Plant process safety

Scheffler, N. E. (1996). "Inherently Safer Latex Plants. Process Safety Progress 15, 1 (Spring), 11-17. 

Homer, R. A., "Direction of Plant Process Safety Regulations in the United States," J. Loss Prev. Proc. Ind., 2 (1989). 

As can be seen from the Global Reactive Chemicals Standard, all existing chemical processes will have a Reactive Chemicals/Process Hazard Analysis review on a predefined periodic basis. In addition, every new plant Production Leader should review their process with the Reactive Chemicals Committee within 90 days of assuming responsibility for a pilot or production plant. Prior to the review, the Leader should acquire training on the chemistry and processes that they are working with. This should include an evaluation of raw materials, processes, products and waste to understand any potential reactive chemical hazards. They should review and be prepared to answer questions from the completed and updated RC/PHA protocol questionnaire as well as other relevant materials in their plant Process Safety Folder, such as F EI, CEI, etc. The review should cover all auxiliary operations to the process such as raw material and product storage drum, tank car and truck loading. 

Sanders, Roy E., Human Factors Case Histories of Improperly Managed Changes in Chemical Plants, Process Safety Progress 15 no. 3, Fall 1996 pp. 132-39. 

Sanders, Roy E., Picture This Incidents that Could Happen in Your Plant, Process Safety Progress, June 2002, p. 130,134. 

Establish a plant process safety organization and assign responsibihty, authority, and accountabUity for this organization. Include a process safety manager whose primary responsibihty is process safety. The responsibilities of this organization should include at least the following ... 

Consider establishing employee safety committees with union representation (if there are unions at the plant). Consider also setting up a plant process safety working group. 

This method consists of characterizing the design features, especially in the safety system architecture, that are likely to pose problems in the operation, notably during the degraded situations in which the plant safety strongly depends on human reliability. The characterization of the intrinsic physical behaviour of the plant processes (safety functions), of the operating constraints of the safety systems and finally of the interrelations between these entities (most complexity theories consider these interrelations to be the main contributors to the complexity of a system), lead to the definition of an operational complexity index and to the identification of the sources of the operational constraints bearing on the operation crews. 

Tum, RD., 1990, Designing plants for 1990 and beyond Procedures for the Control of Safety, Healdi and Environmental Hazards in dte design of chemical plant. Process Safety Environmental Protection, Trans. IChemE, Fd). pl2-lS. 

In modern industrial plants, process safety relies on the principle of multiple layers of protection (AIChE, 1993, 2001 ISA, 1996). A typical configuration is shown in Figure 10.1. Each layer of protection consists of a grouping of equipment and/or human actions. The layers of protection are shown in the order of activation that occurs as a plant incident develops, with the most effective layers used first. The basic concept is that an incident should be handled at the lowest possible layer. In the interior of the diagram, the process design itself provides the first level of protection. The next two layers consist... 

The four process control parameters are temperature, pressure, flow, and level. Modem process level detection systems are varied and ubiquitous in modem chemical plants there are thousands of processes requiring Hquid level indication and Hquid level control. From accumulators to wet wells, the need for level devices is based on the need for plant efficiency, safety, quaUty control, and data logging. Unfortunately, no single level measurement technology works rehably on all chemical plant appHcations. This fact has spawned a broad selection of level indication and control device technologies, each of which operates successfully on specific appHcations. 

Chemical Process Quantitative Risk Analysis Process Equipment Reliability Data, with Data Tables Technical Management of Chemical Process Safety (Plant)... 

Process Safety Eundamentals for General Plant Operations... 

Plant Operations Progress, Vols. I—II, American Institute of Chemical Engineers, 1982—1992 Process Safety Progress, Vol. 12, 1993—present. 

Eault tree analysis (ETA) is a widely used computer-aided tool for plant and process safety analysis (69). One of the primary strengths of the method is the systematic, logical development of the many contributing factors that might result ia an accident. This type of analysis requires that the analyst have a complete understanding of the system and plant operations and the various equipment failure modes. 

Unless some discipline is imposed, engineering personnel, especially where contractors are involved, will define far more alarms than plant operations require. This situation may be addressed by simply setting the alarm hmits to values such that the alarms never occur. However, changes in alarms and alarm hmits are changes from the perspec tive of the Process Safety Management regulations. It is prudent to impose the necessary discipline to avoid an excessive number of alarms. Potential guidelines are as follows ... 

The regulatoiy environment will continue to change. As of this writing, the key regulatory instrument is OSHA 29 CFR 1910.119 that pertains to process safety management within plants in which certain chemicals are present. 

Facilities Reviews There are many lands of facilities reviews that are useful in detec ting and preventing process safety problems. They include pre-start-up reviews (before the plant operates), new-plant reviews (the plant has started, but is stiU new), reviews of existing plants (safety, technology, and operations audits and reviews), management reviews, critical instrument reviews, and hazardous materials transportation reviews. 

CCPS G-10. 1992. Plajtt Guidelines for Technical Management of Chemical Process Safety and a video. Process Safety for Plant Personnel, based on these Guidelines. American Institute of Chemical Engineers, Center for Chemical Process Safety, New York. 

Hendershot, D. C. 1987. Safety Considerations in the Design of Batch Processing Plants, in Proceedings of the International Symposium on the Prevention of Major Chemical Accidents, Center for Chemical Process Safety/AIChE, New York, NY. 

Wilday, A.J. 1991. The Safe Design of Chemical Plants with No Need for Pressure Relief Systems. Elazards IX—New Directions in Process Safety. IChemE Symposium Series. No. 124, pp. 243-253. Institute of Chemical Engineers, IChemE, Rugby, U.K. 

Woltman, A.W. 1992. Process Safety Enhancement through Instrumentation. AlChE Process Plant Safety Symposium, pp. 1-17. Eebruary 18-20, 1992 American Institute of Chemical Engineers, South Texas Section, Elouston, Texas. 

Audit (Process Safety Audit) An inspection of a plant or process unit, drawings, procedures, emergency plans, and/or management systems, etc., usually by an independent, impartial team. 

The American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) has a 30-year history of involvement with process safety for chemical processing plants. Through its strong ties with process designers, builders, operators, safety professionals and academia, the AIChE has enhanced communication and fostered improvement in the high safety standards of the industry. AIChE publications and symposia have become an information resource for the chemical engineering profession on the causes of accidents and means of prevention. 

Process Safety Management (PSM), under OSHA, attempts to protect employees exposed to toxicity, tire, or explosion. Many plants employing chemical engineers must do a PSM consisting of fourteen parts. Some of the parts are greatly facilitated if the team includes chemical engineers. 

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