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In a Flash – The Transfer of Energies in Our Global Electrical System
April 21, 2021 3:45 pm Leave a Comment
According to published weather data for the year 2019, 2.35 billion lightning strikes were recorded across the world, with 223 million of these in the United States. The movement of atmosphere causes electrical charges to build up between clouds. A tipping point is reached where the insulating properties of the air cannot withstand the level of energy and a discharge occurs.

Image Credit: Charleston Post and Courier. A lightning strike over Charleston, SC on July 3, 2019.

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Improper Hearth Extension Leads to Structure Fire
March 25, 2021 3:54 pm Leave a Comment
The fire service affords you the opportunity to witness and observe things that a lot of engineers and even most people do not get the chance to see. An example of this is the situation where extended elevated temperatures combined with poor construction techniques to result in a structure fire.

I have personally observed several occasions where a structure fire was initiated due to improper construction of the fireplace hearth extension. The most recent one followed a multi-day cold snap, at least by South Carolina standards. The thermometer read 17 degrees F as I drove to the call of smoke in a residence (more…)
Heat Exchanger Failures Will Shut Your Process Down
February 26, 2021 11:11 am Leave a Comment
Heat exchangers, as the name implies, are used to bring a process stream to a desired temperature. They can heat or cool either gases or liquids. They are fairly intricate in their construction, therefore not the cheapest piece of equipment to purchase. For that reason, facilities don’t keep “spare” exchangers lying around, so when they fail catastrophically, the entire manufacturing process goes down with them… and stays down until they are fixed or replaced. Ow!

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Proper Construction and Maintenance Can Prevent Deadly Chimney Fires
February 16, 2021 1:52 pm Leave a Comment

There are few things as comforting to me during the winter months as a warm fire burning in the fireplace. And in this case, I am talking the real deal, the kind that warms you multiple times; from cutting, splitting and stacking the firewood until finally lighting a fire in the fireplace. However, just like your parents taught you, fire can be dangerous. And having an actual fire in your home fireplace comes with some required maintenance to ensure you can safely control the fire and keep it where it belongs. (more…)
Major Causes of Wood Truss Failures
February 10, 2021 8:45 am Leave a Comment
Wood truss failures can vary and identifying the cause requires visual inspection as well as a working knowledge of the structural loads and building codes. These truss systems must transfer the gravity and lateral loads to the foundations. Consequently, the framing system and the foundation provide strength and stability for a structure. The most common type of wood-framed construction uses roof trusses, exterior and interior load-bearing walls, beams, girders, posts, and floor framing to resist the gravity and vertical loads. This type of wood-framed construction engages a system of horizontal diaphragms (roof and floors) and shear walls (vertical exterior sheathed walls) to resist the lateral loads. (more…)
Stress Corrosion Cracking of Stainless Steel in Marine Environments
January 29, 2021 3:37 pm Leave a Comment
Stress corrosion cracking involves the slow growth of small, often microscopic, cracks through a metal part in a corrosive environment. The cracking can continue to the point that the part fails suddenly and unexpectedly even though it still appears new and in good condition.

My first experience with stress corrosion cracking happened in the Charleston harbor when the stainless steel rudder suddenly separated from a sailboat during moderate winds. What had been a pleasant evening sail turned instantly into being in a difficult to control boat in the middle of the busy shipping channel. The rudder remained attached only (more…)
Residential Structure Fires
January 25, 2021 2:05 pm Leave a Comment
The winter season is well underway in the United States, with the Christmas and New Years holidays behind us and the depths of cold weather here for the duration. With winter, many people spend more hours indoors as compared to the summer when outdoor activities ramp up. With more time spent indoors, it is somewhat intuitive that the use of electricity would increase as well.

Electricity is one of the most influential utilities in our daily life. Much of what modern societies rely on to get through a normal day requires electricity. Have you ever been in a slight panic looking for an electric outlet when your cell phone is below 10% charge? Or how many times do we all attempt to turn on a light switch when we enter a room during a known power outage from sheer habit? Even our personal transportation which has relied on gasoline for roughly 100 years is shifting toward electric automobiles. (more…)
Heating System Losses, Part One
January 18, 2021 9:36 am Leave a Comment
When fall and winter arrive and temperatures drop, it is a great comfort to have a heating system to warm your home or office. Several categories of heating equipment exist to provide both primary and secondary heating. Primary heating systems include fuel gas/fuel oil/electric forced air furnaces, heat pumps, hydronic heating/steam systems and even wood-fired heating systems. Secondary heating equipment includes electric, gas and kerosene space heaters of both fixed and portable design, and fireplaces. Each of the different types of heating systems have unique hazards that, uncontrolled, can result in fires, explosions, burn injuries, and carbon monoxide poisoning. (more…)
Staying Connected on the Loop: Two by Two’s Mobile Internet Setup
November 19, 2020 7:52 am Leave a Comment
After completing the sit-stand workstation in the guest stateroom of our 47’ Nova Scotia pilothouse trawler, Two by Two, that I reported in a previous blog, I found I needed an internet connection with reasonable speed and reliability. While almost every marina will give you a password for their WiFi, the quality of most marina connections is unreliable and too slow to effectively work as a forensic engineering consultant. When I tried to download a simple photograph through any type of remote connection to the Irmo, SC office, I could go make a cup of coffee and come back before the download finished. To upload a group of photographs (more…)
P&ID’s, If You Please – Piping and Instrumentation Diagrams Explained
November 17, 2020 4:26 pm Leave a Comment
When investigating an industrial incident, one piece of information I always ask for is the relevant P&ID’s for the process. P&ID stands for Piping and Instrumentation Diagram and is defined as “A schematic diagram of the relationship between instruments, controllers, piping, and system equipment.” A set of P&ID’s for an entire facility allows you to trace the entire manufacturing process from raw material unloading to finished product loadout, including utilities like steam, water, fuel, and air. That’s great information to have, but isn’t especially useful (more…)

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