API Standards for Tanks

Floating roof tanks (as compared to fixed roofs) Pros and Cons
Floating roof tanks are advantageous, compared to fixed roof tanks, as it prevents vapour emissions
(that are highly combustible) that help eliminate the chances of fire or an internal tank explosion.
They are usually used for stable liquids (with no dynamic loads acting, as discussed later). However,
adverse environmental conditions could affect floating roofs as accumulation of snow and rain water
could result in roof submersing in the stored liquid. Nonetheless this static load can be incorporated
in making assumptions on the response of the roof, which can be further used in the design of the
tank with a significant factor of safety. An area of concern, although, is the dynamic loads that act
upon the roof due to constant splashing of water or leaks that result in flooding of roof
compartments. This could be partly corrected by having sufficient stiffness in the circumferential
direction at the roof, but due to the irregular nature of such loads, it may not be possible to
accurately predict its magnitude.
Also, while the liquid exits the tank, the floating roof steadily approaches the bottom leaving behind a
wet shell (liquid droplets that are left behind as the level drops). This results in the evaporation of
liquid droplets to the atmosphere and is termed as the withdrawal loss, a form of emissions similar to
hydrocarbon leaving the fixed roof tanks. A flawless rim seal (closure between the roof and the shell)
could impede the loss of liquid but most seals have a loss factor associated to them that is
calculated based on tank diameter and wind blowing over the tank.
Another alternative to external floating roofs is an internal roof that combines the concept of conical
fixed roof tanks that lie on top of pontoons. They too are affected by the withdrawal and storage
losses that are mitigated using similar means. Most recently, engineers have been designing floating
roof tanks with secondary seals to mitigate such emissions and prevent any seal friction caused by
using tighter seals (a simpler solution to prevent any vapours to exist)