Event
- Event ID
- 95
- Quality
- Description
The incident occurred in the hydrogenation reactor and products cooling unit. The reactor operated under vacuum conditions and the cooling medium was water.
Toxic, flammable and explosive substances (flammable gases, hydrogen sulphide and hydrogen) escaped to the open air from a bend in the water cooler. The heat-exchanger of the cooling unit was corroded by the action of the hydrogen sulphide contained in the reaction products.
The hydrogen sulphide emission caused bad odour in the surroundings of the plant area. The population was alerted.
- Event Initiating system
- Classification of the physical effects
- Unignited Hydrogen Release
- Nature of the consequences
- leak no ignition
- Macro-region
- Europe
- Country
- Unknown
- Date
- Component involved
- heat exchanger (pipe)
- Failure mode
- rupture, no ignition
- Initiating cause
- material degradation (internal corrosion / erosion)
- Root CAUSE analysis
The INITIATING cause was the corrosion of the material by hydrogen sulphide.
- Root causes
- Date entry in HIAD
- 28/02/2009
Facility
- Application
- Petrochemical industry
- Sub-application
- Hydrogenation process
- Hydrogen supply chain stage
- All components affected
hydrogen pipe, heat exchanger, water cooling unit, hydrogenation reactor,
- Location type
- Open
- Location
- industrial area
- Operational condition
Emergency & Consequences
- Number of fatalities
- 0
- Number of injured persons
- 0
- Post-event summary
Released amount of flammable gases = 145 kg
Released amount of hydrogen sulphide = 55 kg
Released amount of hydrogen = 100 kg- Emergency action
INTERNAL TO THE ESTABLISHMENT: The accesses to the installation were blocked and the reactor contents was sent to the flare system. Hydrogen sulphide concentration measurements were carried out.
EXTERNAL TO THE ESTABLISHMENT: The hydrogen sulphide emission caused bad odour in the surroundings of the plant area. The population was alerted.
In-depth data
- Release type
- gas mixture
- Involved substances (% vol)
- H2
H2S
hydrocarbons - Released amount (kg)
- 100
- Probable IGNITION SOURCE
References
- Sources categories
- eMARS
- Reference & weblink
Description of the event in the European Database eMARS
