how detailed or general the process and

Process and Instrumentation Diagram instrumentation diagram will become.

Development
In Water and Waste Water Treatment Different industries tend to use different
Plants terminology and presentation of
Steven J. Marrano, P.E. technical information. In the chemical
Instrumentation and Controls or pharmaceutical sectors of process
Engineer control, it is common to have
mechanical (or Engineering Flow)
diagrams to show major pieces of
equipment and associated ratings, and
separate process and instrumentation
The process and instrumentation
diagrams that show how the instruments
diagram (P&ID as it often called)
connect to the process. The water and
represents a document that can take on
wastewater industry tends to favor a
many different forms depending upon
hybrid presentation of mechanical and
the following factors:
instrumentation information on the same
drawing.
1) Nature of the process being depicted.
The more complicated the process,
or the more one process is
Process and Instrumentation
interconnected to other portions of
Diagrams
the P&ID, the more complex the
P&ID will become.
We should begin by reviewing the
2) The individual or firm performing
P&IDs purpose and what information it
the design work. Some firms do not
depicts. One set of authors1 describes
feel the need to develop P&IDs.
the P&ID as a roadmap to the
This approach is used to achieve
facilitys design. If we compare the main
economies on system design.
flow through the plant as the highway
3) Design philosophy. Some design
and the various unit processes as
philosophies include P&IDs as an
secondary roads, we can see that a well
item issued with the instrumentation
thought out P&ID conveys a great deal
or electrical design (developed at the
of information to the various members of
middle or end of the project). Other
the design and operations teams.
design philosophies allow the P&IDs
to be used as the basis for all other
The engineering team developing the
design disciplines. In this
design of a new facility or an upgrade to
philosophy, the electrical,
an existing plant selects unit processes
mechanical, and piping engineers on
that best suit the economic, regulatory,
a project would start their work once
safety, and convenience criteria set forth
the P&IDs are complete.
by the plant owner and regulatory
4) Intended audience once the design is
agencies. This may be done via a
complete.
process pilot model and jar testing.
Among the several design engineers I 1
Luckiewicz, E., Sandler H: Practical Process
have spoken to, these factors dominate Engineering: A Working Approach to Plant
Design, Ximix, Philadelphia, PA 1986, pg. 35

