Journal of the Korean Society of Safety (한국안전학회지)

The Korean Society of Safety (한국안전학회)
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A Study on the Safety of Small LPG Storage Tanks at External Fires

외부화재시 LPG 소형저장탱크의 안전성에 관한 연구

  • Received : 2015.03.11
  • Accepted : 2015.06.17
  • Published : 2015.08.31
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Abstract

The purpose of this study is to study the safety of a small LPG storage tank with a capacity less than 3 ton when it is exposed to an external fire. First, simulation studies were carried out using ASPEN Plus and PHAST to demonstrate that overpressurization in the tank can be relieved by discharging the LPG through an adequately sized safety valve, but the release may lead to the secondary risk of fire and explosion around the tank. Next, the temporal variations of the temperatures of the lading and tank wall were obtained using AFFTAC, which showed that the tank wall adjacent to the vapor space could be overheated in about 11 min to such a point that the weakened strength might cause a rupture of the tank and subsequent BLEVE. The consequences of the BLEVE were estimated using PHAST. Finally, several practical measures for preventing the hazards of overheating were suggested, including an anti-explosion device, sprinkling system, insulation, heat-proof coating, and enhanced safety factor for tank fabrication. The effectiveness of these measures were examined by simulations using AFFTAC and ASPEN Plus.

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References

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  1. Review of Safety for Pressure-Relieving Systems of Small to Middle Scale Chemical Plants vol.30, pp.6, 2015, https://doi.org/10.14346/JKOSOS.2015.30.6.48