New OSHA Directive Stirs Dust Explosion Controversy

The concern is housekeeping and the amount of dust that poses a credible risk for loss. A 654 task group meeting was held last week in Tampa to grapple with this issue. Several recent industrial dust explosions have either been caused by fugitive dust or have been made far worse by the presence of dust outside of process equipment, such as on floors, trusses, I-beams, adjacent machinery, and so forth. The amount of dust that poses a significant risk is not great and the controversy surrounds the quantity, how best to measure it, and how best to control it in a cost effective manner.

For many years NFPA 654 has used 1/16th inch, or the thickness of a paperclip, as being a sufficient quantity to pose significant risk for flame spread and secondary explosions. OSHA has reduced that quantity to 1/32nd inch based on recent tests that demonstrated the potential for significant risk from this scant amount. The actual amount required to pose a risk is further complicated by several additional factors and undoubtedly varies with different materials and other environmental factors. There are also matters of practicality with many processes generating dust at various rates and dealt with in various ways. What is workable and practical in one industry may not be suitable in another. And a dust that is very light and easily suspended in a cloud poses a different risk from one that is heavy and not easily lifted into suspension. Too, there is the factor of ignitability with some dusts being far more easily ignited than others. In short the fugitive dust problem is complex and there are many more questions than answers.

New ideas and new techniques are urgently needed to meet this challenge

"As always prevention is better than cure", Explains Bill Stevenson, Vice President of Engineering for CV Technology, a leading explosion consulting and protection company located in West Palm Beach, FL. "In dusty operations, leaks can be plugged, larger dust collectors employed, and horizontal surfaces can be reduced by concealing them with steeply angled covers such that there is no surface for dust to accumulate."

In addition to dust explosion consulting, CV Technology offers a wide variety of products aimed at the prevention and mitigation of dust explosions. "Prevention and mitigation is our core focus" adds Stevenson. "We aim to not only prevent disaster with early detection, but also to protect the employees, facility, and business process should a dust explosion occur."

Fugitive dust is a serious problem in some industry segments and the amount of dust necessary for unacceptable consequences is far less than was previously understood. Ways and means to minimize dust in process areas needs to be improved. Operations that are dusty require even more vigilance and diligence in the area of housekeeping than was appreciated heretofore.

More on the OSHA directive can be found online at: http://www.osha.gov/OshDoc/Directive_pdf/CPL_03-00-006.pdf

For information on CV Technology and their services please visit their website: http://www.cvtechnology.com

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