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Phillips 66 (2538), Lake Charles
Releases of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)
| LDEQ Accident Number Accident Date |
Point Source(s) | Notes | Amount of Release |
| 84196 2005-11-30 | C-Szorb Unit | Cause: Fire due to a flange leak on the feed exchanger to the S-Znob Unit. Followup: No Notes: Fire was extinguished, the course was isolated and the unit was shut down. Incident was preventable; flake leak caused by unequal heat expansion due to incorrect application of insulation. | 8.0 pounds |
| 83404 2005-10-25 | FLARE (Area B-South Flare EP-31) | Cause: Leaking in the 24 inch flare line leaving the AlkyCasinghead Area. Followup: No Notes: Repairs were made to the pipe to stop the leak and restore the integrity of the pipe. Although report indicates the incident was preventable the reportable quantity for Volatile Organic Compounds of 5000 lbs was not exceeded during this event. Notice as | 800.0 pounds |
| 80473 2005-07-12 | Y-5 Cooling Tower (Ep-153) | Cause: Incident due to leaking exchanger. Followup: No Information Provided Notes: Upon discovery, facility called an environmental contractor to conduct air monitoring and identified and isolated from the process by switching to an alternate exchanger train. Report stated that incident was preventable. However, based on additional | 71,000.0 pounds |
| 80086 2005-06-24 | Y-5 Cooling Tower | Cause: Incident due to leaking exchanger. The root of the cause of the exchanger leak is currently being investigated. Followup: No Notes: Facility initially identified a sheen on Y-5 Cooling Tower and the company's environmental monitoring contractors detected 10, 000 ppm or greater VOC vapor concentration on water to Y-5 Cooling Tower. A comprehensive research was immediately initiated | 43,313.0 pounds |
| 90047 2006-08-16 | 2624-V5 Emission Point FUG009 | Cause: Leak in underground piping venting to atmosphere Followup: No Information Provided Notes: Pipe was isolated from the process and depressured in order to make necessary repairs. HAZMAT# | 200.0 pounds |
| 89035 2006-07-02 | Area A - No. 1 Coker | Cause: A six inch drain valve on a live coke drum was inadvertantly opened by operator. Followup: Yes Notes: Interlocks that failed to prevent this event is being looked at. Live drum indications and permissive controls from the board are planned. HAZMAT # | 336.0 pounds |
| 88366 2006-06-06 | Area B- South Flare (EP31) | Cause: see notes. Intermittent power surge due to malfunctions at the Entergy Power Company. Emissions resulted from power failure. Followup: No Information Provided Notes: Power failure. Restarted and/or isolatedpertinant units to prevent further impact. HAZMAT# | 5,144.0 pounds |
| 86154 2006-03-02 | Area C- North Flare (EP-64) | Cause: The No. # Crude Unit shut down for turnaround resulted in excess emissio Followup: No Information Provided Notes: No Information given. | 67.0 pounds |
| 85778 2006-02-11 | North Flare (EP-64) | Cause: see notes. A loss of electrical power occurred caused by failure of an Entergy own electrical transformer. The electrical power loss resulted in emergency shutdown of the majority of process units. Emergency shutdown instrumentation directed hydrocarbon gas streams to the refinery complex flares resulting in excess emissions of SO2, H2S, and NOx from the complex's North and South Flares. Additional flaring of gas streams resulted from the staggered process unit and various start up once electrical power was restore Followup: Yes Notes: POWER FAILURE. A root cause failure analysis is being conducted on this incident. Its results will be used to develop actions that will potentially preclude a recurrence. | 191.0 pounds |
| 85778 2006-02-11 | North Flare (EP-64) | Cause: see notes. A loss of electrical power occurred caused by failure of an Entergy own electrical transformer. The electrical power loss resulted in emergency shutdown of the majority of process units. Emergency shutdown instrumentation directed hydrocarbon gas streams to the refinery complex flares resulting in excess emissions of SO2, H2S, and NOx from the complex's North and South Flares. Additional flaring of gas streams resulted from the staggered process unit and various start up once electrical power was restore Followup: Yes Notes: POWER FAILURE. A root cause failure analysis is being conducted on this incident. Its results will be used to develop actions that will potentially preclude a recurrence. | 1,846.0 pounds |
| 100549 2007-10-26 | Pipe in pipe rack | Cause: No information given Followup: No Notes: According to report release does not exceed reportable quantities but does exceed Title V permit limit and will be report in deviaiton report. | 720.0 pounds |
| 100551 2007-10-26 | T-1801 tank vent | Cause: No information given Followup: No Notes: Release from vent on T-1801, will be reported appropriately in Title V deviation repor | |
| 99560 2007-09-18 | LPG Skid Flange | Cause: weld on flange developed leak Followup: No Notes: Depressured the receiver to flare so the leaks could be repaired | 21.0 pounds |
| 97829 2007-07-13 | North Flare | Cause: see notes Followup: No Notes: a root cause failure analysis will be completed to determine the cause of the equipment failure. Once emissions were noticed, unit was shut dow | 829.0 pounds |
