Process engineer, hazard assessment

The hazard classification guide developed by the Dow Chemical Company and published by the American Institute of Chemical Engineering, Dow (1994) (www.aiche.org), gives a method of evaluating the potential risk from a process, and assessing the potential loss. 

Facility System Safety (FSS), which is the application of system safety concepts to the facility acquisition process, has recently gained acceptance throughout the Department of Defense and most recently within the Department of Army with the conception of SAFEARMY 1990. The Army s goal is to fully integrate the total system safety, human factors, and health hazard assessments into continuous comprehensive evaluation of selected systems and facilities. The Chemical Research Development and Engineering Center (CRDEC) has mandated appropriate levels of system safety throughout the lifecycle of facility development for many reasons. These include ... 

The fire detection grading approach is a coarse hazard assessment, which documents the credible fire hazards and defines and establishes acceptable fire detection performance requirements. The fire detection performance requirements are defined by determining what size of fire presents a credible escalation hazard. The systematic application ofthe grading process then develops an engineered detection system whose performance can be verified. The general process utilized to develop the detection layout is as follows ... 

Hazard and risk analysis is a vast subject by itself and is extensively covered in the literature [22]. In order to plan to avoid accidental hazards, the hazard potential must be evaluated. Many new methods and techniques have been developed to assess and evaluate potential hazards, employing chemical technology and reliability engineering. These can be deduced from Fault Tree Analysis or Failure Mode Analysis [23], In these techniques, the plant and process hazard potentials are foreseen and rectified as far as possible. Some techniques such as Hazards and operability (HAZOP) studies and Hazard Analysis (HAZAN) have recently been developed to deal with the assessment of hazard potentials [24]. It must be borne in mind that HAZOP and HAZAN studies should be properly viewed not as ends in themselves but as valuable contributors to the overall task of risk management... 

The Effects of Explosions in the Process Industries, Loss Prevention bulletin 068, Overpressure Working Party, Major Hazards Assessment Panel, Institution of Chemical Engineers, Apr., 1986. 

Table 17.1 shows the aspects of process safety for which actions are required by OSHA in Title 29 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Part 1910, Section 119 (29 CFR 1910.119) [1] and by the EPA in Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Part 68 (40 CFR 68) [2]. This Chemical Process Safety section concentrates on the engineering aspects of Process Safety Information —on the consequences of failure of engineering and administrative controls and the qualitative evaluation of a range of the possible safety and health effects of failure of controls requirements of the OSHA and EPA Process Hazards Analysis and the Off-Site Hazard Assessment. ... 

Hauptmanns U (1998) Fault tree analysis for process plants. In Kandel A, Avni E (eds) Engineering risk and hazard assessment, vol. 1. CRC Press Inc., Boca Raton... 

Recent regulatory requirements make hazard analysis part of the PPE selection process. Hazard analysis procedures should be used to assess the workplace to determine if hazards are present, or are likely to be present, which may necessitate the use of PPE. As part of this assessment, the employees work environment should be examined for potential hazards that are likely to present a danger to any part of their bodies. If it is not possible to eliminate workers exposure or potential exposure to the hazard through the efforts of engineering controls, work practices, and administrative controls, then the proper PPE must be selected, issued, and worn. The checklist found in Figure 24.3 may be of assistance in conducting a hazard analysis. 

General strategy for control (Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations). Identification of a hazard. Assessment of risk. Choice of control measures (including process change, substitution, segregation, engineering controls, reduced time exposure, personal protective equipment). 

In this book, two concepts of system safety engineering and risk assessment are combined. System safety engineering is considered a working part of the risk assessment process. Engineers must use system safety engineering analyses to truly understand what causes hazards and how they should be controlled. Risk assessment takes that information and helps the engineer weigh the options and decide which is the most cost-effective. 

There are many hazard analysis formulations which may be used effectively to assess process hazards. These include fault-free analysis, failure mode and effect analysis (FMEA), what-if analysis, hazard and operability analysis (HAZOP), check list analysis, and safety review, among others. The specifics associated with these analyses can be reviewed by consulting the appropriate American Institute of Chemical Engineers Center for Chemical Process Safety reference. " ... 

Engineers apply risk assessment to pollution prevention in their strategies. Risk is expressed as a mathematical function of hazards and exposures. Risk assessment methods help quantify the degree of environmental impact for individual chemicals. Engineers apply technologies to control the risks as an element of the design processes and products, taking into account the likelihood that certain actions wiU occur. Thus,... 

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