The P&ID is a specialized document that
is shown on a side view. P&IDs are a
side view representation of a side view
of all equipment. P&IDs normally do
not attempt to provide any form of scale
on their drawings because this is handled
on the piping, electrical, mechanical, etc.
plan drawings. It should be noted that
P&IDs sometimes distinguish between
equipment located in different portions
of the plant. An example here would be
a control panel located on the outside of
a building and how it may be interfaced
via instrumentation to a mechanical
component (such as a pump) inside the
building. As stated above, P&IDs are
broken out by the unit process operation
to allow sufficient detail to be presented
on drawings.
The P&ID will depict the following
items2. (Note that this list cannot be all-
inclusive as no two plants or processes
are alike):
a) Material flow- for a water or
wastewater facility, this is normally
the fluid being treated.
b) Unit process operations- when the
project has been given further
definition, the plant is normally
broken down into several portions.
Some typical portions of a plant may
include the influent/intake section,
initial treatment (sometimes called
pre-treatment), chemical additions,
settling, filtration, flocculation,
agitation, mixing, waste
treatment/recycle, storage, etc.
c) Piping between the various sections
of the plant and process equipment.
Piping on a P&ID may include
instrument connections or heat
2 piping engineers to ensure that process
Koslov, J. Schwartz, M: Piping and
Instrumentation Diagrams, Chemical
Engineering Magazine, pp. 85-90, Mc Graw-
Hill, New York, July 9, 1984
tracing depending upon the size of
the project.
d) Major pieces of mechanical
equipment (pumps, vendor packages,
filters, clarification equipment, tanks,
etc.). Some designers will also show
installed spare equipment on the
P&ID.
e) Valves and directions of process flow
f) Field Mounted Instruments-
Different designers show different
levels of detail on their P&IDs. The
reader should review the discussion
below for more information
g) Electrical equipment- The P&ID
often shows major pieces of
equipment that require either signal
or power wiring. The reader should
see the discussion below for more
information.
h) Communications links- The P&ID
sometimes shows communications
links (software or hard-wired) to the
distributed control system depending
upon the level of detail and space
available on the drawings.
P&IDs and the Design Process
What a P&ID shows depends on the
design process to be followed and when
P&IDs are developed. Two approaches
to P&ID layout will be considered here.
In the first approach, the P&ID is used
by all of the disciplines to detail the
components needed to make the process
operate as intended. Under this
approach, the process designers develop
all of the routing for pipes, pumps,
valves, etc. The equipment (mechanical)
engineer then selects his/her equipment
in consultation with the process and
objectives can be met. Once these items
have been developed, the
instrumentation engineer develops how
the process is to be
monitored/controlled. This task requires
some overlap with the process engineer
and the piping designer. As an example,
chlorine residual data of water leaving a
filter is a state and national monitoring
requirement to ensure proper treatment.
In this situation, the process engineer
normally determines that some form of
chlorine residual measurement is
needed, while the instrumentation
engineer determines what method of
analyzer will be used. The piping
designer will develop input for the
location of sample piping, where the
sample will be drained to after it is
taken, the valves on the analyzer for
isolation and maintenance and other
items (such as pressure regulators or
gages) to facilitate proper operation.
The electrical engineer is concerned with
power and process control wiring for the
various pieces of equipment in the
facility. In the chlorine residual
example, the electrical engineer would
want to know if the transmitter requires
120VAC (or if it is a loop powered
device) and he/she would want to know
where the signal is wired to (distributed
control system or a local control panel).
All of this information is then depicted
on the P&ID.
This approach allows a great deal of
input from the various design disciplines
before all of the details have been
worked out. It forces the members of
the design team to consider all of the
issues involving successful
instrumentation operation. The principle
limitation to the detailed design of
P&IDs before detailed design is
complete is that the P&IDs must mirror
the electrical, process, instrumentation
and piping requirements as closely as
possible. If there are major revisions to
the project during detailed P&ID
development, the P&IDs must be
modified. This adds time and cost to a
design. One other limitation to this
approach is the project schedule and
coordination amongst the design team
members. If the P&IDs are not
synchronized with the work of the
various disciplines, design team
members may use inaccurate
information.
The second approach to P&ID
development allows the P&IDs to show
the instrumentation connections only.
This approach is used when P&IDs are
only used among the instrumentation
designers and engineers (and possibly
the electrical engineers to double check
instrumentation wiring requirements).
These diagrams do not illustrate the
same level of detail as the first approach.
They are intended to show how
instrumentation relates to the process
and possibly show the electrical
requirements.
The advantage to the second approach is
that the documents are less dependent on
the other disciplines for information.
This leads to simpler drawings that can
be changed without impact to the other
members of the design team. The
principle limitation to this approach is
that the instrumentation, piping, and
electrical engineers tend to work more
independently of the process engineers.
This could lead to situations where
critical interfaces are not adequately
developed. An example can be seen if
one looks at vendor furnished packages
(such as a chemical feed package for a
polymer of lime system). If the P&ID
only shows instrumentation, it is harder
to tell what piping, electrical, and
mechanical interfaces may be required.
Interface Considerations3
The detailed design approach requires
the instrumentation, process, electrical,
and mechanical (equipment engineers) to
supply each other with a great deal of