| 95470 2007-04-19 | X-861 Exchanger in Area A #2HDS Unit | Cause: Exchanger leak in tube bundle Followup: No Notes: Exchanger was isolated from cooling tower and unit was shut down to repair exchanger | 5,902.0 pounds |
| 95182 2007-04-06 | No. 8 HDS Separator Piping | Cause: -weld on line failed, developed le Followup: No Notes: Unit depressurized while weld repaired. Spool piece installed and unit returned to normal operation the next day | 21.0 pounds |
| 92923 2006-12-29 | North Flare | Cause: wet gas compressor tripped and shut down Followup: No Notes: Facility is conducting root cause failure analysis to prevent future recurrence and ensure extra insulation on the bus is adequate during shutdowns | 492.0 pounds |
| 108922 2008-09-08 | No information given North Flare | Cause: No information given Followup: No Notes: Date on letter from DEQ (01/05/2008) and date of incident (9/8/08) indicate an error of some kind in the reporting. DEQ report indicates that a flare pilot went out. No information given concerning which flare or reason for the outage. | 155.0 pounds |
| 107264 2008-07-16 | Area D Tank Farm | Cause: Seal failure on P-486 resulted in loss of containment of sour naptha Followup: No Notes: INCIDENT EXCEEDS RQ. Pump suction and discharge were blocked in when operators were alerted to event from an adjacent operating area | 93.0 pounds |
| 103888 2008-03-13 | Area A Exchanger | Cause: excessive temperature swings in a reboiler caused a flange to open and release stabilized gasoline Followup: No Notes: Report states that emission were BRQ. Gas Recovery Plant reboiler leak | 62.0 pounds |
| 103619 2008-03-04 | API/CPI system sludge sump | Cause: gasoline entered the oily water system and caused an upset after operator fails to use appropriate control device Followup: No Notes: LEL alarms lowered to alert Operations sooner of hydrocarbons in the atmosphere. Process and procedures surrounding mgmt of tank water draws and process indicators will be reviewed. Follow-up letter from DEQ states that C-P failed to notify DEQ within 24 hrs of incident and that the tank operator failed to use a control device to block gasoline from entering wastewater system | 1,333.0 pounds |
| 110380 2007-07-05 | Y-1 Cooling Tower in Area C | Cause: leak in exchangers X-447/18 in the FCCU Vapor Recovery Unit Followup: No Notes: DEQ report states that emission was BRQ | 1,475.0 pounds |
| 117474 2009-08-24 | exchanger X-16107 | Cause: #10 Reformer exchanger X-16107 leaked to cooling water system. Followup: Yes Notes: Unit was shutdown to pull bundle for repair. | 1,264.0 pounds |
| 117349 2009-08-18 | Exchanger X-428 | Cause: Exchanger X-428 was leaking into the cooling water system. Followup: No Notes: The exchanger was removed from service. | 467.0 pounds |
| 111942 2009-01-12 | exchanger X-430 | Cause: FCCU Vapor Recovery Unit exchanger X-430 developed a leak into the cooling water tower Y1/Y2 (EP-152). Followup: Yes Notes: Greater than RQ. X-430 was taken out of service. The exchanger bundle will be repaired, including replacement if needed. | 1,780.0 pounds |
| 111828 2009-01-07 | North Flare | Cause: Net gas compressor in No. 10 reformer was shutdown due to high vibrations. The shut down caused high volumes of gas and liquids to the North Flare. This resulted in a surge of high pressure on the flare header line to the North Flare. Followup: Yes Notes: Immediately after the discharge, Conoco Phillips shut down Old Spanish Trail Roadway, and the North Flare was taken out of service. A Conoco personnel did a FLIR camera monitoring of the flare header line for VOC leakage. No leaks were found. LDEQ personnel were dispatched to the site later in the day after the discharge. They collected a summa canister air sample offsite and downwind of the North Flare. The canister did not detect any readings. Samples of ditch water was collected by Conoco Phillips on the north side of Old Spanish Trail on Sasol property. The water samples of SO2 was detected to be 0.7-4.0ppm, while H2S and VOCs levels were not detectable. During the collection, the inspectors described a pungent, sulfuric odor. CITIZEN COMPLAINT (T111853)- Ms. Debra Ramirez stated concern over the Conoco Phillips discharge. The LDEQ inspector's observations stated that the release was caused by a malfunction of the net gas compressor in the No. 10 reformer, which relieves to the North Flare. In an attempt to mitigate the release, operations began cutting charge rates to the units and diverting vent streams from the North Flare to the South Flare system. | |
| 111853 2009-01-07 | North Flare | Cause: A net gas compressor shut down due to high vibrations, this resulted in a high volume of material being sent to the north flare. Followup: Yes Notes: No information given | |
| 129308 2011-02-18 | East Tank Farm | Cause: Heavy Naphtha #11 runline expansion joint developed a leak. Refinery letter states that engineering calculations were used to determine quantities of pollutants released. Followup: No Notes: The line was blocked in and isolated. ES&H aided in the clean up of the leak and is standing by for support. Expansion joint was removed from the line. They will inspect other expansion joints and replace/remove as necessary. Naphtha is referred to as "oil" in first part of refinery letter, but listed as naphtha in pollutants released section. | 286.0 pounds |
