Today, storage tanks are available in all kinds of sizes, shapes and materials: from vertical or horizontal tanks to spherical cylinders made from various grades of steel, reinforced concrete, or plastics. Environmental and safety requirements became decisive factors in the selection and design of storage tanks. Over the years, changes in physical and chemical properties and products led to new storage solutions. The 1990s saw a new trend towards easy visual detection of product releases, triggering an increase in aboveground storage tanks. As a result, the demand for secondary containment (dualwalled steel tanks) increased. With the focus on making tanks corrosionresistant, other protective designs emerged, such as the use of plastic wraps (“baggies”), thick fiberglass-reinforced coatings, and internal linings.īeginning in the early 1970s, strong concerns about the environment led to technological advancements regarding the safe underground storage of hazardous liquids. Between 19, new materials began to surface, culminating in a non-metallic tank design. The Midwest 56 Standard, a method whose design specified the size and location of an opening along the top of an underground tank, became a widely recognized method. Only when new products emerged was the basic cylindrical design that remained unchanged for decades modified. Most tanks were small by today’s standards, with a volume of not quite 1,100 gallons (4,164 liters).ĭuring the 1920s and 1930s, higher-quality tanks were constructed by replacing the riveting process with arc welding using galvanized steel. During the last two decades of the 1800s, the wooden barrels were replaced by riveted tanks, which became the standard for petroleum and liquid chemical storage. The burgeoning use of petroleum triggered a search for a more reliable, long-term and larger-capacity solution. In the early days, wooden barrels served as storage vessels. Since the discovery of oil by drilling in Titusville, Pennsylvania in 1859, tank storage systems have undergone a considerable evolution.
API 650 - Design Code for Aboveground Atmospheric Storage Tanks