Thermal Safety of Chemical Processes

Professor Francis Stoessel is Head of Chemical Process Safety Consulting in the Swiss Institute for the Promotion of Safety & Security. After graduating in Chemical Engineering from the Université de Haute Alsace, he spent most of his career working for Ciba-Geigy in their Chemical Engineering Department. He was Head of the Thermal Safety Department at Ciba, later of Process Safety Consulting at Novartis. He then took up a professorship at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology at Lausanne. Prof. Stoessel has received awards from the Swiss Expert Commission for Safety in the Chemical Industry and the Swiss Society for Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry.

PART I: GENERAL ASPECTS OF THERMAL PROCESS SAFETY
INTRODUCTION
Case History
Chemical Industry and Safety
Risk Analysis
Safety Data
Systematic Search for Hazards
Key Factors for a Successful Risk Analysis
FUNDAMENTALS OF THERMAL PROCESS SAFETY
Case History: Storage during Week-End
Energy Potential
Effect of Temperature on Reaction Rate
Heat Balance
Runaway Reactions
Problems
ASSESSMENT OF THERMAL RISKS
Case history: Sulfonation
Thermal Risks
Systematic Assessment Procedure
Assessment Procedures
Exercises
EXPERIMENTAL TECHNIQUES
Case History: Diazotization
Calorimetric Measurement Principles
Choice of Instruments Used in Safety Laboratories
Problems
PART II: MASTERING EXOTHERMAL REACTIONS
GENERAL ASPECTS OF REACTOR SAFETY
Case history: Process Deviation
Dynamic Stability of Reactors
Example
BATCH REACTORS
Case History "Nitroaniline"
Principles of Batch Reaction
Strategies of Temperature Control
Isothermal Reactions
Adiabatic Reaction
Polytropic Reaction
Isoperibolic Reaction
Temperature Controlled Reaction
Key Factors for the Safe Design of Batch Reactors
Exercises
SEMI-BATCH REACTORS
Case history
Principles of Semi-Batch Reaction
Reactant Accumulation in Semi-Batch Reactors
Design of Safe Semi-Batch Reactors
Isothermal Reaction
Isoperibolic, Constant Cooling Medium Temperature
Non Isothermal Reaction
Strategies of Feed Control
Choice of Temperature and Feed Rate
Feed Control by Accumulation
Exercises
CONTINUOUS REACTORS
Case History
Continuous Stirred Tank Reactors
Tubular Reactors
Other continuous reactor types
TECHNICAL ASPECTS OF REACTOR SAFETY
Case history: "Process transfer"
Temperature control of industrial reactors
Heat exchange across the wall
Evaporative cooling
Dynamics of the temperature control system and process design
Exercises
RISK REDUCING MEASURES
Case History
Strategies of choice
Eliminating measures
Technical preventing Measures
Emergency measures
Design of technical measures
Exercises
PART III: AVOIDING SECONDARY REACTIONS
THERMAL STABILITY
Case History: Storage During Repair
Thermal Stability and Secondary Decomposition Reactions
Consequences of Secondary Decomposition Reactions
Triggering Condition
Experimental Characterization of Decomposition Reactions
Exercises
AUTOCATALYTIC REACTIONS
Case History: DMSO Recovery
Introduction
Characterization of autocatalytic reactions
Practical Safety Aspects for autocatalytic reactions
Exercises
HEAT CONFINEMENT
Case History
Heat accumulation situations
Heat balance
Heat balance with reactive material
Assessing heat accumulation conditions
Exercises
SYMBOLS

This book should not be missing from the library collections of each chemical engineer or student preparing for this profession. ( Environmental Engineering and Management Journal , May / June 2008)