| 129216 2011-02-13 | #3 Cargo Sump | Cause: Unauthorized discharge report states that kerosene flowed out of the concrete basin surrounding #3 Cargo Pump House Sump PPS-29, onto the ground underneath the piperack west of PPS-29 and into the concrete rainwater catch basin southwest of PPS-29. The operator left D-1216 draining unattended. The radar span on PPS-29 was not set properly. Followup: No Notes: Sump level was pumped down. The radar span on PPS-29 has been adjusted. The company will consider installing redundant radar level indication on PPS-29. They will consider scheduling annual preventive maintenance and testing on PPS-29 level control system as well as a low level alarm to PPS-29. | 635.0 pounds |
| 128741 2011-01-16 | T-74 Oily Sewer Sump | Cause: Refinery unauthorized discharge notification report states that the T-74 oily sewer pump level indicator appears to have failed to start the pumps operating. Overflow of crude oil into a railroad ditch occurred. Followup: No Notes: The oil was cleaned up using vacuum trucks, absorbent booms, and pads. The frequency of operator rounds has been increased. Refinery letter states that no off-site impact occurred and that impact to the sides of railroad ditch were "almost nonexistent." | 18.0 pounds |
| 152440 2013-11-16 | T-71001 | Cause: On November 16, a fire occurred within the vapor space of the roof on T-71001, the Sour Water Stripper feed tank at Excel Paralubes.
Immediately after the incident, process changes were made to minimize the flow to the tank. The process of removing feed from the tank was completed at 3pm on November 17. Deinventory of the tank contents is nearly complete with an estimated 2 feet of material left in the tank. The process of diluting and removing the remaining material is expected to be completed throughout the next week. Once the tank is completely emptied, a damage assessment will be completed for the tank and any associated equipment. The cause of the incident is under investigation. Followup: No Notes: The fire was extinguished quickly and no offsite impact occurred. Based on engineering calculations, it is estimated that the combustion emissions of sulfur dioxide and volatile organic carbons from the first did not exceed the respective reportable quantities. | 0.6 pounds |
| 146063 2013-01-16 | external floating roof of Tank-7 tank-7 roof drain | Cause: External floating roof check valve failed, slowing tank contents on top of the roof. The incident resulted from a mechanical failure of a check valve.
Tank material (gasoline/oil/water mix) got on top of floating roof allowing mixture to spill to ground via roof drain. Estimated 2bbls of oil to ground into secondary containment. Followup: Notes: s13-22018 due to a damaged floating roof, gasoline released to containment. A notification was made regarding a release from the external floating roof of Tank-7 located in Area D Tank Farm. An estimated 2 barrels of a gasoline, oil, and water mixture was spilled to the ground through the roof drain within secondary containment. Evaporative losses from spill contained benzene and potentially H2S. Immediate area monitoring non-detect for H2S but detected for benzene. ESH personnel remediated the spill. Blocked roof drain to limit mixture spilling to ground. Drained material from roof but due to slow drain and rain, pump to be put roof top and pump material off floating roof. An estimated 7752 lbs of volatile organic carbons were released to the air exceeding the reportable quantity for VOCs. Fenceline monitoring was conducted for VOCs and Benzene and no offsite impact occurred. Material was cleaned up without any offsite impacts. Investigation will provide more specific cause(s) and any appropriate actions to prevent reoccurrence. | 7,752.0 pounds |
| 160241 2014-11-23 | Szorb Unit | Cause: A fire occurred on a heat exchanger in the Szorb unit as a result of a leak on the heat exchange system in the Szorb unit. As a result, there was black smoke to atmosphere. Followup: No Notes: Feed was pulled from the unit and water monitors were started on surrounding equipment. Investigation is ongoing. | 4,007.0 pounds |
| 155612 2014-04-27 | API Flare | Cause: Refinery had a flare go out. Facility personnel stated that the flare had been going out because of the wastewater treatment plant being "revamped". The wind also contributed to this incident. The flare was out between 2:39 AM and 4:21 AM. Followup: No Notes: | 18.0 pounds |
| 153631 2014-02-03 | T-38 Flare (EQT 240) of Area D | Cause: An unknown quantity of H2S was released from a flare to the atmosphere due to a pilot flame outage. The source was identified as the T-38 Flare (EQT 240) of Area D, Permit 2626-V9. The flare is equipped with an automatic shut-off valve on the flare piping at the time of the flame outage the valve closed as the intended design, and thus only the material in the flare piping was released. Followup: No Notes: The flare pilots were out for approximately 20 minutes. Engineering calculations determined that the amounts of H2S and VOC release during the outage was less than the reportable quantity. There is no mention of what caused the pilot outage. |
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