Nozzle Loads for Tube Side Connections of Multitube Exchangers

I don't get stumped too often here but you got me on this one.

Without a drawing, together with pressure/temperature conditions, this is not very clear.

When you say "Vendor has to assess the loads(forces and moments) imposed on the nozzles." are you the vendor (to your client) or is the vendor the exchanger supplier? Elsewhere vendor appears to be the exchanger supplier, but I would think it's down to you to assess the nozzle loads, imposed by your pipework. If you arrange the pipework and its supports appropriately and maybe use flexible bellows you should be able to impose minimal external loads on the nozzles. In that case the exchanger supplier's leak calcs ought to be enough. Presumably the flanges are standard and rated for the pressure so there's no need to design them from scratch for stress etc.

BTW what is a FPSO?

you'll need a decoder ring on this one. he just isn't gonna reveal the info we need to assist him

FPSO

A floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) unit is a floating vessel used by the offshore oil and gas industry for the processing of hydrocarbons and for storage of oil. An FPSO vessel is designed to receive hydrocarbons produced from nearby platforms or subsea template, process them, and store oil until it can be offloaded onto a tanker or, less frequently, transported through a pipeline. FPSOs are preferred in frontier offshore regions as they are easy to install, and do not require a local pipeline infrastructure to export oil. FPSOs can be a conversion of an oil tanker or can be a vessel built specially for the application. A vessel used only to store oil (without processing it) is referred to as a floating storage and offloading vessel (FSO).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floating_production_storage_and_offloading

OK thanks