Flammable Liquids

Enclosed processing areas (vs. outside and open processing areas) that are handling/using the following, shall be ventilated at a rate sufficient to maintain the concentration of flammable vapors within the area at or below 25% of their lower flammable limit (LFL). Class I flammable liquids or as OSHA calls them Category 1/2 flammable liquids, Class II…...

Liquid storage areas where dispensing is conducted must have either a gravity ventilation system or a continuous mechanical exhaust ventilation system. If the dispensing involves Class I liquids (e.g. Category 1 & 2 liquids per OSHA terminology) mechanical ventilation is the ONLY acceptable option.  Regardless of the type used there are some FUNDAMENTAL requirements that…...

For the 2021 edition of NFPA 30, the committee introduced a sweeping change in the classification scheme for liquids. The term ignitible liquid has been introduced to initiate a process whereby the terms flammable liquid and combustible liquid are no longer used. This causes the requirements in NFPA 30 and other codes and standards to…...

WELDING on USED drums! At 12:00 p.m. on November 5, 2019, Employee #1 was making a small spot weld on a piece of metal. He was performing the weld on a drum of that contained flammable windshield washer fluid. There was an explosive reaction, and the cover of drum hit the employee’s face. Liquid splashed…...

Back in my HAZMAT days, we did a lot of transfers from damaged containers to proper containers to mitigate the release of hazardous materials.  When the HAZMAT was a flammable liquid, we oftentimes had to construct our own grounding grid.  This was more than not a massive challenge for us as we did this all…...

Many large scale processes that use Cat 1, 2, and 3 flammable liquids may also rely on a Nitrogen purge system to ensure the space within the process vessel is BELOW the Limiting Oxidizer Concentration (LOC) – sometimes called the Minimum Oxygen Concentration (MOC).  This safety system is based on the simple fact that if…...

Many of us use Safety Data Sheets (SDS) on a regular basis and most of us have come to the realization that these documents fall far short of providing us the safety information we really need.  For example, when working with flammable liquids do you trust the SDS data to provide an accurate Flash Point…...

Bonding and grounding is a critical safety function when transferring flammable liquids.  But for the ground to function properly, how good must it be or in technical terms, how much resistance to ground is acceptable in the design of the safety system?… Membership Required You must be a member to access this content.View Membership LevelsAlready...

NOT only was this worker welding, but he/she had also used a flammable liquid to clean the spot they wanted to weld and then kept the OPEN bucket of flammable liquid right at the point of work.  When they struck the arc, the vapors in the bucket ignited and the worker kicked the bucket of…...