Hazardous materials case studies

Cozzani, V, Bandini, R., Basta, C. Christou, M.D. 2006. Application of land-use planning criteria for the control of major accident hazards A case-study. Journal of Hazardous Material 136(2) 170-180. 

Stief, K., Remedial action for groundwater protection case studies within the Federal Republic of Germany, in Hazardous Material Spills Conference Proceedings, Government Institutes, Rockville, MD, 1984. 

In the next few sections, a case study of the environmental impact of highway construction and repair materials as well as hazardous solid waste materials is presented and discussed from the view points of sorption/desorption processes. 

In summary, the present case study involved sorption/desorption processes with distilled water of a variety of hazardous solid wastes and highway C R materials which are complex organic mixtures. The following are some of the findings ... 

Similarly, the various EU directives that mandate substance bans have initiated wide scale research and development of alternative materials. Lead is a case in point. Lead has been widely used in the electronic industry in solders. Lead-free solders have existed for many years but it was the mandate in the Restriction of use of certain Flazardous Substances Directive (RoHS) to have products free of lead by July 2006 that spurred industry research, planning and adoption of the substitutes. Annex I lists examples of Green Chemistry case studies where research was stimulated in response to legislation targeting hazardous materials. 

The information was compiled from paper and on-line research and from direct phone conversations and meetings with industry representatives. The more comprehensive overview of case studies of company substitutions for brominated flame retardants demonstrates both the complexity and feasibility of implementing safer alternatives. Other case studies show how leading retailers are moving to phase-out hazardous materials and how some chemical industries are researching and implementing Green Chemistry alternatives. 

Branson, D.R. A new capacitor fluid - A case study in product stewardship, in Aquatic Toxicology and Hazard Evaluation, ASTM Special Technical Publication 657, Mayer, F.L. and Hamelink, J.L., Eds. (Philadelphia. PA American Society for Testing and Materials, 1977), pp. 44-61. 

In the 13 case studies documented processes and experiences of attempts to substitute hazardous substances in the 1980s and 1990s were examined. The aim of the choice of cases was to cover a wide spectrum of substitution conditions consumer-close and consumer-remote products, product auxiliary materials and process auxiliary materials, SMEs and large-scale industiy, environment, consumer and occupational health and safety subjects, technical and organisational iimova-tions. 

At first glance, this incident does not appear to be process safety related since there was no direct loss of containment however, many factors make it important to review. The material involved in the incident was an undesirable byproduct of an engineered process. AAdien unknown material accumulates in an undesirable location, it often creates a physical hazard. This hazard may directly trigger a loss when it is least expected. Accumulated solids in closed systems may contribute to corrosion, blockage, and physical damage. This accident case study should also be examined in the context of an enclosed system. 

A study of static charge build-up on the human body in an arctic environment and how it might affect initiation of primers was reported recently (Ref 57). For an earlier discussion of charge build-up on humans see Ref 33. Operations are considered hazardous when the electrostatic energy potential during the suspected operation exceeds the threshold initiation level for the hazardous material. The human body can constitute a hazard when the material can be initiated by a discharge of less than 0.015 J, as is the case with primary expls... 

The technical part of the feasibility study considers the alternative processes, and the equipment that constitutes the chemical plant in each case. At this stage it is necessary to identify any items of equipment that pose particular or unusual design problems, or which are very expensive or hazardous. The feasibility study should determine whether it is possible to design and build a chemical plant for a particular manufacturing process. Any external factors that may influence the operation of the plant should be noted, e.g. discharge levels, stability of raw materials supply, etc. 

The selected case study (Section 7) demonstrates the hazard potential of river sediments. In numerous investigations, pT-values were generated for sediments and dredged material of the rivers Rhine (with its tributaries Moselle and Saar), Ems, Weser, Elbe, Oder and their estuaries, as well as the North and Baltic Seas. Several pT-values were also generated for sediments in the Sepetiba Bay (Federal State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) to identify toxic areas. Again, the pT-method was used as an ecotoxicological discriminator to map out sediment quality in polluted zones (Soares and de Freitas, 2000). 

The Institution of Chemical Engineers also offers a full range of training materials in the form of hazard workshop training modules. These modules comprise case studies including documented accidents, 35-mm color slides, and notes for the discussion leader. Several of the modules are supplied with a video in the package. There are over 20 interactive training modules available for purchase. Some of the more popular modules include ... 

The various case studies discussed in this paper demonstrate that CBPCs are a very versatile material for the stabilization of hazardous and radioactive waste streams. CBPCs chemically immobilize and microencapsulate the contaminants, and reduce leaching to levels that meet WAC at DOE sites. They are also suitable for the macroencapsulation of various contaminated objects. 

Branson DR (1977) A new capacitor fluid - a case study in product stewardship. In Mayer FL, Hamelink (eds) Aquatic toxicology and hazard assessment, STP 634. American Chemical Society for Testing and Materials, Philadelphia, PA, p 44 (Proceedings of the first annual symposium on aquatic toxicology. ASTM 634, p 44)... 

The Defense Priority Model (DPM) is designed to provide an estimate of the relative potential risk to human health and the environment from sites containing hazardous materials. The DPM evolved from a model called the Hazard Assessment Risk Model (HARM) developed by Oak Ridge National Laboratory from 1984-1986 for the Air Force. The automation of DPM was done first in KES(r) and then in Arity Prolog(r) for use on an IBM-PC/AT class machine. The computerized model has already become more sophisticated than the paper model and as development continues, it is possible to take advantage of additional expert system features. This paper is designed as a case study of DPM development and presents the reasons for the choice of expert system environment and its evolution, the current scope of the model, and planned additions that will increase the functionality of model in the future. The methodology used to evaluate this expert system is also described. 

National Safety Council, 1992, ISBN 0-87912-167-X, 386 pages, 62.95. Topics Indude environmental management, hazard communication, safety management and training, inspections, material handling and storage, accident investigation, and case studies. 

SOCOPSE is looking mostly at hazardous priority pollutants to provide guidelines and decision support tools for their management at river basin scale. Its activities include material flow analysis, a series of detailed substances reports, identification of measures and management options, and application to fonr case studies. A strong interaction with industry research networks, authorities and NGOs is envisaged. 

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