A chemical accident is the unintentional release of one or more
chemical hazard
A chemical hazard is a (non-biological) substance that has the potential to cause harm to life or health. Chemicals are widely used in the home and in many other places. Exposure to chemicals can cause acute or long-term detrimental health eff ...
substances which could harm human health and the environment. Such events include fires,
explosion
An explosion is a rapid expansion in volume associated with an extreme outward release of energy, usually with the generation of high temperatures and release of high-pressure gases. Supersonic explosions created by high explosives are known ...
s,
leak
A leak is a way (usually an opening) for fluid to escape a container or fluid-containing system, such as a tank or a ship's hull, through which the contents of the container can escape or outside matter can enter the container. Leaks are usuall ...
ages or release of
toxic
Toxicity is the degree to which a chemical substance or a particular mixture of substances can damage an organism. Toxicity can refer to the effect on a whole organism, such as an animal, bacterium, or plant, as well as the effect on a subst ...
or
hazardous material
Dangerous goods, abbreviated DG, are substances that when transported are a risk to health, safety, property or the environment. Certain dangerous goods that pose risks even when not being transported are known as hazardous materials ( syllabi ...
s that can cause people illness, injury, or disability. Chemical accident can be caused by
natural disaster
A natural disaster is "the negative impact following an actual occurrence of natural hazard in the event that it significantly harms a community". A natural disaster can cause loss of life or damage property, and typically leaves some econ ...
, or accidental
human error
Human error refers to something having been done that was " not intended by the actor; not desired by a set of rules or an external observer; or that led the task or system outside its acceptable limits".Senders, J.W. and Moray, N.P. (1991) Human ...
, or deliberate move to cause chaos and destructions for personal gain.
While chemical accidents may occur whenever toxic materials are stored,
transport
Transport (in British English), or transportation (in American English), is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land (rail and road), water, cable, pipeline, an ...
ed or used, the most severe are
industrial accident
A work accident, workplace accident, occupational accident, or accident at work is a "discrete occurrence in the course of work" leading to physical or mental occupational injury. According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), more tha ...
s, involving major
chemical manufacturing and storage facilities.
Examples
The most dangerous chemical accident recorded in history was the 1984
Bhopal gas tragedy
The Bhopal disaster, also referred to as the Bhopal gas tragedy, was a chemical accident on the night of 2–3 December 1984 at the Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL) pesticide plant in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India. Considered the world's w ...
in
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, in which more than 3,000 people died after a highly toxic
vapor
In physics, a vapor (American English) or vapour (British English and Canadian English; American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, see spelling differences) is a substance in the gas phase at a temperature lower than its critic ...
,
methyl isocyanate
Methyl isocyanate (MIC) is an organic compound with the molecular formula CH3NCO. Synonyms are isocyanatomethane and methyl carbylamine. Methyl isocyanate is an intermediate chemical in the production of carbamate pesticides (such as carbaryl, c ...
, was released at a
Union Carbide
Union Carbide Corporation is an American chemical corporation wholly owned subsidiary (since February 6, 2001) by Dow Chemical Company. Union Carbide produces chemicals and polymers that undergo one or more further conversions by customers befor ...
Pesticide
Pesticides are substances that are meant to control pests. This includes herbicide, insecticide, nematicide, molluscicide, piscicide, avicide, rodenticide, bactericide, insect repellent, animal repellent, microbicide, fungicide, and lampri ...
s factory. The release happened after the storage tank safety valve had failed to contain the excess
pressure
Pressure (symbol: ''p'' or ''P'') is the force applied perpendicular to the surface of an object per unit area over which that force is distributed. Gauge pressure (also spelled ''gage'' pressure)The preferred spelling varies by country and e ...
created by the
exothermic reaction
In thermochemistry, an exothermic reaction is a "reaction for which the overall standard enthalpy change Δ''H''⚬ is negative." Exothermic reactions usually release heat. The term is often confused with exergonic reaction, which IUPAC defines ...
between water and
methyl isocyanate
Methyl isocyanate (MIC) is an organic compound with the molecular formula CH3NCO. Synonyms are isocyanatomethane and methyl carbylamine. Methyl isocyanate is an intermediate chemical in the production of carbamate pesticides (such as carbaryl, c ...
.
The accident was caused by a faulty valve that let the water into the tank.
The safety refrigeration unit for the tank also was not functional since it did not have any coolant.
The
2020 Beirut explosion
On 4 August 2020, a large amount of ammonium nitrate stored at the Port of Beirut in the capital city of Lebanon exploded, causing at least 218 deaths, 7,000 injuries, and United States dollar, US$15 billion in property damage, as well as lea ...
was one of the biggest non-nuclear
explosions
An explosion is a rapid expansion in volume associated with an extreme outward release of energy, usually with the generation of high temperatures and release of high-pressure gases. Supersonic explosions created by high explosives are known ...
in history.
