Lessons to be learned from an analysis of ammonium nitrate disasters in the last 100 years

Pittman, William; Han, Zhe; Harding, Brian; Rosas, Camilo; Jiang, Jiping; Pineda, Alba; Mannan, M. Sam

doi:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2014.08.037

Cited by 81 publications

(41 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…Lessons are often defined as valid knowledge which is learnt from problems or failures (Dash et al, 2016;Pittman et al, 2014). There are two typical approaches to learn lessons from problems: by applying a quantitative lessons learning model (Reason, 2000;Duffield and Whitty, 2015;Labib and Read, 2015), or by creating a lessons-case database (Eken et al, 2015).…”

Section: The Architecture Of Lessons Mining System (Lms)mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Thanks for the reviewer's constructive suggestion. The word "lessons" has been further explained in section 2 and section 3 in the revised manuscript: Lessons are often defined as valid knowledge which is learned from previous problems or failures (Dash et al, 2016;Pittman et al, 2014). "knowledge learnt from urban problems caused by human errors" can be regarded as the synonym of "lessons".…”

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confidence: 99%

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A lessons mining system for searching references to support decision making towards sustainable urbanization

Wang

Shen

Ren

et al. 2019

Journal of Cleaner Production

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The recurrence of similar problems caused by human errors in urbanization process is common throughout the world. However, the knowledge learnt from these problems should become lessons as references for decision-making to avoid the recurrence of these problems, thus the results of urbanization are sustainable. It is considered of imperative importance to incorporate the lessons experienced into the decisionmaking process in a way that can help foresee the potential problems and take proper measures for addressing the problems. There is little existing study on how previous lessons are mined and incorporated in foreseeing the potential problems in future. The lack of this mining mechanism presents a significant barrier for decision makers to learn from the existing lessons thus to have references of how to make better decisions for future urbanization practices. This paper presents a Lessons Mining System (LMS) to assist in mining lessons experienced from previous practices. The system includes five components, namely, Lessonscase Representation , Lessons-case Store, Lessons-case Retrieval, Lessons-case Application, and Lessons-case Update. LMS can facilitate decision makers to understand what potential problems might occur from their current actions by referring to the lessons experienced previously in similar circumstances. This understanding can help decision makers take preventive measures to mitigate the potential problems. In other words, the use of LMS can send alarming messages to decision makers about what possible problematic consequence may occur thus they can modify their actions before too late. The establishment of LMS is based on Casebased Reasoning (CBR) theory and the similarity matching principles. A demonstration of Yangwu Town is presented to show the application of the system, and the result shows that the lessons mined can provide valuable references for the government of Yangwu Town to improve their decisionmaking quality.

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Section: The Architecture Of Lessons Mining System (Lms)mentioning

confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

A lessons mining system for searching references to support decision making towards sustainable urbanization

Wang

Shen

Ren

et al. 2019

Journal of Cleaner Production

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“…The last doctor from the tier-1 hospital minimized the risk by performing the surgery; because he has sufficient knowledge and the necessary facilities are also available. From this example, the author learnt that there are two possible solutions to preventing a major process accident or at least mitigating its potential consequence: (1) improving the understanding of the risk associated with a major process accident and how it can be accurately assessed; and (2) developing innovative approaches to managing risk by implementing new technologies. A few knowledge and technical gaps were identified and are listed below.…”

Section: The Swine Flumentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Major process accidents continue to occur in the chemical and process industries. On September 21st 1921 at the BASF plant in Oppau Germany, the explosion caused by the detonation of some 4500 tons of a mixture of ammonium sulfate and ammonium nitrate destroyed the plant and killed hundreds of people [1]. On June 1st 1974 at the Flixborough Works of Nypro Limited, an estimated 30 tons of cycohexane volatilized, formed a large vapor cloud and then ignited.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Major process accidents: Their characteristics, assessment, and management of the associated risks

Yang

2017

Process Safety Progress

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Major process accidents continue to occur with the advancement of modern process systems. Major process accidents should not be viewed as Black Swan and can be predicted and prevented. This article investigates the characteristics of process accidents. Based on which, a method for the diagnosis and classification of accidents is proposed. The proposed tool is applied to the Bhopal accident and the swine flu event. The case studies verify the effectiveness and applicability of the proposed tool. To tackle major process accidents, conventional risk assessment, and management approaches are inapplicable without adaption. Enormous research work is needed to develop new generation of methods and tools that enable safer process systems and operations. Knowledge and technological gaps are identified in this perspective. © 2017 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Process Saf Prog 37: 268–275, 2018

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“…The thermal stability of this salt can be reduced by various impurities, among which the most dangerous are chlorides, acids and some organic compounds [18][19][20][21][22]. This property of ammonium nitrate was the cause of many devastating events, both accidental and deliberate [10,[23][24][25][26]. Therefore, interactions of various substances with this salt were extensively investigated over the past few decades.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of carbonate minerals on the thermal stability of fertilisers containing ammonium nitrate

Popławski

Hoffmann

2016

J Therm Anal Calorim

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Fertilisers containing ammonium nitrate are the most efficient sources of nitrogen used in agriculture. The major hazard associated with production, storage and transport of materials containing this compound is its liability to rapid decomposition, or even detonation under certain conditions. Properly selected calcium and magnesium carbonates may increase the thermal stability of ammonium nitrate. The aim of this research was to determine the influence of the carbonate mineral type and composition on phase transitions and decomposition process of fertiliser-grade ammonium nitrate. The article focuses on the methodology of thermal analysis of samples containing ammonium nitrate with carbonates and points out the phenomena and thermal characteristics that should be taken into consideration when testing fertiliser mixtures. Two different sample preparation methods allowed for investigating processes that may occur in inappropriate storage and transport conditions as well as during the production of fertiliser. The measurements were taken using techniques of differential thermal analysis and thermogravimetry coupled with mass spectrometry. The results showed that too high a level of carbonates reactivity can cause problems during the production of fertiliser, reducing the effectiveness of the filler in a final product.

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Lessons to be learned from an analysis of ammonium nitrate disasters in the last 100 years

Cited by 81 publications

References 13 publications

A lessons mining system for searching references to support decision making towards sustainable urbanization

A lessons mining system for searching references to support decision making towards sustainable urbanization

Major process accidents: Their characteristics, assessment, and management of the associated risks

Effect of carbonate minerals on the thermal stability of fertilisers containing ammonium nitrate

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