https://www.hse.gov.uk/safetybulletins/phenomenon-of-condensate-induced-water-hammer.htm
March 30, 2021
March 27, 2021
My presentation on Whats Going Wrong in PSM - 36 years after Bhopal?
I am giving a presentation in the First Jordanian International Chemical Process Safety Virtual Conference to be held on 30th and 31st March 2021. My topic is "Whats Going wrong with PSM - 36 years after Bhopal?" and is scheduled on 30th March,21 between 1500 to1515 hrs Jordan time (1730 to 1745 hrs IST) The registration to the conference is free and there are very good speakers lined up.
Register in this link http://www.jeaconf.org/JCPSC/ConferenceFees Registration is FREE
March 26, 2021
March 22, 2021
OSHA STANDARD FOR BREATHING AIR
OSHA Standard 29 CFR 1910.134(i)(1)
“Compressed breathing air shall meet at least the requirements for Grade D breathing air described in ANSI/Compressed Gas Association Commodity Specification for Air, G-7.1-1989, to include:
Oxygen content (v/v) of 19.5% - 23.5%;
Hydrocarbon (condensed) content of 5 milligrams per cubic meter of air or less;
Carbon monoxide (CO) content of 10 parts per million (ppm) or less;
Carbon dioxide (CO2) content of 1,000 ppm or less; and
Lack of noticeable odor”
“Compressed breathing air shall meet at least the requirements for Grade D breathing air described in ANSI/Compressed Gas Association Commodity Specification for Air, G-7.1-1989, to include:
Oxygen content (v/v) of 19.5% - 23.5%;
Hydrocarbon (condensed) content of 5 milligrams per cubic meter of air or less;
Carbon monoxide (CO) content of 10 parts per million (ppm) or less;
Carbon dioxide (CO2) content of 1,000 ppm or less; and
Lack of noticeable odor”
March 18, 2021
OSHA'S RECOMMENDATIONS TO PREVENT INADVERTENT HOOKING UP OF BREATHING AIR INTO NITROGEN SYSTEMS
To help ensure that workers do not inadvertently hook up to inert gas supplies, the following recommendations should be implemented:
•Ensure that all requirements related to respiratory protection as outlined in29 CFR 1910.134 are met. Written standard operating procedures governing the selection and use of respirators must be developed and implemented. Requirements for training and instruction in the proper use of respirators and their limitations must be met at all facilities.
•Ensure (determine) that the couplings of the respirator air lines are incompatible with any other couplings/fittings for non-respirable air or gas delivery systems.Replace couplings on non-breathing air systems with another, incompatible type of coupling.
•Ensure that breathable air systems are not in any way interconnected to non-breathable air systems.
•Develop a maintenance procedure to address supply-line identification (labeling)and painting. Stress the purpose of color coding and the importance of completing detail painting in a timely fashion to ensure that this visual cue is always available to aid workers.
Source: Osha.gov
March 14, 2021
INCIDENT #3 DUE TO CONNECTING BREATHING AIR HOSE TO NITROGEN
An employee hooked the fresh air line of his supplied-air respirator into a plant’s compressed airlines and began abrasive blasting. The plant operators, unaware that their plant air was being used as breathing air, shut down the fresh air compressor for routine, scheduled maintenance and pumped nitrogen into the system to maintain pressure and control the valves in the refinery. The employee was overcome by the nitrogen in the airlines and died of nitrogen asphyxia.
Source:Osha.gov
March 10, 2021
INCIDENT #2 DUE TO CONNECTING BREATHING AIR HOSE TO NITROGEN
An employee was using an air hammer to chip residue out of a furnace at an aluminum foundry.He was wearing an air-line respirator. Two compressed gas lines with universal access couplings were attached to a nearby post. The one on the right was labeled “natural gas.” The gas line on the left had a paper tag attached with the word“air” handwritten on it; however, this line actually contained pure nitrogen. A splitter diverted one part of the gas stream to the air hammer and the other part of the stream to the air-line respirator.The employee was asphyxiated and killed when exposed to pure nitrogen.
