Despite governments around the world tightening the reins on the use of petroleum products, in Canada, it continues to play a vital part in powering industry, transport and homes. Energy demand continues to grow and supplying sufficient energy while helping governments to achieve their challenging environmental targets requires that the industry employs innovative solutions and continually demonstrates its commitment to environmental protection.
Recent safety advancements
- Floating roof tanks
Floating roof tanks are suitable for many types of petroleum storage as the unique design of the roof means that vapours cannot accumulate within the void between the liquid and the roof, reducing the risk of evaporation loss and minimizing the likelihood of fires and explosions. This increases site and worker safety.
- Advanced materials and coatings
Coating a petroleum storage tank in high-performance polymers or a corrosion-resistant coating increases its longevity, improves its structural integrity and reduces the maintenance burden. All of these factors combined mean that the risk of contamination is lessened and operator safety is increased.
- Enhanced monitoring and automation
By integrating sensors and monitoring systems into petroleum storage tank designs, it is possible to maintain real-time data on the condition of the tank and its contents. By understanding how its temperature, pressure and liquid levels fluctuate throughout the day, the environmental conditions to which it is exposed can be optimized to improve safety.
Considering the environmental impact
The technologies described above are pivotal to increasing safety compliance within the industry, however, it is of equal importance that sustainability and environmental considerations influence how petroleum storage tanks are designed, built, maintained and used. It is becoming ever more necessary to:
- Reduce emissions
Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are harmful emissions produced through the storage and use of petroleum products. Unchecked, they can damage human health and escape into the atmosphere, causing untold damage. It is essential, therefore, to minimize the escape of harmful emissions by utilizing technology such as vapour recovery units, which capture and convert VOCs into liquid form.
- Increase energy efficiency
Not only is energy expensive, but it can also generate greenhouse gas emissions, so to reduce an organization’s carbon footprint, energy efficiency measures should be employed. These can include using insulation around storage tanks, optimizing heating systems and using smart energy management systems to reduce energy bills and offset emissions.
What does the future of petroleum storage look like?
As with many industries, the petroleum industry will be guided by the need to comply with strict new environmental protection regulations. These will require organizations with petroleum storage tanks to implement predictive maintenance, increased supply and demand forecasting and other systems that will enable them to operate at peak efficiency.
They will be required to capture and store their carbon to reduce the environmental impact of storing fossil fuels, and they may be required to investigate alternatives to petroleum, such as bio-fuels and bio-plastics, which may deliver an equitable performance with a reduced environmental impact.
Conclusion
It is impossible to know exactly what the future holds for Canada’s petroleum industry, but its transformation will likely be driven by the need to comply with environmental protection legislation, maintain cost efficiency and safeguard worker health.