Security Risk Assessment Methodology for the petroleum and petrochemical industries

The American National Standards Institute (ANSI)/American Petroleum Institute (API) Standard 780 Security Risk Assessment (SRA) Methodology was published in June 2013 as a U. S. standard for security risk assessments on petroleum and petrochemical facilities. The standard represents a model standard for evaluating all security risks of petroleum and petrochemical infrastructure and operations and assists industries in more thoroughly and consistently conducting SRAs. The 2013 Standard is an update from the previous API/NPRA SRA Methodology (2004) and focuses on expanding functional utility without changing the basic methodology.The methodology can be applied to a wide range of assets even beyond the typical operating facilities of the industry. This includes refining and petrochemical manufacturing operations, pipelines, and transportation operations including truck, marine, and rail, as well as worker and executive security, housing compounds, and remote operational sites. The new standard describes the most efficient and thorough approach for assessing security risks widely applicable to the types of facilities operated by the industry and the security issues they face. It is voluntary but has been adopted by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Ministry of Interior High Commission for Industrial Security as the mandatory security risk assessment methodology for industrial facilities.This paper examines the key elements of the ANSI/API SRA process and discusses how forward thinking organizations may use risk-based performance metrics to systematically analyze facility security postures and identify appropriately scaled and fiscally responsible countermeasures based on current and projected threats. The AcuTech Consulting Group developed the methodology under contract to the API, and the author was the project manager for the project.     

An entropy-based TOPSIS approach for analyzing and assessing crisis management systems in petrochemical industries

Crisis management systems should be assessed and updated in petrochemical industries due to hazards, such as fire and explosion. Successful crisis management systems can protect both personnel and property in the petrochemical industries. The present study aimed to assess crisis management systems of five petrochemical plants in terms of three aspects, including organizational aspects, human aspects, and technical aspects. A questionnaire was designed, encompassing 34 items to cover all three aspects at both management and staff levels. A multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) approach, including the entropy method and Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS), was used to analyze the collected data. The outcomes of the entropy method indicated that organizational and human aspects had the greatest influence on crisis management systems of the plants with 58% and 49% importance at management and staff levels, respectively. The crisis management systems of the investigated plants were ranked and analyzed using the TOPSIS approach. The findings of this study could assist managers and other decision-makers to address the issues of crisis management systems in petrochemical industries.     

Process loss prevention of petrochemical process: A case study of the flashing accident of the storage tank on acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene powder in Taiwan

Qualitative analysis, process hazard analysis, thermal evaluation, and fault tree analysis were applied to a flashing accident involving a storage tank that contained acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) powder in Taiwan. The accident was caused by combustible powder attached to the inner wall of the tank reaching a high temperature and then melting. Thereafter, the molten powder became glue-like and dropped onto the ABS powder, burning at the tank bottom, causing decomposition of the styrene and butadiene derivatives as well as other combustible gases. The high concentration of combustible powder and low ignition temperature triggered the powder, initiating a dust explosion. Finally, we analyzed the findings of each method and examined the properties of ABS powder, realizing that the root cause of the accident included an insufficient understanding of the characteristics of ABS and the failure to comply with the management procedures of hot work. Recommendations and countermeasures were proposed that could proactively ameliorate process safety.     

现代化工业企业人因失误分析与事故预防

现代化工业企业中人因失误已成为影响系统安全与可靠性的最主要因素，通过分析现代化企业的基本特征，探讨了系统监控人员行为模型、人因失误分类及原因，并提出了人因事件的预防策略。     

Safety leadership and safety performance in petrochemical industries: The mediating role of safety climate

This study examines the relationship among three latent variables: safety leadership, safety climate, and safety performance. Employees from 23 plants in seven departments of a petrochemical company in central Taiwan completed a questionnaire survey. From this, a sample of 521 responses was randomly selected. Structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis using the AMOS 5.0 was employed to test the hypothesized model relating the above-mentioned variables. The results indicate that the model was supported, and that safety climate mediated the relationship between safety leadership and performance. Practical implications of these results for process safety management in the petrochemical industries are discussed.     

