Page 14 - Occupational Health & Safety, October 2019

CHEMICAL SAFETY TRAINING
with flammable liquid hazards requires careful consideration of the fire code requirements as well as other requirements such as NFPA 30, Flammable and Combustible Liquids Code, and the guidelines in FM Global Datasheet 7-14, Fire Protection for Chemical Plants. Installation guidelines such as NFPA 15, Standard for Water Spray Fixed Systems for Fire Protection and NFPA 13, Standard for Instal- lation of Sprinkler Systems, are also applicable.
To meet the fire protection objectives and loss mitigation, both passive and active fire protection features and systems should be implemented. Common and effective features include passive pro- tection and active protection.
Active fire protection should cover all areas where a flammable liquid release may flow. Containment systems may include emer- gency drainage that drains to a secondary containment area to help remove the released liquid and discharged water to an impound-
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ment area that is located far from equipment and buildings. Installation of sprinklers close to the ceiling may not be effective in many CPI applications. Sprinklers are often installed far below ceilings, or below open metal grating, which can significantly delay sprinkler activation. There are two common reasons for this delay: Stratification. There may be insufficient fire plume buoyancy and temperature at high ceiling levels. It is imperative that sprin- klers activate in the first several minutes of a fire, and even this type of small delay in sprinkler activation, especially given the high hazard materials involved in the CPI, can mean complete loss of
fire control which can result in a catastrophic event.
Design. There may be no ceiling jet formation to cause sprin- kler activation as in the case of a fire occurring below open metal grating. Improper sprinkler system design can lead to complete
loss of fire control and a catastrophic loss scenario.
Due to the installation challenges, sprinklers with heat collec-
tors installed far below ceilings and below metal grating have be- come standard. For this type of design, sprinkler activation is only achieved if the sprinklers are located within the fire plume geom- etry (i.e., close to the vertical axis of the fire plume), to intercept the buoyant hot gases needed to actuate the sprinkler fusible element that allows the application of water.
The industry guidelines for such sprinkler design are not specific, prescriptive requirements. Therefore, a performance-based analysis
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PASSIVE PROTECTION
ACTIVE PROTECTION
Spatial or Fire Barrier Separation
Area-type Automatic Sprinkler or Deluge Protection
Fire Proofing of Structural Steel/ Equipment Supports
Fixed Directional Deluge Water Spray Protection
Containment and Emergency Drainage
Process Safety Features such as Safety Shut Off Valves
FALL SAFETY
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14 Occupational Health & Safety | OCTOBER 2019
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