Guidelines for Safe Handling of Powders and Bulk Solids

With new and growing interest in dealing with the hazards of reactive chemicals, this book offers guidelines that can significantly reduce the risk or mitigate the severity of accidents associated with storing and handling reactive materials. Necessary elements of a reliable system to prevent equipment or human failures that might lead to a reactive chemical incident are sound and responsible management policies, together with a combination of superior siting, design, fabrication, erection, inspection, monitoring, maintenance, operations and maintenance of facilities. These Guidelines deal with all of these elements with emphasis on design considerations.

Handling of powders and bulk solids is a critical industrial technology across a broad spectrum of industries, from minerals processing to bulk and fine chemicals, and the food and pharmaceutical industries, yet is rarely found in the curricula of engineering or chemistry departments. With contributions from leading authors in their respective fields, Characterisation of Bulk Solids provides the reader with a sound understanding of the techniques, importance and application of particulate materials characterisation. It covers the fundamental characteristics of individual particles and bulk particulate materials, and includes discussion of a wide range of measurement techniques, and the use of material characteristics in design and industrial practice. The reader will then be in a better position to diagnose solids handling and processing problems in industry, and to deal with experts and equipment suppliers from an informed standpoint. Written for post-graduate engineers, chemical scientists and technologists at all stages of their industrial career, the book will also serve as an ideal primer in any of the specialist areas to inform further study.

A comprehensive understanding of the potential dangers inherent in warehousing chemicals is the first step in managing the associated risks. Written by industry professionals for warehouse operators, designers, and all who are concerned with the safe warehousing of chemicals, this book offers a performance-based approach to such hazards as health effects, environmental pollution, fire, and explosion, and presents practical means to minimize the risk of these hazards to employees, the surrounding population, the environment, property, and business operations. These basic precepts can be used to evaluate the risks in initial or existing designs for warehousing facilities on a manufacturing site, for freestanding offsite buildings, and for strictly chemical or mixed-use storage. Each of the book’s ten chapters has a list of references and suggestions for further reading. The numerous topics covered make this book invaluable for warehousing designers and operators.

First-line managers have to maintain the integrity of facilities, control manufacturing processes, and handle unusual or emergency situations, as well as respond to the pressures of production demand. On a daily basis, they are closest to the operating personnel who may be injured by a process accident, and they are in the best position to spot problem conditions and to act to contain them. This book offers these managers «how-to» information on process safety management program execution in the operations and maintenance departments, recommending technical and administrative process safety activities for the entire life cycle of the plant. Helpful tables and references add to the value of this process safety resource.

This book provides designers and operators of chemical process facilities with a general philosophy and approach to safe automation, including independent layers of safety. An expanded edition, this book includes a revision of original concepts as well as chapters that address new topics such as use of wireless automation and Safety Instrumented Systems. This book also provides an extensive bibliography to related publications and topic-specific information.

This book explains the decision-making processes for the management of instrumented protective systems (IPS) throughout a project's life cycle. It uses the new IEC 61511 standard as a basis for the work processes used to achieve safe and reliable process operation. By walking the reader through a project's life cycle, engineering, maintenance, and operations, the information allows users to easily focus on their responsibilities and duties. Using this approach, the book is useful as a primer, guidelines reference, and resource manual. Examples provide the added «real-world» experience applications.

Characterization of fine particles is a difficult task! A large number of industries deal with materials in powder form. The properties of these powders depend on their particle size, particle shape and size distributions, surface and porosity. What are the methods? What are the problems? What questions need answering? This new book covers the problems of sampling both powders and aerosols, and discusses calibration standards for different instruments. It takes into account fractionating methods for fine particles, e.g., sieving procedures, sedimentation methods, and the use of cyclones. Image analysis and its use for the measurement of the size and shape of powder grains and light-diffraction techniques for size evaluation are presented. Furthermore, this books covers the most effective methods for measuring surface areas, fractal structures of rough surfaces, and pore structures of porous bodies. Practitioners will find tips for modification of analytical procedures for on-line characterization, and many graphs for comparing data obtained by different methods are presented.

This book has been written to address many of the developments since the 1st Edition which have improved how companies survey and select new sites, evaluate acquisitions, or expand their existing facilities. This book updates the appendices containing both the recommended separation distances and the checklists to help the teams obtain the information they need when locating the facility within a community, when arranging the processes within the facility, and when arranging the equipment within the process units.

Food and dairy powders are created by dehydrating perishable produce, such as milk, eggs, fruit and meat, in order to extend their shelf life and stabilise them for storage or transport. These powders are in high demand for use as ingredients and as food products in their own right, and are of great economic importance to the food and dairy industry worldwide. Today, the ability to control food and dairy powder quality is a source of key competitive advantage. By varying the dehydration process design, and by controlling the technological and thermodynamic parameters during dehydration, it is possible for manufacturers to engineer the biochemical, microbiological and physical characteristics of the food powder to meet their specific product requirements. This book provides an overview of the existing, adapted or new techniques used to analyse safety and quality in modern food and dairy powders. Based on original research by the authors, the book uses 25 commercial dairy and non-dairy powders to illustrate a range of biochemical and physical methods used to evaluate and characterise powdered food products. Written from a practical perspective, each chapter focuses on a particular analytical technique, outlining the purpose, definition and principle of that method. The authors guide the reader through all of the instruments needed, the safety measures required, and the correct procedures to follow to ensure successful analysis. Instructions on accurate measurement and expression of results are included, and each chapter is richly illustrated with original data and worked examples. Analytical Methods for Food and Dairy Powders is a unique step-by-step handbook, which will be required reading for anyone involved in the development and manufacture of powdered food products. Food and dairy scientists based in industry will find it essential for new product development and improved quality control, while researchers in the laboratory will especially value the new techniques it comprises.

A resource for individuals responsible for siting decisions, this guidelines book covers siting and layout of process plants, including both new and expanding facilities. This book provides comprehensive guidelines in selecting a site, recognizing and assessing long-term risks, and the optimal lay out of equipment facilities needed within a site. The information presented is applicable to US and international locations. Note: CD-ROM/DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of eBook file.