An approach for risk reduction (methodology) based on optimizing the facility layout and siting in toxic gas release scenarios

In this work, a new approach to optimize facility layout for toxic release is presented. By integrating a risk analysis in the optimization formulation, we propose a safer assignment for facility layout and siting. Accompanying with the economical concepts used in a plant layout, the new model considers the cost of willing to avoid a fatality, i.e. the potential injury cost due to accidents associated with toxic release near residential areas. The proposed formulation incorporates a real meteorological data to calculate the injury risk through the probit model and Monte Carlo simulation using dense gas dispersion modeling (DEGADIS). The overall problem was initially modeled as a disjunctive program where the coordinates of each facility and cost-related variables are the main unknowns. Then, the convex hull approach was used to reformulate the problem as a Mixed Integer Non-Linear Program (MINLP) that identifies potential layouts by minimizing overall costs. This approach gives the coordinates of each facility, and estimates for the total length of pipes, the land area, and the selection of safety devices. Finally, the 3D-computational fluid dynamics (CFD) was used to compare between the initial layout and the final layout. Moreover, analyses of separation distances fr2om hazard facilities and hindrance effects will be discussed based on the approach used in this work.     

A comprehensive approach to API RP 752 and 753 building siting studies

Facility siting studies are an important part of process safety, and are required for facilities that fall under OSHA’s PSM program. Facility siting is frequently interpreted as performing a building siting study which adheres to the guidance given in API RP 752. Building siting may also consider siting of temporary or portable buildings based on the guidance in API RP 753. While both API RP 752 and API RP 753 provide a framework and some guidance for performing building siting studies, they do not provide detailed methodologies or provide guidance on performing a detailed analysis. As a result many building siting studies are inconsistent in their overall approach, or in the way they address hazards. Due to the recent scrutiny applied to building siting studies, more attention has been given to provide evaluations which correctly describe the range of hazards that may affect an occupied building at a petrochemical facility. This paper outlines a comprehensive methodology for performing building siting studies at such facilities. The methodology addresses the applicable hazards and the available tools by which the potential impacts to building occupants can be evaluated.     

Analyzing system safety and risks under uncertainty using a bow-tie diagram: An innovative approach

A bow-tie diagram combines a fault tree and an event tree to represent the risk control parameters on a common platform for mitigating an accident. Quantitative analysis of a bow-tie is still a major challenge since it follows the traditional assumptions of fault and event tree analyses. The assumptions consider the crisp probabilities and “independent” relationships for the input events. The crisp probabilities for the input events are often missing or hard to come by, which introduces data uncertainty. The assumption of “independence” introduces model uncertainty. Elicitation of expert's knowledge for the missing data may provide an alternative; however, such knowledge incorporates uncertainties and may undermine the credibility of risk analysis.This paper attempts to accommodate the expert's knowledge to overcome missing data and incorporate fuzzy set and evidence theory to assess the uncertainties. Further, dependency coefficient-based fuzzy and evidence theory approaches have been developed to address the model uncertainty for bow-tie analysis. In addition, a method of sensitivity analysis is proposed to predict the most contributing input events in the bow-tie analysis. To demonstrate the utility of the approaches in industrial application, a bow-tie diagram of the BP Texas City accident is developed and analyzed.     

A new approach for layout optimization in maintenance workshops with safety factors: The case of a gas transmission unit

In this study, an Integrated Simulation-Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) approach is presented for optimum facility layout of maintenance workshop in a gas transmission unit. The process of repair of incoming parts includes various operations on different facilities. The layout problem in this system involves determining the optimum location of all maintenance shop facilities. Layout optimization plays a crucial role in this type of problems in terms of increasing the efficiency of main production line. Standard types of layouts including U, S, W, Z and straight lines are considered. First, the maintenance workshop is modeled with discrete-event-simulation. Time in system, average waiting time, average machine utilization, average availability of facilities, average queue length of facilities (AL) and average operator utilization are obtained from simulation as key performance indicators (KPIs) of DEA. Also, safety index and number of operators are considered as other KPIs. Finally, a unified non-radial Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) is presented with respect to the stated KPIs to rank all layouts alternatives and to identify the best configuration. Principle Component Analysis (PCA) is used to validate and verify the results. Previous studies do not consider safety factor in layout design problems. This is the first study that presents an integrated approach for identification of optimum layout in a maintenance workshop of gas transmission unit by incorporating safety and conventional factors.     

