Safe jack-up method permits repairs of tank bottoms and foundations

The oil and chemical industries use many thousands of steel tanks to store crude oil, oil products, and chemical liquids. The majority of these tanks are 30-40 years old. Tank bottoms are likely to begin leaking in the coming years, as these tanks get older. The European technique of jacking up a tank and repairing its foundation allows the thorough inspection of the underside of the tank bottom and the removal of saturated foundation material. And the possibility of soil and groundwater pollution is reduced to a minimum. With good, regular maintenance, the lifetime of a storage tank is very long. But experience has shown that special attention should be paid to the tank's bottom. Tank bottoms are only 5 or 6 mm thick, and in the last 10 years, an increasing number of leaks in tank bottoms have been reported. Tank foundations are affected by these leaks. This article describes the resulting procedure, which is used successfully in many European countries, but is not yet common in the U.S.