The Periodic Table is perhaps the heart of Chemistry. Just like people are fascinated by the interstellar and the existence of other galaxies we have never heard about, the same enthusiasm is shared by scientists and researchers who study the behavior of matter, particles, molecules, and atoms. Being based on the nature and behavior of atoms, it is correct to state that the spectrum of chemistry-related concepts and knowledge stretches out to infinity. This means that however much we comprehend chemistry and the behavior of matter, in most instances; there will always be a dimension about a certain phenomenon that we have never explored. This unexplored dimension or unknown tendency or behavior regarding some matter is usually the basis of most chemical-related accidents; including explosions.
An Outlook of Nitrous Oxide and its Application
Nitrogen Oxide is a gas that is formed through the chemical combination of Nitrogen and Oxygen. Chemically, the gas is composed of two Nitrogen atoms and one Oxygen atom (N 2 O). It is commonly referred to as the laughing gas due to its ‘tickling’ effect; especially when it is applied for medical purposes. The gas occurs in the atmosphere but in small percentages. However, the composition of the gas in the atmosphere has been increasing over the past years. This continuous increment has mainly been attributed to human activities; mainly agricultural-related. The amount of Nitrous Oxide in the atmosphere is estimated to be about 30%.
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Under room temperature, Nitrous Oxide is a stable gas that remains as a molecule of two Nitrogen atoms and an Oxygen atom at the most elemental level. Usually, in the molecular form Nitrous Oxide, the Nitrogen and Oxygen remain chemically combined, meaning that none of them can portray chemical behaviors or tendencies that are attributed to the specific gases when they are not chemically combined. However, when temperatures rise, the atoms acquire energy as the bonds between the two Nitrogen atom and the Oxygen atom start weakening. When the bonds are significantly weak, the Oxygen atom is usually available for an external reaction, which in most cases is combustion. Nitrous Oxide is applied in medicine during dental procedures and it is widely used in automobiles and engines to accelerate combustion hence engine power and speed.
The Cantonment Airgas Nitrous Oxide Explosion
The Chemistry behind the explosive nature of Nitrous Oxide and its overall vulnerability to catching fire is based on how strong the bonds between the Nitrogen and Oxygen atoms are. When the temperature of the gas rises, it becomes chemically active, meaning that the individual atoms (Nitrogen and Oxygen) are at ‘liberty’ to engage in chemical reactions. The Oxygen atom that dissociates from Nitrous Oxide gas has been found to be more chemically reactive than the ordinary Oxygen atom that is derived from the atmosphere. This is the reason engine designers opt to use Nitrous Oxide in powering their engines to give them ‘juice’ as opposed to using atmospheric oxygen.
Just like most gases that are manufactured, there is usually a sequence of processes that are involved before the final gas is produced. Before the explosion, the Nitrous Oxide gas that was manufactured at the Cantonment Airgas facility also underwent a series of processes for the final gas to be achieved. For the relevance of the discussion, it is important to pay more attention to the loading of the gas to the transport trucks. During the manufacture of gas, many monitoring processes are involved apart from the actual processing procedures. For instance, at different stages of production, there is a stipulated temperature, humidity, and pressure that has to be observed and maintained. The reason for this measure is that different elements react differently under different conditions of temperature, pressure, and humidity.
After Nitrous Oxide had been produced and separated from all other components, the Airgas protocol was to store it in one of the three horizontal tanks, which were of 50-ton capacity. Nitrous Oxide was stored in these tanks in between 0 and 10 degrees Fahrenheit (Crowl, 2017). From the storage points, Airgas then pumped the liquid Nitrous Oxide into the transport trucks. These Transport trucks have precise specifications that they are required to meet for safety purposes. The pumping can be done to load up trucks or shipping containers. The containers are mainly involved in overseas transportation while the trucks distribute the Nitrous Oxide to hospitals, universities, and automobile companies. Airgas is usually involved in both container and truck transportation. However, it mainly transports the gas through trucks.
