Hazardous Materials

Eight people, including five (5) contract workers and three (3) fire service personnel, were admitted to the hospital after they inhaled chlorine gas following a leakage at a water treatment plant.

I will again reference my 30 years of teaching emergency response courses and the surprising lack of hazard awareness so many “certified technicians” lack.  The one that get a lot of attention is the relationship between TOXIC and PHYSICAL hazards when the HAZMAT is both toxic and flammable.  I have shared many tips over the

There are two (2) types of Asphyxiants: Simple Chemical also known as Systemic These different types of asphyxiants behave differently and cause harm differently.

Chlorine is EXTREMELY HAZARDOUS, with an IDLH of 10 ppm and a TLV of 0.5 ppm (just above the odor threshold for most). Chlorine is heavier than air (VD > 2.5), and when released, it forms a greenish-yellow gas with a pungent, irritating odor that follows the terrain at ground level.  The mean odor threshold

Recently, a facility experienced firsthand why the IFC and its state fire code PROHIBIT the movement of hazardous materials via the facility’s “tunnel system.”  The code does not prohibit the use of the tunnel system or even in enclosed corridors. Still, the design requirements for these tunnel systems or enclosed corridors to move HAZMATs are

The battle continues, this time outside process safety!  I get these arguments routinely when people inquire if they can use their HHC/EHS as the media for pressure and leak testing.  I can only assume that PHMSA is getting pushback by requiring water or other similar viscosity liquid to be used as the test medium. When

The 2024 edition of the International Fire Code has a new “table” that lists several exemptions.  These exemptions come with some limitations, such as… Exempted materials and conditions listed in this table are required to comply with provisions of this code that are not based on exceeding maximum allowable quantities inSection 5003. Here are a

The refrigerant in this accident is R-32 (Difluoromethane), described as ” a colorless, odorless, mildly flammable gas. “Its ASHRAE rating is A2L, making it a CAT1B flammable gas if OSHA adopts Rev. 7 of the GHS this year. These A2L “mildly flammable gases” are exempt from many of the requirements other flammable gases must meet

The most common RAGAGEP for pipe labeling is ASME A13.1, Scheme for the Identification of Piping Systems.  It is referenced in dozens of hazardous material codes, from ICC to NFPA.  In the ICC codes, specifically the International Fire Code (IFC), there is an interesting twist to the requirements for “Compressed Gases (Chapter 53).  ASME is