2025 Spring Meeting and 21st Global Congress on Process Safety

(41ap) Vulnerability Analysis and Domino Effects for Sugar and Alcohol Plant

Authors

Renato Mendes, RSE CONSULTING

The Quality, Safety, Environment and Health Policy of several companies recommends that their projects must undergo risk assessments and management of hazards regarding the positioning of buildings, as these represent points that impact the operational safety of their plants, as well as the safety of their employees, neighboring communities and the environment.

This study involved the application of physical effects and vulnerability analysis methodologies to identify impacts on process units and workers in a sugar and alcohol plant in Brazil. It is important to assess the Domino Effect, as these effects magnify the potential initial accidental event.

The study developed eight dangerous Initiating Events, considered to have the greatest impact on the unit, based on the history of the sugar and alcohol industry. Of these scenarios studied, four are highlighted as Major Hazards, namely:

  1. Catastrophic rupture of the distillation column;
  2. Explosion of the alcohol storage tank;
  3. Sugar dust explosion in the bagging room;
  4. Sugar explosion in a region of the warehouse due to the rupture of the vent.

All of the events listed above have the potential to cause an explosion with significant repercussions on other units of the Ituiutaba plant. Explosive events have multiple repercussions on other industrial units, such as: fermentation, sugarcane treatment, sugar warehouse, sugar factory, laboratory, workshops, warehouse, diffuser, boiler, and the unit's future warehouse. Events that result in fires, even if dangerous, can be mitigated by the action of the plant's fire brigade, which has the potential to control the magnitude of the losses.

The study also assessed the planned location for the installation of a future sugar warehouse, attached to the current one. An assessment of the risks of this building was requested in light of the various initiating events posed to the plant, calculating the damage and proposing recommendations for this new investment.