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Fire and Explosion Risks in Petrochemical Plant: Assessment, Modeling and Consequences Analysis

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Abstract

The oil and gas industry is a theater of major accidents such as fire, explosion and dispersion of toxic substances. The physicochemical properties of exploited materials in this industry and its operating techniques can contribute to the escalation of these hazards. The aim of this study is to assess and model the fire and explosion hazards of liquefaction natural gas in Algeria as long as this later plays an important role in gas industry and global energy markets in the next several years. The first step used in this study is the hazard identification using HAZID tool. This step is completed by DOW’s F&EI as a second step to predict and quantify mathematically the fire and explosion damages in the Scrub Column and the MCHE the most critical systems in the LNG unit. In order to better understand the hazards severity of these risks, PHAST software is used to model and simulate the accident scenarios. The results will reveal that the two principal equipments of liquefaction unit (Scrub Column–MCHE) present an important risk as per HAZID and they present a severe risk as per DOW’s F&EI. The modelization of fire and explosion scenarios using PHAST software gives us a real image about these hazards which presented by Fireball, Flash Fire, Early and Late explosion. The combination of HAZID, DOW’s F&EI and PHAST simulator leads to better risk assessment, and helps in creating preventive measures, and taking serious decisions to reduce and limit fire and explosion risks in order to save human life as a first goal, environment and installations as a second goal and to avoid the financial and economic loss of Algeria.

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Abbreviations

ESD:

Emergency shut down

F1:

General process hazard factor

F2:

Special process hazard factor

F3:

Process unit hazard factor

F&EI:

Fire and explosion index

FHA:

Fire hazard analysis

FMEA:

Failure modes and effects analysis

GL1K:

Liquefaction natural gas complex—Skikda

HRA:

Human reliability analysis

HAZID:

Hazard identification

HAZOP:

Hazard and operability analysis

LFL:

Low flammable limit

LMR:

Liquid mixed refrigerant

LNG:

Liquefied natural gas

LPG:

Liquefied petrol gas

MCHE:

Main cryogenic heat exchanger

MF:

Material factor

MR:

Mixed refrigerant

NFPA:

National fire protection association

PHA:

Process hazard analysis

SIL:

Safety integrity level

VCE:

Vapor cloud explosion

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. LGCES Research Laboratory, Petrochemistry and Process Engineering Department, University 20 août 1955- Skikda, Skikda, Algeria

    Bekhouche Saloua, Rouaïnia Mounira & Medjram Mohamed Salah

Authors
  1. Bekhouche Saloua
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  2. Rouaïnia Mounira
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  3. Medjram Mohamed Salah
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Correspondence to Bekhouche Saloua.

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Saloua, B., Mounira, R. & Salah, M.M. Fire and Explosion Risks in Petrochemical Plant: Assessment, Modeling and Consequences Analysis. J Fail. Anal. and Preven. 19, 903–916 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11668-019-00698-8

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