A novel approach based on non-parametric resampling with interval analysis for large engineering project risks

The issue of risk assessment has been always the matter of debate in large engineering projects (LEPs). The assessment is an indispensable means for the projects to accomplish their objectives. It is firmly accepted that LEPs are particularly subject to more potential risks than other business activities because of their complexity, uncertainty and ambiguity. These characteristics are often conducive to small sample sizes of the gathered risk data in practice. Consequently, traditional statistical techniques cannot contribute significantly to analyze the risk data. The non-parametric resampling technique, namely bootstrap, has been used subsequently to solve numerous complicated problems and evaluate the accuracy of a parameter estimator in situations where commonly used techniques are not valid. It is also more natural, applicable and simple to estimate the risk data in an interval form under decision-making process by considering the concept of safety by professional experts in LEPs. Hence, in this paper, a new approach based on bootstrap technique with the interval analysis is presented in the context of the project risk assessment. The proposed approach not only plays an important role in reducing risk data and saving time but also is more economical. A real case study is conducted to illustrate the applicability of the approach. Finally, the comparison results indicate that the proposed approach outperforms the traditional technique in terms of the accuracy and efficiency.     

城市区域火灾风险评价软件开发及应用

随着城市区域火灾风险评价理论研究的深入开展,非常需要开发评价辅助软件.本文根据城市区域火灾风险评价模型特点和要求,提出了城市区域火灾风险评价辅助软件的设计思想.由于城市的复杂性和多样性,不同城市、不同区域的火灾风险评价在指标体系方面存在较大差异,辅助软件的设计与开发应利用指标体系的构建方法作为软件功能流程的设计依据,采用面向评价研究者与操作者的软件设计思想,这样软件在功能上既能满足评价实践的需要,又能为评价理论研究提供有力的支持.该软件系统采用Delphi7.0开发工具编写.最后应用该辅助软件对某一综合区的火灾风险进行了示范评价,表明该软件具备城市区域火灾风险评价所需的功能要求.     

Optimization of facility location and reallocation in an industrial plant through a multi-annual framework accounting for economic and safety issues

The industrial layout traditionally has been addressed accounting for the facilities distribution and installation since the first day of operation of the plant; this is, without considering future expansions that involve additional facilities in the future operation years. This way, this paper proposes a mathematical programming formulation for the optimal facility sitting and reallocation in an industry accounting for future expansions and involving simultaneously economic and safety objectives. The proposed formulation is based on a multi-annual framework and this corresponds to a multi-objective mixed integer linear programming problem. The proposed optimization approach was applied to a case study for the facility sitting (office buildings and control rooms) in an ethylene oxide plant. The economic objective function involves the minimization of the total annual cost accounting for the value of the money through the time and the safety objective function involves the minimization for the accumulated risk over the operation time. Results show the applicability of the proposed approach.     

A new intelligent assistant system for HAZOP analysis of complex process plant

There are several problems that should be solved in the practical application of HAZOP analysis, such as the inheritance instrument of experience knowledge, the classification of accident reasons, the recurrence of analysis process and the verification of analysis results. This paper presents a new HAZOP assistant program named HELPHAZOP, which can be used to cope with these problems. With the aid of this program, a number of influence relationship models, which can be utilized to present the relationship structure of the whole system, can be established, and a variety of spread paths, which can be employed to describe the occurrence of the accidents, can be identified. These models and paths can help analyzers to understand the analysis process of different chemical processes and to verify the analysis results. Experience knowledge or information of process parameters stored in this program, including deviations, abnormal reasons, consequences and disaster-causing ways, can contribute to the analysis of some new plants. The program has been applied in the HAZOP analysis process of residuum hydrotreating process. The probability of the human errors which would be happened because of the misunderstanding or the deficiency of plant experience in the HAZOP analysis has been reduced and the accuracy, practicability and analysis efficiency of the accident forecast have been greatly improved.     