data. Listed below is a partial interface
checklist for the instrumentation
engineer developing a P&ID:
Environmental (Process) Engineers
- Define the types of unit process
operations in the facility throughout
the project.
- Develop the process parameters
(normally pressures and flows)
- Define equipment scope (vendor
furnished package versus individual
components)
- Develop a general control strategy
and components to be measured,
interlocked, or trended
- Define (with mechanical engineers)
configurations of chemical feed
systems and other systems related to
treatment
- Develop the necessary utilities (with
the mechanical engineers) such as air
for valves or water for samples, etc.
Piping/Mechanical Engineers
Once the unit operations for the facility
have been decided, the piping and
mechanical engineers can begin their
work. This involves selection and layout
of all equipment and piping.
3 participate in the wiring of
Luckiewicz, E., Sandler H: Practical Process
Engineering: A Working Approach to Planrt
Design, Ximix, Philadelphia, PA 1986, pp. 36-63
- Develop the type of mechanical
equipment to be used on the project
such as metering pumps, distributive
pumps, compressors, valves,
agitators, mixers, fans/blowers, etc.
- Develop details associated with
chemical feed systems such as
tubing, valves for flow and isolation,
etc.
- Selection and layout of piping.
Critical parameters include the
materials of construction for the
pipe, the location of
valves/tees/fittings, heat trace
requirements, insulation, pipeline
sizes, etc.
- Develop mechanical equipment
numbering system
- Develop piping numbering system
- Develop material handling schemes
(for items such as cranes to allow
hoists to move pumps, etc.)
- Develop special piping for analytical
instruments such as sample and
waste piping
- Develop special piping for large
valves to allow for mechanical
isolation of the valve from the line to
allow for maintenance.
Electrical Engineers
After the piping and mechanical groups
have finalized most of their design, the
electrical engineers and instrumentation
engineers can begin their work. The
electrical engineer will have to select
and develop power distribution schemes
for all equipment (when the P&ID shows
equipment horsepower or kW ratings).
Depending upon the design firms
philosophy, the electrical engineer may
instrumentation interlocks and may also
run control wiring from field equipment
to the distributed control system (DCS)
or to the programmable logic controller
(PLC).
Because the electrical engineers work is
dependent upon the equipment being
specified, it is important that the P&IDs
be kept up to date to ensure that the
quantity, horsepower and control method
are adequately shown on these drawings.
In some cases, P&IDs may also show the
following information:
- Type of control required for a given
piece of equipment (selector
switches, start/stop pushbuttons,
indicating lights for run/failure
conditions, alarms, etc).
- Interlocks between mechanical
components
- Types of communications links
required between components (the
electrical engineer will be concerned
with the routing and possibly the
termination of this wiring)
Instrument Engineers
Instrumentation and controls engineers
have the difficult task of pulling together
all of the information developed by the
process, piping/mechanical, and
electrical into a cohesive representation
of the process.
On any project, it is recommended that
the process engineer get the
instrumentation and controls engineer
involved in P&ID development as early
as possible to ensure that all of the
process goals can be accomplished. The
critical interface points that would be
shown on the detailed P&ID are:
- The location of the various
measurements on equipment.
Example, an ultrasonic level
transmitter may have a level element
that is interfaced by a cable to an
indicating transmitter. Both items
should be shown on the drawings.
- The method of signal transmission
(via an electrical, pneumatic, or
digital interface). An example of a
digital interface would be RS-485 or
the Fieldbus protocol.
- The measured signals location (local
control panel, distributed control
system, vendor furnished mechanical
package, motor control center, etc.)
- Status inputs from each measured
signal (analog input, digital input)
- Signals from vendor mechanical
packages (such as running or failure
status signals)
- Digital and analog outputs to
equipment (valves, pumps,
fans/blowers, mixers, agitators, etc.)
for control by the PLC or DCS
Structural/Civil Engineers
- P&IDs (coupled with a mechanical
plan drawing) provide a general
picture for structural requirements
associated with piping support,
equipment housekeeping pads
(quantity), supports or pads for
vessels (such as chemical bulk tanks
in large water/waste water treatment
facilities). Sometimes, P&IDs also
show items like containment areas
for chemicals. These types of details
are important for the civil/structural
engineer so that the engineer can
plan their concrete drawings.
-
Checklists for Piping and
Instrumentation Diagrams
1) General Documentation Practices
a) At the beginning of the project,
some form of agreed to set of
abbreviations should be
developed for every piece of
process, mechanical, and
electrical device
Examples:
A- Agitator
P- Pump
M- Mixer (or motor)
F- Filter
FL- Flocculator
b) An agreed to pipe numbering
scheme should be developed.
Example: some companies may
list a pipes unique tag by where
the pipe comes from, where it
goes to, the line size of the pipe,
and materials of construction.
This ensures that all parties know
where components are to be
placed in the piping system.
c) Some form of instrument
numbering system should be
employed on the project so that
engineers, designers, and
installers can understand where a
piece of equipment goes. It is
important to recognize that this
instrument tag number should be
stamped on a tag when the
instrument is installed in the field
to allow for some form of record
keeping during construction and
installation.
Examples (applicable to a surface
water treatment plant):
Area 100- Intake Structure
Area 200- Mixing
Area 300- Flocculation
Area 400- Pre- Treatment
Area 500- Filtration
Area 600- Post Chemical
Treatment
Area 700- Distributive Pumping
Area 800- Clearwell/Storage
Area 900- Utilities (such as
electrical equipment)
After these general numbering
systems are established, the
subsequent numbers in the tag
can be selected sequentially,
based on an equipment number,
or by any other scheme that the
