Ethanol Tank Fire

Manildra, Inc.
Port Kembla, NSW, Australia
3 Mar 04
R.A. Hawrelak
CBE 317
CBE 497

The Incident
One person is missing, and another
has minor injuries after an explosion
and fire at an ethanol tank at Port
Kembla, south of Wollongong, in New
South Wales. The tank, 7 million litres
of inflammable liquid, blew up near the
Port Kembla steelworks shortly before
10am AEDT.

First Responder Observations

The roof was blown off the tank and was lifted
some 30 meters into the air, only to land next to
the tank and damage the firefighting equipment
for the whole installation!!"
The flames were quite spectacular, sometimes
leaping 50 meters into the sky.
There are concerns the flames will now spread
to other fuel storage tanks containing both
ethanol and oil.

First Responder Observations

The blaze in the ethanol tank has
burned for most of yesterday and forced
the evacuation of local businesses and
hundreds of residents.
"Because it's an ethanol-based fire we
put a foam blanket over the fire to cut
the oxygen out to break the combustion
cycle,"

First Responder Observations

Fire fighting foam is also being sent to
the scene under police escort.
"We have set up water curtains
between the tanks to cool the air
between the tanks to alleviate the
danger the fire will spread.

Questions That Should Be Asked

Was the location of the tank farm and its proximity to populated
areas suitable?

Was the location of the local fire fighting equipment suitable in

view of the potential consequences of an incident?

Was the need for an adequate supply of foam determined in

advance in view of the potential consequences of an incident?

Were the ethanol tanks blanketed with a N2 pad?

Were tanks vents being flared?

Was hot work being performed in the area prior to the incident?

Another Ethanol Incident

In Feb 04, a tanker carrying ethanol
exploded just off the shore of Virginia. The
ship sank and there were only a few life
raft survivors.
Unfortunately, no pictures and very little
information are available.

Ethanol - NIOSH

CAMEO
CAMEO is a suite of software programs you can use to
plan for and respond to chemical emergencies. It was
developed for chemical emergency planners and
responders by the CAMEO team. That team includes the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Chemical
Emergency Preparedness and Prevention Office (EPA
CEPPO, online at www.epa.gov/swercepp) and the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Office
of Response and Restoration (NOAA OR&R, online at
response.restoration.noaa.gov ). CAMEO includes a set of
databases, or modules, a toxic gas dispersion model
("plume model") called ALOHA, and an electronic
mapping program called MARPLOT. CAMEO runs on
Microsoft Windows and Apple Macintosh computers.
AND ITS A FREE DOWNLOAD!!!

CAMEO Firefighting
Do not extinguish fire unless flow can be
stopped. Use water in flooding quantities
as fog. Solid streams of water may be
ineffective. Cool all affected containers
with flooding quantities of water. Apply
water from as far a distance as possible.
Use "alcohol" foam, dry chemical or
carbon dioxide. ( AAR, 1999)

CAMEO Fire Hazard

FLAMMABLE. Flashback along vapor trail
may occur. Vapor may explode if ignited
in an enclosed area. (USCG, 1999)

Ethanol Vapor Pressure

Ethanol Flammability

End Of Presentation

Learn how to store, handle, and ship a Class 1B Flammable

Liquid.

It may save your life!

Potential Questions on CBE 317 exam.

Special thanks to Norman Nibber, VP, AON Inc

Special thanks to P.J. Fink, VP, Kemex, Inc

Professor Hawrelak, UWO, Dept of Chemical Engineering