Patent ID: 7039502

Claim:
A method implementable with a computer system of assessing risks to pressure equipment associated with at least one pressure relief system having a relief header, comprising: a. identifying in the computer system one or more relief header inputs associated with the equipment; b. identifying in the computer system one or more common mode failure scenarios for the relief header inputs; c. calculating with the computer system a first hydraulic model for the one or more common mode failure scenarios; d. defining in the computer system a risk acceptance criteria for an accumulation in one or more members of the equipment associated with the relief header inputs; e. defining in the computer system initiating events frequency of occurrence for one or more common mode failure scenarios; f. determining with the computer system whether at least one of the risk acceptance criteria is not met by the first hydraulic model to assess risk to the equipment; g. defining in the computer system a probability of failure for one or more protection systems associated with the equipment; and h. calculating with the computer system an output that assess risk to the equipment by correlating an accumulation of the one or more members of the equipment with the frequency of occurrence.