mechanical, electrical, and
instrumentation design team
members decide to use.
We note that there is really no
right or wrong way to number
instruments. Consistency
amongst the instrument tags is of
primary importance. Once a
convention is selected, the user
should ensure that everyone
understands and uses the
numbering convention.
d) Some form of standard symbols
should be selected and presented
on the cover page for:
i) Valves
ii) Piping
iii) Fittings on pipe
iv) Motors
v) Pumps
vi) Vendor furnished packaged
equipment
vii) Tanks
e) The design team should pick
what level of detail will be
shown on the P&ID as far as
interlocks, connections to the
DCS/PLC system, and other
items are concerned. This choice
can effect the level of detail to be
shown on the P&IDs. When a
design team places all the
interlocks between devices on the
 P&ID, the interconnection
between devices is clearly
defined. This approach has the
limitation that drawings can
quickly become crowded and
difficult to read. A drawing
showing all the interlocks also
has the tendency to be difficult to
change once drafted. This leads
to increase drafting and design
time. The other approach
sometimes used by design teams
involves showing the quantity
and type of I/O that go from a
device back to the DCS or PLC.
This approach simplifies the
drawing presentation. Its
principle limitation is that the
interconnection between devices
(for interlocking, alarm
conditions, etc.) is not defined.
Another document (such as a
loop drawing or interconnection
diagram) must be provided to
illustrate how all of the
components are connected.
Another limitation of this
approach stems from the large
amounts of coordination between
P&ID, loop drawings, electrical
drawings, and mechanical
equipment specifications.
Because all of these drawings
involve different components of
the project team, an
uncoordinated change by any
group can lead to confusion and
equipment mismatch. Therefore
this approach requires more
coordination than the other form
of P&ID presentation.
f) Some form of symbol for the
measurement and the associated
destination must be shown. For
example, if an instrument
consists of a transmitter that is
panel mounted, a certain symbol
is used to denote this. Functions
developed in the distributed
control or PLC system are based
on whether or not the signal is
software generated and whether
or not a human operator can
adjust or display the value.
g) Some form of convention should
be chosen as to the line types for
signal transmission. Example,
ISA has standards for pneumatic,
electric (discrete or analog), and
distributed control signal wiring.
These different line types enable
the reader to understand when a
signal is generated by a physical
device (transducer, converter,
transmitter, switch, relay,
function module, etc.) or is
generated by the distributed
control or programmable logic
control system (via a software
function). A simple example of
this representation can be seen
when one examines a level
transmitter interfaced to an
analog input on a distributed
control system. The signal is
normally electrical (from the
field back to the analog input) in
the form of a twisted shielded
pair cable. We would then note
that we may use the distributed
control system to develop
calculations for high, low, high-
high, or low-low alarm states.
This is normally accomplished in
software.
h) Some form of convention should
be developed when a process
flow stream affects different
portions of the process appearing
on different P&IDs.
i) Some way to ensure that
additional space is left between
the components must be
addressed. It is common practice
to leave a minimum of 3/8 of
space around pieces of
equipment
j) If drawings are done on some
form of CAD program, some
form of layering system should
be developed to make the
drawings more "intelligent" by
allowing different users to find
different pieces of information
quickly. Some sub-classes of
layers may include, but not be
limited to:
I) Equipment (distinguish
between process and non-
process equipment with
unique layer numbers).
Examples include tanks,
pumps, mixers, agitators, 2) After documentation procedures
etc.
II) A layer for all piping
III) A layer for all valves-
care should be taken to
ensure that electrically
operated valves (motor
operated valves) are
distinguished from
pneumatic valves or
manual valves.
IV) A layer for process text
V) A layer for field mounted
instrumentation. It is
often useful to segregate
input and output types by
layer. For example, a
separate layer for analog
inputs and outputs should
be used to allow the
instrumentation engineer
an easy way to verify the
quantity and type of I/O.
VI) A layer for signal type
(pneumatic, software,
electrical, etc.) to allow
the reader to distinguish
between the various
signal types.
VII) A layer for items such as
control panels (if these
items are found on a
P&ID). Control panels
are commonly used on
items like chemical
systems where the
amount of product in a
tank must be known by
the plant maintenance
person and the signal is
sent to the distributed
control or PLC system for
inventory control and
monitoring.
have been established, a structured
presentation for information flow
must be developed. In this instance
information flow refers to data
associated with how one signal or
alarm affects another piece of
equipment in addition to data
associated with device wiring (type
of I/O, which PLC the device is
wired to, etc). Many design teams
prefer to break out the wiring
information into a loop style
drawing. The term loop drawing
is somewhat misleading because it
tends to imply the current loop found
in analog instrumentation. Many
loop drawings also show discrete
instrumentation (such as a switch or
contact closure) for completeness. A
complete loop drawing will illustrate
how various devices are
 interconnected. For example, it is
possible that an analog transmitter
may be given an adjustable contact
designed to open or close at some
alarm point. For safety reasons, we
may wish to connect this contact
directly from the transmitter to the
mechanical equipment it affects (say
a motor starter connected to a pump).
In this instance, the loop drawing
should not only show the twisted
shielded wiring from the 4-20mA
transmitter back to the analog input
in the DCS, but that a contact closure
is interfaced to a motor starter as
well. Note that this same
information can be shown on a P&ID
by using some form of symbol
(typically a diamond) to denote an
interlock. Interlocks on a P&ID
