [mailto:steven.webb@dot.gov]\nSent: 21 August 2015 19:44\nTo: Alex McGonagle\nSubject: DOT Interp\nMr. McGonagle,\nI'm drafting the response to your request for interpretation on portable tanks and need a mailing address to send the\nresponse to. The response is still in the concurrence phase, but an address would help facilitate its delivery once\ncompleted. Please provide a valid mailing address.\nThanks\nSteve Webb\nTransportation Specialist- International Standards Pipeline & Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) - U.S.\nDOT Office of Hazardous Materials Safety\n1200 New Jersey Avenue S.E., E24-422, Washington D.C. 20590\nE24-422\nsteven.webb@dot.gov\n202-366-4579","truncated":false,"body_characters":8249}