An evaluation approach using a HARA and FMEDA for the hardware SIL

Safety instrumented systems (SIS) are becoming increasingly complex, and form a growing proportion of programmable electronic parts. The IEC 61508 global standard was established to ensure the functional safety of SIS; however, it was expressed in highly macroscopic terms. The safety integrity level (SIL) is a criterion describing whether a component meets the safety requirements of a SIS. The safety requirements give a target SIL for the expected risks using hazard analysis and risk assessment (HARA). The SIL must correspond to the safety requirements. This study introduces an evaluation process for determining the hardware SIL through failure modes, effects, and diagnostic analysis (FMEDA). First, the components of the SIS subsystem are defined in terms of failure modes and effects, and then the failure rate and failure mechanism distribution are assigned to each component. The safety mode and detectability of each failure mode are determined for each component and, finally, the hardware SIL is evaluated. We perform a case study to evaluate the hardware SIL of the flame scanner system using HARA and FMEDA, where the safety requirement of the flame scanner was determined using the risk graph method. We verified that the hardware SIL of the flame scanner corresponded to the safety requirement.     

A pattern of contractor selection for oil and gas industries in a safety approach using ANP-DEMATEL in a Grey environment

Contractor selection is one of the major concerns of industry managers such as those in the oil industry. The objective of this study was to determine a contractor selection pattern for oil and gas industries in a safety approach. Assessment of contractors based on specific criteria and ultimately selecting an eligible contractor preserves the organizational resources. Due to the safety risks involved in the oil industry, one of the major criteria of contractor selection considered by managers today is safety. The results indicated that the most important safety criterion of contractor selection was safety records and safety investments. This represented the industry’s risks and the impact of safety training and investment on the performance of other sectors and the overall organization. The output of this model could be useful in the safety risk assessment process in the oil industry and other industries.     

A new categorization of release models using a semi-analytic solution

The spread of cryogenic liquid due to a limited period of release is investigated for the first time to clarify the unclear conventional concept regarding two release types: continuous and instantaneous release. The physical phenomenon is described by equations involving the volume, radius and height of the liquid pool, and there are three governing parameters: the evaporation rate per unit area, a release time, and a spill volume. As a result of the perturbation solutions, the combined model, which consists of the continuous model and the subsequent instantaneous model, is necessary for a large spill source rate, whereas the continuous model is only required for a small spill source rate. This combined release model is more realistic than the instantaneous release model, and it is shown that the combined model and the continuous model are clearly distinguished in the coordinate system of the release time and the spill volume using the analytical feature of the perturbation solution.     

Development of a risk-based maintenance strategy using FMEA for a continuous catalytic reforming plant

Petrochemical facilities and plants require essential ongoing maintenance to ensure high levels of reliability and safety. A risk-based maintenance (RBM) strategy is a useful tool to design a cost-effective maintenance schedule; its objective is to reduce overall risk in the operating facility. In risk assessment of a failure scenario, consequences often have three key features: personnel safety effect, environmental threat and economic loss. In this paper, to quantify the severity of personnel injury and environmental pollution, a failure modes and effects analysis (FMEA) method is developed using subjective information derived from domain experts. On the basis of failure probability and consequence analysis, the risk is calculated and compared against the known acceptable risk criteria. To facilitate the comparison, a risk index is introduced, and weight factors are determined by an analytic hierarchy process. Finally, the appropriate maintenance tasks are scheduled under the risk constraints. A case study of a continuous catalytic reforming plant is used to illustrate the proposed approach. The results indicate that FMEA is helpful to identify critical facilities; the RBM strategy can increase the reliability of high-risk facilities, and corrective maintenance is the preferred approach for low-risk facilities to reduce maintenance expenditure.     

Performance assessment and optimization of HSE management systems with human error and ambiguity by an integrated fuzzy multivariate approach in a large conventional power plant manufacturer

This study presents an integrated approach performance assessment and optimization of integrated health safety environment (HSE) management system-based on fuzzy data envelopment analysis (FDEA) considering the possible human error and data vagueness in a conventional power plant manufacturer. In doing so, it corresponds and integrates its registered HSE-MS with OHSAS 18001:2007 and ISO 14001:2004 to evaluate multiple inputs and outputs of over 35 subsidiary HSE divisions with parallel mission and objectives simultaneously. The HSE divisions of each subsidiary are considered as decision making units (DMUs). Not only doing this refutable method rank their relevant performance efficiencies in certain and uncertain conditions, but also it determines efficient target indices for each DMU, and could assure continuous improvement in the organization. This would help managers to identify the areas of strengths and weaknesses in their HSE management system and set improvement target plan for the related HSE management system. In this model based on Deming’s continuous improvement cycle, managers are also able to evaluate the prevailing strengths and weaknesses and target their improvement strategies at the relevant stages of the cycle.     

