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Accident # | 130425 |
State Police # | 11-0193 |
Accident Date | 2011-04-05 |
Report Date | 2011-04-06 |
Follow-up Date | 2011-04-12 |
Follow-up: | Yes |
Pollutant | Duration | Point Source | Greenhouse Gas | Criteria Pollutant | Ozone forming chemical | Amount of Release |
Hydrogen Sulfide | 2 h 7 m | VENT: Flare #1 tip | NO | NO | NO | 1,280.3 pounds |
Accident Classified As: Reportable Quantity
The apparent exceedance was discovered at approximately 9:20 am while Motiva Convent Refinery was preparing to perform maintenance on the Refinery Flare #1. A valve, upstream of the flare knock out drum, was used to isolate the flare line from the process to remove any residual hydrocarbons from the system prior to work being performed. However, the valve apparently leaked by allowing process gas to enter the flare knock drum and subsequently released gas through the flare tip. Since the flare was out of service at the time, there was no flame present to combust the process gas before exiting the flare tip. None of the potential exceedances listed have caused an emergency condition. There was no offsite impact as a result of this incident. Exceeded RQ 100lb H2S and 3.3lb/hr H2S
The valve is designed to fully close and is rated for this type of service. The valve is expected to operate as designed.
A water seal was re established in the flare knock down drum which created a barrier to prevent gas from entering the vessel and subsequently existing the flare tip. the barrier created by the water level in the knock out drum was monitored and controlled using level instrumentation. The water level controller was set to "Auto" to ensure drum water level (ie water barrier) is maintained. Operations vegan visual monitoring for water level at the flare drum to ensure the barrier stayed intact.
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