(76a) Preventing Loss of Containment through a Systematic Assessment of Hazards, Consequences, and Risks

Loss of containment of toxic chemicals, flammable chemicals and/or energy from vessels, pipes, or other containers can potentially lead to consequences that can range from minor to catastrophic. A fundamental understanding and detailed evaluation of the hazards is an important first step. This may be much more involved than just reviewing or communicating material safety data sheets. Next a complete range of failure scenarios should be analyzed in a systematic manner, including qualitative and quantitative methods, to develop information on potential consequences. With an understanding of hazards and consequences and ideally some good process data, a process hazards analysis team, using a semi-quantitative risk analysis, can evaluate the adequacy of systems and the layers of protection necessary for preventing loss of containment events. This paper will share some of the typical approaches that have worked well within the industry in general and DuPont in particular.