The accidents presented in this flash involve chemical reactions between incompatible products inadvertently placed into contact with one another. Encountered in all types of activities, such accidents are frequent and occur not only during the delivery of chemical products (wrong[...]
Around 8:00 a.m., an operator smelled mercaptans (strong-smelling gas 110 °C). The operators assigned to performing weekend rounds failed to notice that the mixer was operating although the light on the panel was lit and the shaft at the top of the[...]
At a plant producing substances used in medical imaging, a temperature control defect on a biconical dryer caused product decomposition during the drying cycle. The subsequent pressure surge led, around 10 pm, to the explosion of part of the glass[...]
An explosion occurred around noon while conducting hot work (with a disc saw) on a 320-m³ fixed-roof tank at a pharmaceutical plant employing 240 personnel. The tank cover was blasted 20 m away and the subcontractor performing cutting works was[...]
Inside a pesticides plant with 520 employees, a 17-m³ reservoir used to treat methomyl residues in a methylisobutyl ketone (MTBK) solvent suddenly rose in pressure at 10:20 pm and exploded 15 min later, seriously damaging the production unit, ripping apart[...]
A cloud of chlorine gas was accidentally generated around 10.30 am while transferring hydrochloric acid (HCl) into a tank containing sodium hypochlorite (NaClO or liquid bleach) in a chemical wholesale company. The accident happened during a period of rebuilding of[...]
During the vacuum transfer of liquid waste into steel tanks at a dangerous waste treatment centre, hydrogen sulphide (H2S) was released from the vent of a receiving tank. As they could not be treated on site, these wastes (received in[...]
During the production of biogas by means of an organic waste reclamation process, a release of hydrogen sulphide (H2S) killed 3 employees and a truck driver who had come to unload slaughterhouse waste. The high concentration of H2S in the[...]
A pipeline used to transport gaseous chlorine (Cl2) exploded between a chemical platform (run by the producer) and an elastomer manufacturing site (user). The pipeline, built in 1961 for the transport of hydrochloric acid (HCl), had been operated since 1986[...]
At a chemical plant, a tank containing a mix of toluene-2,6-diisocyanate (TDI) / tars with a high boiling point increased in pressure and exploded around 7:40 pm. The cloud ignited 5 min later; afterwards, the fire was fed by 20[...]