should be labeled for additional
clarity and a brief description should
be given.
3) On larger projects where a
distributed control or PLC system
performs a great deal of the
interlocks via software generated
calculations, it is sometimes helpful
to separate out the wiring
information shown on a loop
drawing from the functional software
manipulations done in a distributed
control system. The principle
limitation here stems from the
additional coordination between
wiring and interlock requirements.
4) Critical pieces of equipment to show
on a P&ID: (assumes the P&ID will
be used for other detailed design
work:
a) Agitators/Mixers/Flocculators-
Show some form of start and stop
control, some form of speed
control. Some installations show
the available local controls such
as start and stop plus speed
control. These should be shown
on either the P&ID or the loop
drawing. In addition some form
of running status feedback should
be shown.
b) Distributive Pumps- Show some
form of start and stop control,
interlocks to other equipment or
instrumentation, and some form
of speed control where the pump
is used in a variable speed
application. Where multiple
sources of control are available
(such as local start stop at the
equipment, start/stop at a motor
control center or switch board,
and start stop from the
distributed control system), the
P&ID may illustrate all of these
functions. Some design firms
prefer to use the loop drawing
with interconnection information.
The P&ID should also show
some form of running or failure
status (developed at the local
pump controls or sent to the
distributed control system for
further action). On pumping
installations, all of the suction
and discharge piping should be
shown. If there are interlocks
between the pumps and the
valves, the designer should
decide if the pump interlocks will
be shown on the P&ID or will be
shown on the loop drawings.
c) Tanks- Show some form of level
instrumentation, all valves
(electrically operated, pneumatic,
and manual). Agitators or mixers
should be shown on a tank if this
is how they are to be used in the
field.
d) Pipes- Show heat tracing,
pressure gages, all valves, flow
meters, direction of material flow
 throughout the facility, pipe line
size, pipe line number (see
discussion above), and pipe
material (if applicable). If the
pipe continue on another P&ID
some form of connector should
be used to tell the user where the
pipe is picked up elsewhere. It is
also important to show items like
spool pieces if they will effect
items such as flow
instrumentation for upstream and
downstream runs of pipe.
e) Valves- Show the various types
of control available from the
valve. This includes the hand
switches on the valve allowing it
to be opened and closed at the
valve and connections to a
distributed control or PLC
system to allow for remote
opening and closing. In some
plants, the open/close status of
the valve is shown both in the
field and in the distributed
control room. Some P&ID
designs also incorporate items
such as an intermediate position
switch on the valve to indicate
that the valve is travelling. The
user should determine if valve
interlocks to other equipment
will be shown on the P&ID or
will be shown on the loop
drawing. On larger valves (such
as an intake above 16 inches),
some form of bypass manifold
should be provided to allow the
valve to be removed from the
line for maintenance. If the
valve is of the modulating type,
some form of position status
should be shown on the P&ID in
addition to the ability to control
the valve position (either by an
analog or digital signal ) from the
DCS or PLC.
f) Flowmeters- The P&ID should
show the size of the meter, the
type of meter to be used (such as
a magmeter, venturi, or turbine
meter). The P&ID should
illustrate strainers to ensure that
debris cannot enter the
flowmeter. On large flowmeters
(above 16 inches) it is common
practice to have some sort of
bypass piping around the meter
to allow it to be removed from
service without shutting the
station down. In many instances
the flow device and the
transmitter are not mounted in
the same housing. A good
example of this is the venturi
meter. The venturi should be
treated as a flow element because
a differential pressure is
developed from the incoming
flow. This differential pressure is
supplied to a transmitter for
status, remote monitoring, and
remote control as required. The
transmitter would be treated as a
separate bubble on the P&ID.
g) Pressure or Differential Pressure
Instruments- The P&ID should
show the location of these
instruments. For deep buried
wells where a pressure transducer
is used, some form of pressure
element should be shown on the
P&ID in addition to some form
of indicator. Note that the
pressure element (also called the
pressure transducer) is treated as
a different instrument bubble on
the P&ID (as described with the
flowmeter above). Interlocks to
other items in the plant should be
properly documented on the
 P&ID or on the instrument loop representation of a P&ID and the
drawings. The P&ID should appropriate functions. First, we will
illustrate some form of block and use a simple well station design to
bleed valve to allow the illustrate a case where all control
instrument to be calibrated or design information is shown on the
removed from service for P&ID (useful for a small project).
maintenance without disturbing Next, we will show a possible
the plant or the process. Note interface between the P&ID and the
that a pressure gage should be loop drawing for part of a process.
shown with some form of
snubber and some form of
isolating device to allow it to be
removed from the line without
shutting down the process.
h) Metering Pumps- Some form of
speed control should be shown to
every metering pump that is run
based on some other process
variable (an analyzer or flow for
example). The P&ID should
show which forms of local and
remote control to allow the
metering pump to be started,
stopped, or remotely controlled
from a DCS or PLC. Some
P&IDs also illustrate the
metering pump running status (if
available from the metering
pump manufacturer).
i) Packaged Equipment- Show all
of the status points (both analog
and digital values) connected to a
local control panel and sent back
to the distributed control system.
If there are special valve
manifolds or interlocks to other
pieces of process equipment, the
designer must decide what level
of detail is to be shown on the
P&ID and what level of detail is
to be shown on the loop drawing.

