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Recent tragedies in many industry sectors followed by the regulatory attention given to dust handling operations, provide evidence that a new approach to and higher emphasis on managing dust explosion hazards is needed.

Combustible Dust Hazard Assessments

As the first step in understanding and evaluating the hazard present our experts can do an efficient, yet effective (up to 2-day) assessment of a specific operation or facility. This assessment includes an initial walk-through along with an evaluation of key management systems. The walk-through will focus on dust containment practices, design of equipment safeguards (e.g., isolation), existence of explosion protection, grounding and bonding and appropriate electrical classification. The management systems evaluated will include those recommended by the 2006 Edition of NFPA 654, Standard for the Prevention of Fire and Dust Explosions from the Manufacturing, Processing, and Handling of Combustible Particulate Solids. They include process hazard analysis, management of change, training and procedures, hot work, inspection and maintenance. A report will be issued with the results of the preliminary assessment, including key prescriptive safeguard requirements as recommended by applicable codes and standards such as NFPA 61 Standard For The Prevention Of Fires And Dust Explosions In Agricultural and Food Processing Facilities, NFPA 654 and OSHA’s guidance as provided by the NEP, CPL 03-00-008.

Combustible Dust Process Hazard Analysis

Where a more comprehensive review of combustible dust process equipment is necessary (e.g., to meet the new NFPA 654 performance standard) or desired (e.g., where a high level of combustible dust hazard exists), our experienced PHA leaders can guide your team through a thorough, comprehensive PHA. Our partners have pioneered many of the current techniques for conducting PHAs and understand the best use of these techniques, including preliminary or inherent hazard analysis, hazard and operability (HAZOP) studies, checklists and failure modes and effects analyses (FMEA). Our risk ranking methodology provides a basis for making risk-based decisions without the need for quantitative risk analysis. Our experienced leaders have developed unit specific checklists that allow quick and accurate reviews of common dust handling equipment. We then supplement this methodology with HAZOP style reviews to assure a comprehensive analysis of both well-known equipment handling systems and plant-specific proprietary systems.

To increase the efficiency of our PHAs, we have developed are own commercial software called HAZOPtimizerTM. This software allows any type of PHA to be readily documented and includes specific checklists addressing many of the common dust handling equipment currently in use.

Combustible Dust Characterization Testing and Analysis

Each dust compound has unique physical and chemical characteristics. A good understanding of both is essential to understand the hazards, and ultimately the risks, associated with the dust being handled. ioMosaic experts have assisted many clients with the development of a comprehensive testing plan appropriate for the handling operations being evaluated. By targeting their specific needs, overall testing costs are reduced and safety is improved.

The first step to assessing a hazard level is to review information in the literature. Literature data can give a general understanding of the existence of a potential hazard; however most dust characteristics affecting combustibility are a function of process-specific conditions such as concentration, particle size and shape, moisture content, and dispersion method and duration. To properly characterize most dusts, testing of an actual process sample is required. This ensures the measured data is representative of the dust present in the process being analyzed. Properly characterizing the dust hazard prevents unnecessary safeguards from being recommended, particularly if the overall risks do not justify the conservative designs many are incorporating.

Chemical characteristics include items such as flammability and explosibility, as well as thermal degradation, instability, sensitivity to ignition and chemical reactivity. Depending on the type of unit process being analyzed and the potential explosion prevention measures to be employed, a testing plan is selected. The testing plan to characterize a dust includes many of the key tests as summarized in the Table “Typical Tests for Dust Characterization.”

ioMosaic has extensive experience with the evaluation and interpretation of dust hazard test data. We can help with the development of a cost effective test plan to characterize dust hazards. Let us help you sift through the complicated list of tests to determine which are appropriate for your operations. After the test is conducted our experts will evaluate and interpret the data and provide a report of the results. Together with our lab partners, we can provide a single package that includes test plan development, testing and data analysis and interpretation. Our experts will work with you to determine the level of analysis that is required for your particular needs.

NFPA 654 Code Reviews

The most recent version of NFPA 654 requires facilities to take a more performance-based approach to understanding and managing these dust hazards. This standard is very similar to OSHA's earlier Process Safety Management standard and contains many of the same requirements. A few of the similar requirements are process hazard analysis, management of change, training, hot work and mechanical integrity. As pioneers in the field of process safety management, our partners can help you meet these similar requirements, adapting them to the unique requirements of dust handling operations.

OSHA National Emphasis Program Audit Preparation

The OSHA NEP is aimed at specific industry groups that have experienced either frequent combustible dust incidents or combustible dust incidents with catastrophic consequences. As a result of the recent fatal accident at Imperial Sugar, OSHA reissued its directive on the Combustible Dust National Emphasis Program to intensify its focus on combustible dust hazards. The industries included are:

• Agriculture
• Food Products
• Chemicals
• Textiles
• Forest and furniture products
• Metal processing
• Tire and rubber manufacturing plants
• Paper products
• Pharmaceuticals
• Wastewater treatment
• Recycling operations
• Some coal handling and processing facilities

If you fall into one of these industry classifications, you could be the target of an OSHA Audit under this national emphasis program. Our process safety experts could help you understand the numerous codes and standards that will be referred to in such an audit and help you move into compliance with them. Our experts are process safety professionals with experience in combustible dust hazard management.

Combustible Dust Hazard Analysis Training

We currently offer two training courses specifically applicable to Dust Handling operations. These are Combustible Dust PHA Leader and Combustible Dust Analysis and Characterization. In the first course, we've taken our decades of experience in PHA leadership and applied these to the unique challenges of leading PHAs of combustible dust handling operations. In this course, future leaders learn about all the hazard analysis methodologies, with a special focus on Checklist and HAZOP. Attendees leave with the ability to lead a PHA along with tools to facilitate a comprehensive analysis. These tools include a copy of our HAZOPtimizer software populated with our proprietary checklists, developed and tested by our in-house experienced Combustible Dust PHA Leaders.

Our second course, Combustible Dust Analysis and Characterization is a course in first identifying then analyzing, characterizing and managing your combustible dust hazard. Here we explain the multitude of tests available, how to decide which test is appropriate for your operations and how to interpret the results. We then cover some of the options available for managing the identified dust hazards.

Training is an effective means to transfer the extensive knowledge, skills and experience of our staff. Our partners have trained hundreds of individuals representing companies in the chemical, oil and gas, pharmaceutical, and other industries that handle hazardous materials, as well as individuals representing governmental agencies. They also teach courses for industry associations such as the AIChE. We can customize any of our existing courses or develop new courses to meet your needs. We also provide online training courses for your convenience.

Engineering Design Protocols

ioMosaic has developed corporate standards for many organizations to assist with standardization of management systems, as well as safeguards for specific units. Often titled “Engineering Design Safeguards for Combustible Dust Hazards”, it outlines how to make decisions based on the hazard level of the dust. The document is tailored to the specific operations to be evaluated, incorporating company-specific design standards and protocols already in place along with key requirements from recognized and generally accepted good engineering practices and specific standards as applicable. This tailored document will help all applicable operations apply the same principles, assuring consistency across a corporation.