Citation:
Abstract:
Thermal runaway of a chemical process is a dangerous phenomenon that threatens human life, equipment, installations, and the environment. The aim of our work is to propose a methodology for analyzing and quantitatively assessing the risk of thermal runaway in a polymerization reactor. Firstly, HAZard and OPerability analysis(HAZOP)is used to determine the most critical deviations likely to occur in the polymerization reactor under study and leading to the thermal runaway phenomenon. The various accident sequences are determined and evaluated using event tree analysis (ETA). The causes of the failure of safety barriers implemented in the reactor to prevent the runaway phenomenon are determined using fault tree analysis (FTA). Finally, an economic analysis is carried out to show the economic impact of safety failure barriers on the company. Application resultsof the proposed methodology show its relevance as a decision-making tool for good industrial risk management. The novelty of this hybrid approach lies in its systematic workflow. Qualitative identification (HAZOP) directly informs quantitative frequency estimation (ETA), which in turn relies on detailed reliability analysis (FTA) to assess safety barrier performance. This integrated methodology not only provides a quantitative risk frequency but also identifies the most critical safety barriers and offers an economic rationale for investment decisions through cost-benefit analysis (CBA), thereby bridging the gap between technical risk assessment and managerial decision-making