石油石化行业危害与事故监测预警技术探讨

针对石油石化行业危害与事故的监测与预警系统的现状,提出了危害与事故的监测预警计算机应急管理系统是今后石油石化行业重大事故预防的发展方向,并指出现有监测预警系统向计算机应急管理系统方向转化和改造的技术难点及应采取的相应措施。     

A method for assisting the accident consequence prediction and cause investigation in petrochemical industries based on natural language processing technology

Risk analysis for production processes in the petrochemical industry is an important procedure for consequence prediction and investigation of accidents. The analyzer must grasp the correlations between the possible causes and consequences. From the potential cause and effect found in risk analysis reports, complete clarification should be obtained. Therefore, this study presents a method for assisting accident consequence prediction and investigation in the petrochemical industry based on risk analysis reports using natural language processing technology. First, a hazard and operability (HAZOP) historical data table is established by filling over 7200 HAZOP analysis data points. Both the causes and consequences in the table are classified into 20 categories each using the Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) models. The LDA clustering results are assigned classification for the cause and consequence topics to the cause and consequences of the HAZOP analysis data. Based on part-of-speech (POS) tagging, all the words in each cause and consequence record are divided into subject and action words. Next, the word combinations of subject and action words with a higher occurrence are considered the key phrases for describing and representing the corresponding cause and consequence topic classifications. The Apriori algorithm is used to determine the frequent item sets, acquire the association rules, and calculate the association degree to obtain the sort order; it can highlight general trends in relational cause and consequence topics. According to the results, the most likely cause of the consequence and the most likely consequence that the cause may lead to are identified. Finally, a visual interface is developed to present the data for the consequence prediction and cause investigation of accidents. The results reveal that the quantity and quality of historic data are important factors that may influence the results. This method can contribute to predicting the accident evolution trend of an abnormal situation, taking preventive measures in advance, improving the accuracy of early warning, and supporting emergency response measures.     

Study of chemical supply system of high-tech process using inherently safer design strategies in Taiwan

The photoelectric, semiconductor and other high-tech industries are Taiwan's most important economic activities. High-tech plant incidents are caused by hazardous energy, even when that energy is confined to the inside of the process machine. During daily maintenance procedures, overhauling or troubleshooting, engineers entering the interior of the machines are in direct contact with the source of the energy or hazardous substances, which can cause serious injury. The best method for preventing such incidents is to use inherently safer design strategies (ISDs); this approach can fully eliminate the dangers from the sources of hazardous energy at a facility.This study first conducts a lithography process hazard analysis and compiles a statistical analysis of the causes of the fires and losses at high-tech plants in Taiwan since 1996, the aim being to establish the necessary improvement measures by using the Fire Dynamics Simulation (FDS) to solve relevant problems. The researchers also investigate the lithography process machine in order to explore carriage improvement measures, and analyse the fires' causes and reactive materials hazardous properties, from 1996 to 2012. The effective improvement measures are established based on the accident statistics. The study site is a 300 mm wafer fabrication plant located in Hsinchu Science Park, Taiwan.After the completion of the annual maintenance jobs improvement from September 2011 to December 2012, the number of lithography process accidents was reduced from 6 to 1. The accident rate was significantly reduced and there were no staff time losses for a continuous 6882 h. It is confirmed that the plant safety level has been effectively enhanced. The researchers offer safety design recommendations regarding transport process appliances, chemical storage tanks, fume cupboard devices, chemical rooms, pumping equipment, transportation pipelines, valve manual box (VMB) process machines and liquid waste discharge lines. These recommendations can be applied in these industries to enhance the safety level of high-tech plants, facilities or process systems.     

Loss Prevention Programmes of the Hazardous Work Place Review and Inspection Act of Taiwan

Loss prevention programmes for the Hazardous Work Place Review and Inspection Act have been enforced in Taiwan since 1994. Essentially, the objective was to minimize occupational incidents and enhance work efficiency by strict inspection and stringent evaluation with cautious safety management. However, effective implementation of such a programme requires a consideration of the effect of this system and the perception and attitude of the employees. A survey was employed to quantify the safety achievements that resulted from executing the programme specified in the Hazardous Work Place Review and Inspection Act, along with a study to assess the programme's applicability. The information is intended to serve as a valuable reference for industries to actively improve loss prevention by using an inherently safer approach. This study was the first completed in Taiwan since the programme was launched in 1994. The data illustrated which elements of the programme could significantly alleviate occupational incidents and near misses. Effect analysis of more than 80% of the interviewed companies confirmed that the system is not only practical but also useful for promoting safety, if the programme is carried out appropriately.     

