CSA B51:24 Boiler, pressure vessel and pressure piping code

Canadian Standards Association (CSA) publishes codes for designing, manufacturing, installing, operating, and maintaining pressure equipment, including CSA B51 Boiler, pressure vessel, and pressure piping code.

Currently, the 2014 edition is used in BC. We are proposing to update the PEBPVRSR to use the newest edition, CSA B51:24, to be published in Spring 2024.

The 2024 edition of CSA B51 has been reorganized into a lifecycle format. This edition incorporates safety improvements that were developed as a result of recent risks and incidents. Technical Safety BC notified the boiler and pressure vessel industry when CSA held its public review on the CSA B51:24 in September 2023.

The major changes include:

New design requirements

• Blowoff vessels. New definitions for blowoff vessel and blowdown separator were included. Additionally, designers of blowoff vessels connected to superheated steam sources must follow a new clause for design guidance when connecting to superheated steam sources. These changes are intended to make it easier to comply with local health and safety regulations.
• Cold-stretched pressure vessels (from CSA B51:19). Designers and manufacturers of pressure vessels using cold-stretch technology must follow Annex K. Cold-stretched pressure vessels are often used for cryogenic storage.

New requirements for boilers and high energy piping systems

• Boilers and high energy piping systems in creep fatigue and cyclic service (from CSA B51:19 and CSA B51:24).Designers and owners of boilers and high energy piping systems in creep fatigue and cyclic service must follow new requirements. These include:
  1. developing and registering a lifetime in-service monitoring program and specific limits or conditions to ensure the equipment can be properly monitored during operation;
  2. establishing equipment integrity plans and maintaining appropriate equipment records; and
  3. having engineering assessments completed to identify any special risks.

These new requirements were developed as a result of risks and failures observed in industry that could have caused significant property damage, injuries, or fatalities. These types of equipment and service are often seen in large industrial settings, such as biomass boilers, pulp mills, and power generation.
Note: New informative Annexes L and Q support these requirements.

Expanded requirements

• Anhydrous ammonia service pressure vessels. The 2024 edition of CSA B51 expands requirements for post-weld heat treatment when manufacturing pressure vessels to include vessels in ammonia service. The previous edition excluded vessels in ammonia refrigeration service. Changes in CSA B52:23 also clarify that these requirements apply to vessels in ammonia refrigeration service.
• Carbon steel impact testing requirements. The 2024 edition of CSA B51 expands requirements for impact testing of carbon steel pipe, fittings, and forgings. Manufacturers must ensure carbon steel components meet these additional toughness requirements. These requirements are a result of industry reports of failures during testing due to unacceptably low toughness of some carbon steel materials.
• Pneumatic testing of pressure vessels and piping systems. The 2024 edition of the code expands requirements for pneumatic testing. These requirements provide appropriate safety precautions to manage the risks of potential failure. Additionally, a new informative Annex M provides requirements on how to safely evaluate and perform pneumatic testing on pressure vessels and piping systems. This new annex is a result of reports of “near miss” incidents and risks due to energy accumulated during the test.

Historical boilers

Additional guidance and reference material

Reorganized clauses and parts

• Lifecycle phases of pressure equipment. The 2024 edition of the code is now organized by lifecycle phases of pressure equipment. This change helps users of the code to easily find requirements related to their work.
• Changes to the former Part 2 and Part 3 of CSA B51:14. Part 2 of CSA B51:14 is now included in CSA HGV 2 and CSA NGV 2 and is no longer in the 2024 edition of CSA B51. The requirements of Part 3 in CSA B51:14 have been incorporated into the main body of the code in the 2024 edition of CSA B51.

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