It happened when approximately 2750 tons of
ammonium nitrate
Ammonium nitrate is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . It is a white crystalline salt consisting of ions of ammonium and nitrate. It is highly soluble in water and hygroscopic as a solid, although it does not form hydrates. It is ...
inside a warehouse at the port exploded.
Safety improvements
Efforts to prevent accidents range from improved
safety
Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to risk management, the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk.
Meanings
There are ...
systems to fundamental changes in
chemical
A chemical substance is a form of matter having constant chemical composition and characteristic properties. Some references add that chemical substance cannot be separated into its constituent elements by physical separation methods, i.e., wi ...
use and manufacture, referred to as primary prevention or inherent safety.
In the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
, concern about chemical accidents after the Bhopal disaster led to the passage of the 1986
Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act
The Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act of 1986 is a United States federal law passed by the 99th United States Congress located at Title 42, Chapter 116 of the U.S. Code, concerned with emergency response preparedness.
On October ...
. The EPCRA requires local
emergency
An emergency is an urgent, unexpected, and usually dangerous situation that poses an immediate risk to health, life, property, or environment and requires immediate action. Most emergencies require urgent intervention to prevent a worsening ...
planning efforts throughout the country, including emergency notifications. The law also requires companies to make publicly available information about their storage of toxic chemicals. Based on such information, citizens can identify the vulnerable zones in which severe toxic releases could cause harm or even in some cases death.
In 1990, the
Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board
The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (USCSB), generally referred to as the Chemical Safety Board or CSB, is an independent U.S. federal agency charged with investigating industrial chemical accidents. Headquartered in Washingt ...
(CSB) was established by the
Congress
A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...
, though it did not become operational until 1998. The Board's mission is to determine the root causes of chemical accidents and issue safety recommendations to prevent future chemical accidents. Note that the CSB does not issue fines or citations since the Congress designed the agency to be non-regulatory. It also organizes workshops on a number of issues related to preparing for, preventing, and responding to chemical accidents.
[Chemical Accidents: About]
." OECD Environment Directorate. OECD. 19 July 2007.
In the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
, incidents such as the
Flixborough disaster and the
Seveso disaster
Seveso (; lmo, label= Lombard, Séves ) is a town and ''comune'' in the Province of Monza and Brianza, in the Region of Lombardy. The economy of the town has traditionally been based on the furniture industry.
Its name comes from the river of ...
led to legislation such as the
Seveso Directive and Seveso planning and provide for
safety reports to local authorities. Many countries have organizations that can assist with substance risk assessment and emergency planning that is required by a wide variety of
legislation
Legislation is the process or result of enrolled bill, enrolling, enactment of a bill, enacting, or promulgation, promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous Government, governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law i ...
, such as the
National Chemical Emergency Centre
The National Chemical Emergency Centre (NCEC) is a former UK government agency, now privately owned as part of Ricardo plc, providing information related to chemical accidents (spillages and fires) to emergency services in the United Kingdom and ...
in the
UK,
Brandweerinformatiecentrum voor gevaarlijke stoffen The Brandweerinformatiecentrum voor gevaarlijke stoffen/Information Centre for Dangerous Goods (BIG), established in the Flemish city of Geel, collects and validates information on dangerous goods. History
BIG was established in 1979 following a nu ...
/Fire Brigade Information Center for Hazardous Materials in
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
.
See also
*
Chemical safety
Chemicals as elements, compounds, mixtures, solutions and emulsions are very widely used and transported in the modern industrial society. Of necessity, they are also used in schools, universities and other training facilities to educate pupils in ...
Reference
External links
U.S. Chemical Safety BoardOccupational Safety and Health AdministrationUnited States Coast Guard National Response Center24-7 ResponseNational Chemical Emergency CentreBrandweerinformatiecentrum voor gevaarlijke stoffen/Fire services information centre for dangerous goodsCase Studies in Process Plant Accidents* U.S. EPA, Chemical Emergency Preparedness and Prevention Offic
Safety in the use of Chemicals at work – International Labour Organization (ILO) – (PDF-file)MSDSonline.com A Searchable Database for Material Safety Data Sheets(MSDS)**
Guiding Principles for Chemical Accident Prevention, Preparedness and Response">ttps://web.archive.org/web/20070622111345/http://www2.oecd.org/guidingprinciples/index.asp Guiding Principles for Chemical Accident Prevention, Preparedness and ResponseNational Institute for Occupational Safety and Health – Chemical SafetyA searchable database for chemical safety accidents and lessons learned – FACTSOnlinePreventing Chemical Accidents – How to Prevent Chemicals From Contaminating Your Workplace – Safety Storage Systems
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chemical Accident
Accident
An accident is an unintended, normally unwanted event that was not directly caused by humans. The term ''accident'' implies that nobody should be blamed, but the event may have been caused by unrecognized or unaddressed risks. Most researcher ...
Occupational safety and health
Industrial fires and explosions