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HQ 956866




January 24, 1995

CLA-2 CO:R:C:M 956866 KCC

CATEGORY: CLASSIFICATION

TARIFF NO.: 7326.90.90

District Director
U.S. Customs Service
P.O. Box 789
300 2nd Avenue South
Great Falls, MT 59403

RE: Protest 3304-94-100014; Tornado Sure Stop Detonation Flame Arrestors; 8481.40.00; safety or relief valves; EN 84.81

Dear District Director:

This is in regards to Protest 3304-94-100014, regarding the tariff classification of Tornado Sure Stop Detonation Flame Arrestors under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). Descriptive literature was submitted for our examination.

FACTS:

The Tornado Sure Stop Detonation Flame Arrestors are constructed of carbon steel and resemble a bathysphere. They contain two bi-directional inlet or outlet ports for in-line connection to the user's system. In the center of the device is a steel grid filled with alumina ceramic material. This article is designed as an industrial component to prevent flame, from either an explosion or flashback, from travelling from one portion of a facility to another. The Tornado Sure Stop Detonation Flame Arrestors functions by intercepting a heat source/flame and immediately quenching it as it passes through the heat absorbing alumina ceramic material. The absorption disperses and extinguishes the flame. However, the shock wave which might result from an in-line explosion is not blocked or diverted by this article; it is rendered less lethal by robbing it of its incendiary capability.

The entry of the Tornado Sure Stop Detonation Flame Arrestors was liquidated on April 8, 1994, under subheading 7326.90.90, HTSUS, as other articles of iron or steel. In a protest timely filed on April 25, 1994, the protestant contends that the Tornado Sure Stop Detonation Flame Arrestors are classified under subheading 8481.40.00, HTSUS, as safety or relief valves. The protestant contends that these articles are very complicated check valves.

The competing subheadings are:

7326.90.90 Other articles of iron or steel...Other...Other...Other...Other.

8481.40.00 Taps, cocks, valves and similar appliances, for pipes, boiler shells, tanks, vats or the like, including pressure-reducing valves and thermostatically controlled valves; parts thereof...Safety or relief valves.

ISSUE:

Are the Tornado Sure Stop Detonation Flame Arrestors classified under subheading 8481.40.00, HTSUS, as safety or relief valves?

LAW AND ANALYSIS:

The classification of merchandise under the HTSUS is governed by the General Rules of Interpretation (GRI's). GRI 1, HTSUS, states, in part, that "for legal purposes, classification shall be determined according to the terms of the headings and any relative section or chapter notes...."

The protestant contends that the Tornado Sure Stop Detonation Flame Arrestors are properly classified under subheading 8481.40.00, HTSUS, as safety or relief valves. In understanding the language of the HTSUS, the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System ENs may be utilized. The ENs, although not dispositive, provide a commentary on the scope of each heading of the HTSUS and are generally indicative of the proper interpretation of the HTSUS. See, T.D. 89-80, 54 Fed. Reg. 35127, 35128 (August 23, 1989). EN 84.81 (pgs. 1321-1323) states that:

This heading covers taps, cocks, valves and similar appliances, used on or in pipes, tanks, vats or the like to regulate the flow (for supply, discharge, etc.), of fluids (liquid, viscous or gaseous), or, in certain cases, of solids (e.g., sand). The heading includes such devices designed to regulate the pressure or the flow velocity of a liquid or a gas.

The appliances regulate the flow by opening or closing an aperture (e.g., gate, disc, ball, plug, needle or diaphragm). They may be operated by hand (by means of a key, wheel, press button, etc.), or by a motor, solenoid, clock movement, etc., or by an automatic device such as a spring, counterweight, float lever, thermostatic element or pressure capsule.

For an article to be classified under subheading 8481.40.00, HTSUS, it must have a passageway for the gas, liquid or solid to move through and a restricting, blocking or diverting component inserted into the passageway. There has to be some physical movement inside the passageway to restrict, block or divert. The Tornado Sure Stop Detonation Flame Arrestors function is to dissipate heat. It does not divert or regulate the gas flow. Additionally, a safety or relief valve is one that generally blows open when a pre-set line pressure is reached which vents the pressure before the system is damage. The Tornado Sure Stop Detonation Flame Arrestors do not function in this manner. They physically lack the mechanical components to vent, divert or variably restrict the gas flow. Therefore, we are of the opinion that they are not classifiable under subheading 8481.40.00, HTSUS, as safety or relief valves.

HOLDING:

The Tornado Sure Stop Detonation Flame Arrestors are classified under subheading 7326.90.90, HTSUS, as other articles of iron or steel.

This protest should be DENIED. In accordance with section 3A(11)(b) of Customs Directive 099 3550-065, dated August 4, 1993, Subject: Revised Protest Directive, this decision should be mailed by your office to the protestant no later than 60 days from the date of this letter. Any reliquidation of the entry in accordance with this decision must be accomplished prior to the mailing of the decision. Sixty days from the date of this decision, the Office of Regulations and Rulings will take steps to make the decision available to Customs personnel via the Customs Rulings Module in ACS and to the public via the Diskette Subscription Service, Freedom of Information Act and other public access channels.

Sincerely,

John Durant, Director
Commercial Rulings Division

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