API STD 530 : 2015

Calculation of Heater-tube Thickness in Petroleum Refineries

Standard Details

Includes ADDENDUM 1, JUNE 2019 ADDENDUM 2, DECEMBER 2021 and ADDENDUM 3, JANUARY 2025

This standard specifies the requirements and gives recommendations for the procedures and design criteria used for calculating the required wall thickness of new tubes and associated component fittings for fired heaters for the petroleum, petrochemical, and natural gas industries. These procedures are appropriate for designing tubes for service in both corrosive and noncorrosive applications. These procedures have been developed specifically for the design of refinery and related fired heater tubes (direct-fired, heat-absorbing tubes within enclosures). These procedures are not intended to be used for the design of external piping.

This standard does not give recommendations for tube retirement thickness; Annex A describes a technique for estimating the life remaining for a heater tube.