Events Leading to the Explosion
The fateful incident occurred on 28 th August 2016. Due to the aspect of balancing pressure, the process of pumping Nitrous Oxide into trucks and containers usually has three outlets that are interlinked between the truck and the storage tanks. This system helps create a balance between the pressure levels at the storage tank and the truck. On this particular day, the Airgas employees who were on duty told the investigators from CSB that the level indicator on the truck was missing. The work of the level indicator is to show how much Nitrous Oxide is loaded. This is important since it enables the staff members to monitor the load and match it accordingly to the load capacity of a specific truck without drifting from the stipulations laid out by the US Department of Transport (DoT). To eliminate the chance of an overload or to overfill the truck, the DoT requires that MC -331 Nitrous Oxide trucks are equipped with a prevention mechanism that bars the trucks from being filled completely with Nitrous Oxide (Crowl, 2017).
The type and manufacturer of the pumps used to load Nitrous Oxide are very crucial when dealing with the gas. This is because the mechanical action of the pump on Nitrous Oxide during the loading process can increase the temperature of the gas leading to the initiation of a chemical process which results in the decomposition of the gas. This decomposition is the major cause of explosions since it leads to the breakdown of the Nitrogen and Oxygen bonds making Oxygen chemically active. The Smith manufactured pumps that were vastly used by Airgas had a balance between the output and input of the Nitrous Oxide gas that is relayed between the truck and the storage tanks. This balance is crucial in reducing the heating effect of the pump.
Despite all the precautionary measures, the Nitrous Oxide did explode on the 28 th August 2016. From the investigations conducted by the US Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, the explosion was mainly attributed to the heating effect at the pump (Crowl, 2017). As stipulated above, the conventional relay of the Nitrous Oxide gas between the storage tanks and the trucks is done by a pump. There is a temperature limit that is placed for the operational temperature of the pump during the loading process. The explosion is believed to have been caused by the pump exceeding the safe operational temperature. However, from the report, this is only an inference made from the possible reasons why the explosion could have occurred. The explosion was massive and destroyed almost everything in its vicinity hence very little data was retrieved from the scene. In addition, the absence of any survivor during the incidence makes it very difficult to get to an accurate narrative about the incidence.
Based on the inference that the overheating of the pump caused Nitrous Oxide to start decomposing hence resulting in the explosion, three scenarios were associated with the incidence. Considering that Nitrous Oxide is a very sensitive gas, there is a wide array of instruments that monitor different parameters and phenomena that are related to the gas. The first scenario was that the staff members who were tasked with tracking the pumping process did not pay attention to the instruments and for that reason, the temperatures exceeded the safe degree.
The second scenario was that the staff members might have seen the temperature exceed the safe degree and assumed it. Usually, the monitoring of instruments can be tedious, and sometimes staff members do not pay attention. These two scenarios are sheer cases of staff ignorance, which has also been linked to other accidents in other companies and industries.
The last scenario was that the meters and monitoring instruments were defective. This would mean that the instruments showed the wrong values, especially for the temperature levels. Consequently, the staff members could have been pumping Nitrous Oxide in the truck even after the decomposition had been initiated. These are deductive hypothesis instances based on the report that was published by the US Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board. Despite the speculative elements that seem to be surrounding the incident, one thing can be deduced accurately, that the explosion was caused by the destabilization of the Nitrous Oxide gas. Even though the exact element that caused the gas to be unstable is still hard to establish, it can be stated that it was temperature-related.
Prevention and Safety Measures to Nitrous Oxide Explosions
There are safety measures that are outlined by DoT and the US Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board. These government bodies ensure that companies conduct themselves appropriately when producing sensitive chemical substances. Moreover, they ensure that standards are met regarding the general processes involved in the production of these chemical substances. Therefore, the first prevention and precautionary measure is the full adherence to the stipulations laid out by DoT and CSB. Secondly, the other measures revolve around a company’s structure and conduct. Staff members ought to adhere to all the steps involved in the production, packing, and transportation of Nitrous Oxide. Finally, the companies must ensure that all their apparatus and instruments are functioning properly while the faulty ones are replaced.
References
Crowl, D. (2017). The US Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board Investigation report . Florida.