A new practical approach to risk management for underground mining project in Quebec

The mining industry worldwide is currently experiencing an economic boom that is contributing to economic recovery and social progress in many countries. For this to continue, the mining industry must meet several challenges associated with the start-up of new projects. In a highly complex and uncertain environment, rigorous management of risks remains indispensable in order to repel threats to the success of mining.In this article, a new practical approach to risk management in mining projects is presented. This approach is based on a novel concept called “hazard concentration” and on the multi-criteria analysis method known as the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). The aim of the study is to extend the use of this approach to goldmines throughout Quebec. The work is part of a larger research project of which the aim is to propose a method suitable for managing practically all risks inherent in mining projects.This study shows the importance of taking occupational health and safety (OHS) into account in all operational activities of the mine. All project risks identified by the team can be evaluated. An adaptable database cataloguing about 250 potential hazards in an underground goldmine was constructed. In spite of limitations, the results obtained in this study are potentially applicable throughout the Quebec mining sector.     

煤矿区农田土壤多环芳烃生态风险评估方法比较

调查了迁安煤矿区农田土壤中优先控制的16种多环芳烃(PAHs)质量比,通过同一尺度对生态效应低中值、风险商值法(RQ)、有机碳归一化法及苯并(a)芘毒性等效当量4种常用评估方法的评估结果进行了比较,并尝试将商值法(RQ)与苯并(a)芘毒性等效当量(TEQBaP)相结合对该矿区土壤进行风险评估.结果表明,煤矿区农田土壤中16种PAHs总量为118.10～1 042.31 μg/kg,并以2～4环为主.4种生态风险方法评估结果与衡量尺度比较表明,生态效应低中值、RQ两种方法对PAHs处于低水平的地区适用性欠佳;有机碳归一化法及苯并(a)芘毒性等效当量两种方法能较好地表征该地区PAHs的生态风险水平,但不能对不同污染水平下的生态风险程度予以分级.RQ-TEQ复合法评估结果显示,11％土壤样品存在重度生态风险,11％处于中度风险,45％存在轻度生态风险,22％处于警戒线范畴,11％不存在生态风险.与单一方法相比,复合方法评估结果分级明确,与衡量尺度吻合较好,较适用于该煤矿区PAHs的生态风险评估.     

Grey relational analysis based on instance based learning approach for classification of risks of occupational low back disorders

Classification of industrial jobs related to occupational low back disorders risks has great significance in preventing injuries and designing workplaces. In this study, industrial jobs are classified into two categories, i.e., low risk and high risk, using grey relational analysis approach. The results on a dataset are provided, together with the comparisons in terms of classification accuracy between the proposed approach and other methods that used the same dataset, including logistic regression, decision tree, neural networks, neuro-fuzzy classification, ant colony optimisation, memory-based reasoning, and ensemble model. The proposed approach outperforms other alternative methods and yields at least 10% improvement in classification accuracy compared to the best results achieved among the earlier studies.     

固定化生物活性炭在餐饮废水处理中的应用研究

采用砂滤-固定化生物活性炭(IBAC)联合工艺处理餐饮废水,以探讨IBAC在餐饮废水处理中的应用.先用砂滤对废水进行预处理,然后将其通入中间水池充分曝气,最后用固定化生物活性炭(IBAC)柱完成对废水的处理.实验参数为,原水进水pH=8,石英砂滤柱高40 cm,内径50 mm,滤层厚度30 cm,承托层厚5 cm,滤速45 mL/min,IBAC柱滤层高度为40 cm,水样在柱内停留时间为30 min.IBAC固定化完成后,连续运行55 d,水样各指标去除率基本稳定,然后计算出水样各指标的平均去除率.水样的UV254平均去除率为57%,浊度平均去除率为66.4%,CODCr平均去除率为77.20%,油平均去除率为86%.结果表明,采用固定化生物活性炭方法处理餐饮废水具有良好效果.