Source:osha,gov
March 5, 2021
INCIDENT #1 DUE TO CONNECTING BREATHING AIR HOSE TO NITROGEN
A contractor crew was assigned to abrasively blast inside a reactor vessel at a petrochemical refinery.Although verbal company policy called for contractors to supply all breathing air, this crew,with supervisor’s knowledge, had on several occasions used plant air to supply breathing air. A crew member mistakenly hooked up his air-line respirator to an unlabeled nitrogen line (only the shut-off valve was labeled) used by the refinery for purging confined spaces. Plant nitrogen and airlines were identical, and both had couplings compatible with the coupler on the respirator. The crew member was killed.
Source: osha.gov
March 1, 2021
Fire when opening a level gauge connected to a molten sulphur tank
In a molten sulphur tank in a refinery, receiving of molten sulphur was stopped as the level gauge was not working. When instrument personnel opened the top side of the level gauge, a fire started as there was pyrophoric iron sulphide inside the level gauge top chamber. The H2S inside the tank also caught fire.
Are you training your operators on the hazards of storing molten sulphur?
February 27, 2021
February 24, 2021
February 20, 2021
February 16, 2021
February 12, 2021
February 8, 2021
February 4, 2021
January 29, 2021
January 25, 2021
TEG SOAKED INSULATION FIRE INCIDENT
A fire on an offshore installation has highlighted the risk of low temperature spontaneous combustion from TEG soaked insulation. An investigation has shown that spontaneous combustion of TEG soaked into fibrous materials can occur at relatively low temperatures (70oC). Therefore, specific precautions are required for stripping and disposal, to avoid unexpected ignition and fire.
The incident occurred on the process deck and involved removal of the aluminium cladding and TEG soaked insulation (Kaowool Ceramic) from dehydration system pipework following a small leak of hot TEG from a flange. The materials were temporarily stored, with rags used to mop up excess TEG from the deck, in a plastic sack. Spontaneous combustion subsequently caused a fire, which consumed the sack and contents.
The TEG soaked insulation was at, or near, the pipework temperature when it was placed in the plastic sack. The process of stripping the insulation allowed air to be absorbed into the insulation. In addition, dry hot insulation could have come into contact with TEG soaked insulation after being removed from the pipework.
As the insulation cooled it was possible for an oxidation process to have begun in the centre of the waste in the plastic sack, which eventually gave rise to spontaneous ignition and combustion.
This incident is an example of a well-recognised phenomenon more often observed in oil soaked rags in workshops and insulation soaked in mineral oil. It is less common in relation to TEG but can occur in the following circumstances: For spontaneous combustion to occur, TEG must be absorbed into an insulating material which has sufficient void spaces for air to be absorbed. The temperature will rise if the temperature of the insulation is relatively high and the volume sufficient to allow heat generated by an oxidation process at its centre to be retained. The larger the volume of the insulation, the greater the amount of heat retained and the lower the temperature at which spontaneous combustion of the TEG will begin. High temperatures can develop that could lead to a fire. If the bulk of TEG soaked insulation is large enough, spontaneous combustion could occur even if the insulation starts from cold. However, the time taken before the initiation of the rapid heating process would be much longer. TEG soaked rags are much less reactive than insulation, but could still present a hazard. TEG dehydration systems can run at temperatures up to 200oC and pipework is often insulated with fibrous rock wool type material. This material has a structure suited to the absorption of air into the void spaces. In normal circumstances the insulation will be clad with aluminium plate, which holds the insulation in a compressed state and prevents the ingress of air. When cladding is removed and the insulation stripped from the pipework, air will be absorbed into the insulation. If the TEG and insulation are hot from the process pipework and collected in bulk, the conditions within the stripped material can be susceptible to spontaneous combustion.
SOURCE:IOGP
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