A review of the past,present and future of the European loss prevention and safety promotion in the process industries

In 2013, the European Federation of Chemical Engineering (EFCE) celebrates its 60th anniversary. EFCE has continually promoted scientific collaboration and supported the work of engineers and scientists in thirty European countries. As for its mission statement, EFCE helps European Society to meet its needs through highlighting the role of Chemical Engineering in delivering sustainable processes and products. Within this organizational framework the Loss Prevention Symposium series, organized throughout Europe on behalf of the Loss Prevention Working Party of the EFCE, represents a fruitful tradition covering a time span of forty years. The tri-annual symposium gathers experts and scientists to seek technical improvements and scientific support for a growingly safer industry and quality of life. Following the loss prevention history in this paper, a time perspective on loss prevention and its future is presented.     

Towards proactive monitoring in the petrochemical industry

Unanticipated events can result in severe financial and human losses. The best solution is to have operators who can monitor proactively and respond to small changes to maintain the plant in a safe state. This paper examines the requirements for proactive monitoring and proposes ecological interface design as one possible way of supporting this behavior. Several examples of ecological graphics are included for demonstration.     

Accident modelling and analysis in process industries

Accident modelling is a methodology used to relate the causes and effects of events that lead to accidents. This modelling effectively seeks to answer two main questions: (i) Why does an accident occur, and (ii) How does it occur. This paper presents a review of accident models that have been developed for the chemical process industry with in-depth analyses of a class of models known as dynamic sequential accident models (DSAMs). DSAMs are sequential models with a systematic procedure to utilise precursor data to estimate the posterior risk profile quantitatively. DSAM also offers updates on the failure probabilities of accident barriers and the prediction of future end states. Following a close scrutiny of these methodologies, several limitations are noted and discussed, and based on these insights, future work is suggested to enhance and improve this category of models further.     

Prevention in the chemical and process industries: Future directions

This paper presents the current trends of future-oriented prevention management in the chemical-using industry. Two concepts leading to the next generation of managing prevention within chemical industrial areas are explained and discussed. The first concept concerns integrated design-based safety and security; the second concerns the collaboration of several chemical plants to increase sustainable development of their activities and their environment.     

应急预案建模方法及其在石油化工行业的应用研究

针对如何解决应急预案的结构化存储和应用问题,在基于本体论的基础上,提出引入静态和动态元模型方法,建立应急预案模型.首先,分析了当前主要应急预案知识表示方法,指出在处理多组织协同、应急过程受条件约束等问题,需要区分静态和动态模型,降低建模复杂度.基于本体论,将应急预案分解为静态和动态两个部分,各部分采用为多视图的形式进行描述;在此基础上,给出了构建应急预案模型的构建方法.最后,以加氢裂化装置的灭火预案为例,进行了建模.该方法的提出,有效地解决了对应急预案中事件、过程、动作等要素之间复杂逻辑约束关系的建模问题.应用该建模方法,有助于对应急预案的结构化管理,便于通过计算机实现预案的模拟演练.     

Common operations failure modes in the process industries

The Abnormal Situation Management^® (ASM^®) Consortium (This research study was sponsored by the Abnormal Situation Management (ASM) Consortium. ASM^® and Abnormal Situation Management^® are registered trademarks of Honeywell International, Inc.) funded a study to investigate common failure modes and root causes associated with operations practices. The study team analyzed 20 public and 12 private incident reports using the TapRoot^® methodology to identify root causes. These root causes were mapped to operations practice failures. This paper describes the top ten operations failure modes identified in the analysis. Specific recommendations include how to analyze plant incident reports to better understand the sources of systemic failures and improve plant operating practices.     

黄岛石化区消防安全初评估

黄岛石化区是一个集油品储运、原油炼制、芳烃加工为一体的大型石油化工基地。目前,区域内拥有原油炼制能力达到1000多万吨,危险化学品存储能力接近1000万吨,危化品码头吞吐能力接近6000万吨,并且危化品项目的规模还在不断扩大中。鉴于危化品项目的危险性较高,石化区域的消防安全就成了企业生产安全的重要保障,而消防安全是否有保证则与区域内企业的生产存储装置的危险程度、安全设施配置、消防设施的配置以及消防队伍和车辆的配置等有直接的关系。笔者通过对区域内上述各方面信息的详细了解,并在参阅了大量技术文献资料的基础上,分别以生产装置火灾和存储装置火灾为对象进行了消防安全的初步评估,同时对区域内消防方面存在的问题提出改进建议。     

石化流程的安全控制模型研究

根据前馈式、反馈式和连续式安全控制的特点建立了石化流程安全控制模型和信号流图,运用Mason公式求出了安全控制模型的解并对其进行了实例分析。认为实现石化流程安全运行的重点在于配备可靠的紧急停车系统,有效控制事故的初发隐患。