Safety is a Choice
Offshore or onshore oil rigs are hazardous working environments where a variety of hazardous gasses threaten the workers’ lives. The most common of these gasses is hydrogen sulfide (H2S). It is a toxic, flammable, and corrosive gas often encountered during hydrocarbon exploration and production.
To ensure the safety of the personnel working on these potentially hazardous drilling sites, it is essential to have a suitable breathing air system for workers in case of unsafe H2S concentration levels.
Compressed breathing air is an important safety requirement for all offshore and onshore oil rigs. It is usually delivered using high-pressure reciprocating compressors that are highly efficient delivering compressed gas. Usually, self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) with the capacity of 200 liters (lasting 15 min) are kept at a few critical and defined locations on the rig. There must be at least one SCBA bottle per person on board to allow the workers to reach a safe assembly point in an emergency. At the assembly point, the workers disconnect from cylinders and connect to manifolds directly.
A centralized breathing system is active during emergencies at these assembly points. The high pressure in the cylinder bank is regulated down to 7 to 8 bar(g) and distributed to low-pressure breathing air manifolds in the assembly points.
Typically, the compressors used are either 3 or 4 stage units that can compress air from atmospheric (0 barg) up to 250 to 400 barg. The compressor cylinder stages and sizes along with the motor size and speed dictate the charging rate and, in turn, the time to replenish the cascade system.
Breathing air compressors are devices that provide clean and pressurized air for the workers and equipment on oil & gas rigs. They ensure the safety of personnel on the rig by preventing exposure to harmful air contaminants or insufficient oxygen levels. This is why it is a huge responsibility to choose an appropriate compressor that delivers quality breathing air for the oil & gas industry. Some factors to consider when choosing a compressor are compressor size, air quality and purity, compressor reliability and maintenance requirements.