An Illustrative Example

It is best to start with some form of

example to show one possible
 control and use an analyzer to "trim"

the amount of material that the

metering pump is allowed to

Figure 1- Typical P&ID for Small Plant

dispense.
Note that in this example, most of
the interlocking is shown. In some
cases, this will not be possible
because of the number of process
units involved, the number of
interlocks required, or the drawing
legibility/pace constraints. Because
this involves only one well, no
piping line numbers were assigned.

As an example, let us assume that

there are multiple chemical systems
in a plant and we wish to develop a
strategy for controlling the metering
pumps. It is decided that we will
make flow the primary variable for
 References
Note that the various letters show ANSI/ISA Standard S-5.01
various functions performed by "instrumentation Symbols and
either the DCS or the field Identification"
instrument. ISA Standard S-5.1
allows each letter to have a different
meaning depending upon its position
in the instrument tag. For example,
when the letter "S" is used in the first
position, it is assumed that we are
measuring frequency or speed.
When the letter "S" is used in the
second position, we are designating a
switch (such as FS for flow switch).
The same for a letter like L. When
used in the first position of an
instrument tag, it is understood we
are measuring level. In latter
positions of a tag, such as FSL, it is
understood that "L" is being used as
a modifier for the LOW state. In the
case of FSL, we mean that the flow
switch will become energized when
flow is low.