HANDLING LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS FIRES

INTRODUCTION 1. The term Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) refers to varieties of hydrocarbons derived from crude petroleum processes. These varieties are gases at normal temperature and pressure but become liquid with either a moderate increase in pressure or decrease in temperature, or both. 2. These hydrocarbons include Propane, Butane and Butadiene. Less common examples are Propylene, Iso-butane and Butylene. 3. LPG fires are spectacular and at the same time the most dangerous that a Fire Commander has to deal with. Past LPG fires have resulted in the deaths of many people, including Fire Fighters and the destruction of considerable amount of property. OBJECTIVE 4. On completion of this lesson the students shall be able to: a. b. c. List out the properties and characteristics of liquefied petroleum gas. Identify the hazards posed by liquefied petroleum gas Define `BLEVE and explain the sequence of events `BLEVE takes place.

d. Demonstrate the correct fire fighting techniques in dealing with unignited and ignited LPG leaks and spills. PROPERTIES AND CHARECTERISTICS OF LPG 5. It is colourless in the liquid or vapour phases. However, when the liquid evaporates the cooling effect on the surrounding air causes condensation and even freezing of water vapour in the air, which may make it possible to see an escape of LPG. 6. Pure LPG is practically odourless. For safety purposes an odorant is added to the commercial grades. The odour of the gas should be distinctive, unpleasant, and non persistent and should indicate the presence of gas down to concentrations in air of 1/5 the lower limit of flammability. Odorizing however is not required if harmful in the use or further processing of LPG or if it will serve no useful purpose as a warning agent in such use. The odorizing requirement is considered to be met by the addition of a controlled quantity of a suitable odorant material, e.g. Ethyl Mercaptan or Dimethyl Sulphide. 7. It is non toxic but death may be caused by asphyxiation through the dilution of oxygen by LPG. 8. Small quantities of liquid can give rise to large quantities of vapour. The expansion rate of LPG is approximately 270:1 from liquid to gas. Therefore LPG is always transported in liquid form. Liquid LPG burns with a bigger flame than when in gaseous from due to this high expansion ratio. 9. Small quantities of LPG vapour in air can form a flammable mixture.

10. LPG is readily liquefied under pressure. The density of the liquid is approximately half that of water. 11. LPG when vaporized leaves little or no residue.

12. LPG has no lubricating properties and this fact must be taken into account when designing plant for the handling of LPG, such as pumps and compressors. 13. Brief properties of common liquefied petroleum gases produced commercially are: Propane Flash Point Vapour Density Boiling Point Explosive Limits -140C 1.4 - 1.56 - 40C 2.2% - 9.5% Butane -60C 1.9 -2.1 - 1.1C 1.9% - 8.5% Butadiene - 6.7C 1.87 - 4.4C 2.0% - 11.5%

14. Butane is used for domestic purposes while Propane is used for industrial purposes being largely confined to oxygen cutting apparatus (oxy-propane). Butadiene is chiefly used in the rubber industry and not as a constituent of LPG fuels. HAZARDS OF LPG 15. LPG is usually stored as a liquid under pressure. Leakage, especially of liquid, can, by rapid vaporization, release large volumes of flammable gas. 16. The lower limit of flammability of the gas is approximately two percent volume of gas in air. A small proportion of gas in air can, therefore, give rise to a flammable mixture which can be ignited by a flame, hot element, or spark some distance from a point of escape. 17. Because LPG vapour is heavier than air it may flow along the ground or through drains and will sink to the lowest level of the surroundings. Under still air conditions the dissipation of accumulated vapour may be slow. 18. Liquid LPG by its rapid vaporization and consequent lowering of the temperature can cause severe frost burns. These can occur by contact of liquid LPG with the skin. Protective clothing, such as gloves and goggles, should be worn when there is any possibility of contact with liquid LPG. 19. A Container which has held LPG and is empty is potentially dangerous. In this state the internal pressure is approximately atmospheric and, should the valve be leaking or left open, air can diffuse into the container and form a flammable mixture. 20. LPG is highly flammable with a very low flash point and a low explosive limit.

BLEVE 21. A BLEVE is an acronym for a Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapour Explosion. BLEVE can occur in pressurized vessels containing the liquefied version of the gas under pressure. 22. In order for a BLEVE to take place, the following 4 conditions must be present:

a. There must be substance in liquid form flammable liquid or liquefied flammable gases, results in fireball. Non-flammable liquid (e.g. Water), no fireball but produce the same damaging effect. b. The liquid must be in a confined container (e.g. Road Tanker, Storage Tank or small drums. Even with spring loaded relief valve there could be a BLEVE. No BLEVE if the liquid is in open container (e.g. A vat, dip tank, etc) c. The confined liquid must be at a temperature above its normal boiling point at atmospheric pressure at the time the container fails. d. Failure in container is due to following reasons: (1) (2) Flame impingement (which weakens the container). Inherent structural weakness of the tank.

