Event
- Event ID
- 282
- Quality
- Description
While returning to the base, a liquid hydrogen tanker had to be vented twice.
The cause of the overpressure was a malfunctioning scale which allowed a slight overload of hydrogen.- Event Initiating system
- Classification of the physical effects
- Unignited Hydrogen Release
- Nature of the consequences
- Macro-region
- North America
- Country
- United States
- Date
- Component involved
- LH2 tank (road tanker)
- Failure mode
- manual venting
- Initiating cause
- over-pressurisation (wrong operation)
- Root CAUSE analysis
The INITIATING CAUSE was the build-up of pressure inside the tank, which forced to manual venting.
ROOT CAUSE was The cause of the overpressure was a malfunctioning scale which allowed a slight overload of hydrogen.- Root causes
- Date entry in HIAD
- 20/01/2025
Facility
- Application
- Hydrogen transport and distribution
- Sub-application
- LH2 tanker
- Hydrogen supply chain stage
- All components affected
manual vent
- Process temperature range [C]
- cryogenic temperature (below -50°C)
- Process pressure range [MPa]
- low to medium pressure (below 2 MPa)
- Location type
- Open
- Location
- highway or similar
- Operational condition
Emergency & Consequences
- Number of fatalities
- 0
- Number of injured persons
- 0
- Currency
- US$
- Property loss (onsite)
- 0
Lesson Learnt
- Lesson Learnt
Zalosh et al (see references), concluded their analysis of hydrogen transportation accidents till 1978 with the following conclusions:
"Finally, an encouraging aspect of the transportation incident compilation is that 71% of the hydrogen releases did not lead to an ignition. ... The relatively few ignitions may be due to either to lack of ignition sources or to the rapid dispersal of hydrogen into the atmosphere. In any event, the accident data provide further incentive t o transport , transfer and store hydrogen outdoors away from occupied areas."
In-depth data
- Release type
- gas
- Involved substances (% vol)
- H2 100%
- Probable IGNITION SOURCE
References
- Sources categories
- Zalosh
- Reference & weblink
Appendix A of Zalosh and Short
COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF HYDROGEN FIRE AND EXPLOSION INCIDENTS
Quarterly Report No. 1 for Period September 1, 1977 - Novemebr, 1977
https://www.osti.gov/biblio/6566131
(accessed September 2020)Event incident I-19760200015 provided as example by Zalosh and Short Quarterly report 1 1977-78
Event incident I-19760200015 of the PHMSA database (Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, 1996),
https://portal.phmsa.dot.gov/analytics/saw.dll?Portalpages
(accessed September 2024)