Dependence of maximum concentration from chemical accidents on release duration

Abstract

Chemical accidents often involve releases of a total mass, Q, of stored material in a tank over a time duration, td, of less than a few minutes. The value of td is usually uncertain because of lack of knowledge of key information, such as the size and location of the hole and the pressure and temperature of the chemical. In addition, it is rare that eyewitnesses or video cameras are present at the time of the accident. For inhalation hazards, serious health effects (such as damage to the respiratory system) are determined by short term averages (<1 min) of concentrations, C. It is intuitively obvious that, for a ground level source and with all conditions the same (e.g., the same mass Q released), the maximum C near the source will be larger for a shorter than a longer release duration, td. This paper investigates the variation with downwind distance, x, of the ratio of maximum C for two time durations of release. Some simplified formulas for dispersion from finite duration releases are presented based on dimensional analysis. A primary dimensionless number of importance is the ratio of the release duration, td, to the travel time tt = x/u, at distance, x, where u is wind speed. Examples of applications to pressurized liquefied chlorine releases from tanks are given, focusing on scenarios from the Jack Rabbit I (JR I) field experiment. The analytical calculations and the predictions of the SLAB dense gas dispersion model agree that the ratio of maximum C for two different td's is greatest (as much as a factor of ten) near the source. At large distances (beyond a few km for the JR I scenarios), where tt exceeds both td's, the ratio of maximum C approaches unity.