(3) Failure of or lack of relief valves, or improperly designed valves. (Which allows the pressure within the to increase to the point of failure). (4) Impact from mechanical cause.(Road accident, rail car derailment, allowing flammable liquid to form gas cloud and with an ignition source create a fireball causing an explosion of the tank container. 23. Following is the sequence of event that causes a BLEVE to occur. a. A tank or container with a liquefied gas under pressure has a combination of the liquid and gas inside (fig. 1). The tank contains a relieve valve to relieve normal access pressure. The tank could also contain a flammable liquid in a closed container. There will also be gas in a vapour space of the tank, under somewhat less pressure.

Pressure Relief Valve

Figure 1.

Liquefied gas under pressure

b. The flame of the fire external to the tank or container impinges on the tank as an exposure. (Fig. 2).

Figure. 2

Flame impingement on liquefied gas tank

c. The exposure fire causes a heat rise within the tank. The liquid begins to heat up, creating an increased amount of gas. This, in turn, increases the pressure within the tank, opening the relief valve when the set pressure is reached. (Fig. 3).

Figure. 3

Relief valve operated by increased pressure

d. If the exposure fire continues to heat the liquid, more and more gas will be generated and escape from the relief valve. Eventually, the liquid level will fall below the point at which the flame is contacting the container. If the heat continues then weakening of the metal will be occur (Fig. 4), because the liquid is no longer there to remove the heat.

Figure. 4

Exposure fire striking only gaseous area.

e. Finally, when the metal has fatigued sufficiently so that the internal pressure exceeds the breaking strength, a BLEVE occurs (Fig. 5). The break up occurs violently, releasing the remaining liquid at a single instant. The part of the shell can rocket for thousands of feet.

Figure. 5 FIRE-FIGHTING TECHNIQUES 24. Unignited Leaks.

Conditions in which BLEVE occurs

a. Use water spray from upwind and push vapour away from hazards such as heated exhausts of engines or other machinery. b. Close valves and starve at the source, either by crimping or plugging.

c. Use Gas Detection Meter or Combustible Gas Indicator (CGI) to check that the concentration is below the explosive limit. d. In large leaks, the area may have to be evacuated.

e. Where the leak is from cylinder and is liquid form the cylinder should be uprighted and valves closed. 25. Ignited Leaks a. Fire should not be extinguished until leaks have been stopped.

b. Cool cylinder or tank with long streams and then with spray curtains when moving in to shut off valves. c. The tank vapour space, the area above the liquid level is the most critical and is the high priority area for cooling. d. Attack from sides of the tank, never the ends. The objective is to achieve maximum surface area and avoid injury should the end rupture. e. For tanks fires, at least 3 hose-lines must be used-2 for cooling and 1 for fire fighter protection. Must in the slowly movement. f. If there is fire from the tank or cylinder relief valves this indicates that contents are under high pressure and in danger of a BLEVE. Continue cooling until the fire from the relief vent disappears. g. h. Shut-off valve when within reach and extinguish the flames. Area should be checked for explosive concentrations before leaving.

i. During fire-fighting operations, constant surveillance should be kept for sign of a BLEVE. If imminent, the area may have to be evacuated.

SAFE AREA OR EVACUATION ZONE 26. Safe area must be established to ensure protection, proper control and deployment. As decision making for evacuation of area is difficult. The following should be taken into consideration. a. The evacuation zone should cover an approximate of 1,000 metres radius. The distance depends on the quantity involved. b. Evacuation of people in highly populated areas will require assistant from other essential services (e.g. Police, etc). c. Crowd control at scene of incident is also necessary.

d. Public, unaware of the potential extent of BLEVE and its effects, may be unwilling to evacuate. e. As a result of this, an evacuation plan like the Airport Emergency Plan is required. REFERENCES a. Hazardous Materials Warren E. Isman & Gene P. Carlson.

b. Manual of Firemanship Part 6C. Practical Firemanship - III (Her Majestys Stationery office). c. d. Liquefied Petroleum Gases Handbook Wilbur L.Walls (NFPA). Liquefied Petroleum Gas Safety Code Applied Science Publishers Ltd.