Abstract
To prevent chemical accidents, the United States (US), the European Union (EU), and the Republic of Korea operate legal systems, such as risk management plans (RMP) and process safety management (PSM), to prevent chemical accidents inside and outside the workplace. The duty to implement chemical accident prevention systems and the criteria for being a target workplace are dependent on the designated quantities of chemicals handled. A chemical accident prevention system is obligatory for storage and handling of legally declared chemicals in the workplace. Benzene, toluene, xylene, methyl ethyl ketone, and ethyl acetate are all flammable materials that are commonly used as solvents in the chemical industry. These substances are grouped into flammable substances groups in the US and the EU, and are managed with the same designated quantities. However, in Korea, the designated quantities are: benzene, 10,000 kg; toluene, xylene, and methyl ethyl ketone, 200,000 kg; and ethyl acetate, 20,000 kg. In order to evaluate the validity of the chemical quantities, fire explosion scenarios during chemical accidents were modeled using two modeling programs, Areal Location of Hazardous Atmosphere (ALOHA) and Korea Off-Site Risk Assessment Supporting Tool (KORA) software, under the same conditions. Similar damage radii were found for the five flammable materials with both pool fires and vapor cloud explosions (VCE). Based on these damage radii, the designated quantities of five substances were calculated and included in the range (10,000 to 13,500 kg). The results show that current designated quantities underestimate chemical substances, and for the prevention of accidents and post-management after chemical accidents, it is necessary to manage flammable substances under one grouping.
Highlights
The chemical industry and related industries have been the driving forces behind the Republic of Korea’s development since 1960
The designated quantity suggested by the United States (US) and European Union (EU) is 10,000 kg for all chemicals classified int
This study is about the feasibility assessment of the designated quantities of chemicals that are subject to the Korean chemical accident prevention system
Summary
In Korea, substances that have a high risk of accidents are used in general industries, while those that have high physicochemical properties, such as flammability, explosion potential, reactivity, and leakage potential, are designated as “chemicals requiring preparation”. As of 2020, 97 types of “chemicals requiring preparation” have been designated in Korea [10]. Workplaces handling more than a certain quantity of these chemicals should prepare a risk management plan (RMP) to establish their own accident prevention and response methods, and submit the plan to the Ministry of Environment’s Chemical Safety Agency. There are two types of chemical accident prevention systems, PSM and RMP, which are being implemented in the US and the EU. Chemicals with flammable properties that could cause extensive damage from fires and explosions were selected among various chemicals
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