Event
- Event ID
- 524
- Quality
- Description
Carbon steel corrosion resulted in release of hydrogen at 500°C from the hydrogen reformer, resulting in a fire.
- 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
- pipe (generic)
- Failure mode
- rupture & ignition
- Initiating cause
- H2-driven material degradation
- Root CAUSE analysis
The INITIATING CAUSE was the degradation of a carbon steel, easily degrading in presence of hydrogen.
The ROOT CAUSE was probably a shortcoming in the choice of materials, due to a lack of knowledge related to steel behaviour in hydrogen atmospheres.- Root causes
- Date entry in HIAD
- 28/01/2026
Facility
- Application
- Petrochemical industry
- Sub-application
- naphtha reforming
- Hydrogen supply chain stage
- Process temperature range [C]
- Very high temperature (500°C to 1000°C)
- Location type
- Open
- Location
- industrial area
- Operational condition
Emergency & Consequences
- Number of fatalities
- 0
- Number of injured persons
- 0
- Currency
- US$
- Property loss (onsite)
- 0
In-depth data
- Release temperature [°C]
- 500
- Probable IGNITION SOURCE
References
- Sources categories
- Zalosh
- Reference & weblink
Table II - Industrial Incidents 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)
