Nitrobenzene Sulfonic Acid Decomposition

Illustrate the layered accident investigation process, using Example 13-1 as a guide, to develop the underlying causes of the duct system explosion described in section 13-1. 13-2. Repeat Problem 13-1 for the bottle of isopropyl ether accident described in section 13-2. 13-3. Repeat Problem 13-1 for the nitrobenzene sulfonic acid decomposition accident described in section 13-2. 

The acid is prepared by sulfonation of nitrobenzene with oleum, and the reaction product consists essentially of a hot solution of the acid in sulfuric acid. A completed 270 1 batch exploded violently after hot storage at 150C for several hours. An exotherm develops at 145°C, and the acid is known to decompose at 200 C [ 1], A similar incident arose from water leaking from a cooling coil into the fuming sulfuric acid reaction medium, which caused an exotherm to over 150°C and subsequent violent decomposition [2], Detailed examination of the thermal decomposition of the acid shows that it is much slower for the isolated acid than for the reaction mass, and that the concentration of sulfur trioxide in the oleum used for sulfonation bears... 

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