Patrick Smith Presents at the AIChE Global Congress on Process Safety

Patrick Smith presented Monday at the 15^th AIChE Global Congress on Process Safety in New Orleans. His presentation titled “Economical Large-Scale Indoor Release Modeling Using the AIHA Mathematical Models for Estimating Occupational Exposure to Chemicals” was an overview of work performed with Benjamin Craig and Michael Larrañaga.

Storage and processing of highly hazardous materials indoors is a common industry practice, but it creates a challenge for manufactures to ensure adequate safeguards in the event of a release or spill. Indoor releases of toxic and flammable materials provide a challenge to economically model due to extensive time and specialized software requirements to generate results. The use of the American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) Mathematical Models for Estimating Occupational Exposure to Chemicals provides a viable methodology for generating data to be used for emergency response, facility siting, and engineering design recommendations.

This presentation provided an example of modeling multiple sulfur dioxide (SO₂) release scenarios in a large manufacturing environment. The AIHA well mixed room model and two-zone (near field and far field constant mass emission) model were used to model the SO₂ release scenarios for various release sizes and durations. The model results provided guidance for increased building safeguards, and assisted in the required level of respiratory protection for response to a SO₂ release located within the manufacturing area and located in a segregated storage room. The example presented covered the building environment variables and assumptions required to model such a scenario, and reviewed the outputs of the models. A cost comparison of both the AIHA mathematical model and traditional methods of modeling indoor release scenarios using tools such as Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) models was also provided.

About the AIChE GCSP

Each year the Center for Chemical Process Safety (CCPS) and the AIChE Safety & Health Division present the Global Congress on Process Safety (GCPS). From its initial meeting in 2005, GCPS has grown into the world’s largest gathering of practitioners from industry, regulatory bodies and academia.

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