| Case Name |
Spontaneous ignition of unsaturated fats and oils (peanut inner skin) stored for a long time |
| Pictograph |
|
| Date |
January 1, 1986 |
| Location |
Warehouse |
| Overview |
The inner skin of peanuts in bags stored in a warehouse caused spontaneous ignition. The fire expanded to the adjacent factory. It must be recognized that materials including unsaturated fats and oils, etc. easily accumulate heat and ignite. In addition, it is necessary to formulate safety measures based on the worst-case scenario. |
| Incident |
A fire of inner skin of peanuts filled in the bags. An adjacent petrochemical plant exploded. |
| Processing |
Storage |
| Substance |
Vegetable oil |
| Type of Accident |
Fire, explosion |
| Sequence |
1. Fifty 20-kg bags of inner skin of peanuts were stored in seven tiers.
2. Spontaneous ignition occurred after one month and part of the storage was damaged by fire. |
| Cause |
The inner skin of peanuts is a material which contains high degree of unsaturated substances and is easily to ignite spontaneously. The storage method was not adequate. |
| Countermeasures |
Chemical materials that can accumulate heat should not be stored for a long time. |
| Knowledge Comment |
The worst-case scenario taking domino effects into account should be considered if there are dangerous facilities nearby. |
| Background |
There was a lack of awareness of the risk of fire from chemical substances such as unsaturated fats and oils.
The inner skin of peanuts is thin and has a large surface area. Moreover, it includes many unsaturated fatty acids, which are easily oxidized. Therefore, one can expect easily that part of the skin would be oxidized and accumulate heat. Lack of attention should be blamed if there was someone specialized in chemistry at the plant. |
| Incidental Discussion |
As a heat accumulation phenomenon, this fire is similar to cotton waste or paint residues impregnated with oil. When fats and oils are impregnated in fibrous materials and porous materials, the aerial contact area increases and they easily oxidize and accumulate heat. |
| Reason for Adding to DB |
A typical accident of fire caused due to accumulated heat |
| Scenario |
| Primary Scenario
|
Ignorance, Insufficient Knowledge, Convincement, Poor Value Perception, Poor Safety Awareness, Inadequate Risk Recognition, Planning and Design, Poor Planning, Thoughtless Storage Planning, Usage, Transport/Storage, Storage, Bad Event, Chemical Phenomenon, Heat Generation/Ignition, Secondary Damage, External Damage, Fire, Secondary Damage, External Damage, Explosion of Adjacent Plant
|
|
| Sources |
Masamitsu Tamura. Wakakura Masahide. Spontaneous ignition of unsaturated fats and oils. Reaction danger. -Accident case and analysis - p.120(1995)
|
| Physical Damage |
A factory building partially burned down. |
| Field |
Chemicals and Plants
|
| Author |
WAKAKURA, Masahide (Kanagawa Industrial Technology Research Institute)
TAMURA, Masamitsu (Center for Risk Management and Safety Sciences, Yokohama National University)
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