Event
- Event ID
- 962
- Quality
- Description
A fire started in a refinery's gas oil desulphurization unit. The purpose of this unit is to separate sulphur from hydrocarbons and to do so, the latter are raised to 340°C in the presence of hydrogen and a catalyst.
A gasket would be responsible for the emission of the gas that then ignited.- Event Initiating system
- Classification of the physical effects
- Hydrogen Release and Ignition
- Nature of the consequences
- fire
- Macro-region
- Europe
- Country
- France
- Date
- Component involved
- joint/connection (gasket)
- Failure mode
- rupture & ignition
- Initiating cause
- unknown
- Root causes
- Unknown
- Date entry in HIAD
- 01/01/2018
Facility
- Application
- Petrochemical industry
- Sub-application
- Hydrodesulphurisation process
- Hydrogen supply chain stage
- All components affected
reactor, gasket
- Process temperature range [C]
- High temperature (100°C to 500°C)
- Process pressure range [MPa]
- medium to high pressure (10 to 50 MPa)
- Location type
- Open
- Location
- industrial area
- Operational condition
Emergency & Consequences
- Number of fatalities
- 0
- Number of injured persons
- 0
- Emergency action
Internal firefighters quickly controlled the fire. The external emergency services were mobilized but did not have to intervene. The plant operator shut down the unit to reduce and then stop the leak.
In-depth data
- Release type
- gas mixture
- Involved substances (% vol)
- H2,
Hydrocarbons (probably)
H2S (probably) - Release temperature [°C]
- 340
- Probable IGNITION SOURCE
References
- Sources categories
- ARIA
- Reference & weblink
Event description in the French database ARIA
https://www.aria.developpement-durable.gouv.fr/accident/18237/
(accessed October 2020)
