Event
- Event ID
- 34
- Quality
- Description
In an chlorine production plant, vented chlorine and hydrogen, auto ignited when the hydrogen concentration was allowed to exceed 5% and the mixture mixed with air.
- Event Initiating system
- Classification of the physical effects
- Hydrogen Release and Ignition
- Nature of the consequences
- fire
- Macro-region
- North America
- Country
- United States
- Date
- Component involved
- venting system
- Failure mode
- ignition of vented H2
- Initiating cause
- wrong operation
- Root CAUSE analysis
The INITIATING CAUSE was the formation of a chlorine-hydrogen flammable mixture in the vent.
The excess of hydrogen concentration in the exhaust occurred because the hydrogen detector was not (properly) calibrated.
The ROOT CAUSE was a failure to apply sound routines for the calibration of instruments.
- Root causes
- Date entry in HIAD
- 28/02/2009
Facility
- Application
- Chemical industry
- Sub-application
- Chlorine production
- Hydrogen supply chain stage
- All components affected
chlorine electrolyser, exhaust system, gas detection
- Location type
- Open
- Location
- industrial area
- Operational condition
Emergency & Consequences
- Number of fatalities
- 0
- Number of injured persons
- 0
- Post-event summary
Material damage was 6000 $
In-depth data
- Release type
- gas mixture
- Involved substances (% vol)
- CL2
H2 - Probable IGNITION SOURCE
References
- Sources categories
- Zalosh
- Reference & weblink
Table II of Appendix A of Zalosh and Short
COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF HYDROGEN FIRE AND EXPLOSION INCIDENTS
Quarterly Report No. 2 for Period December 1, 1977 - February 28, 1978
https://www.osti.gov/biblio/6566131
(accessed September 2020)
