DSS073: Three Decades in Explosion Prevention and Protection with Dr. Vahid Ebadat

In this episode of the DustSafetyScience Podcast, we are interviewing Dr. Vahid Ebadat, CEO of Stonehouse Process Safety, about what he’s learned after three decades in explosion prevention and protection.

Dr. Ebadat has a long career in process safety, which includes being the CEO of Chilworth Technology Inc. for over 20 years. He received his PhD in electrical engineering from the University of Southampton, where he studied electrostatic charge generation and electrostatic hazards associated with powder handling.

His experience provides him with a wealth of information in this space, and he shares it by answering the following questions:

What were the key drivers for your research during the 1980s?
How has safety awareness changed over the past three decades?
What has driven these changes?
What are the important topics we need to tackle in the dust community today?
How can we improve safety in dust handling industries?

What were the key drivers for your research during the 1980s?

Vahid recalled that during the 1980s, there were some dust explosion incidents that prompted industries and industry associations to research combustible dust hazards and find solutions to them. A lot of research was taking place in Europe, especially Germany, Switzerland, and the UK.

At the time, there appeared to be a higher level of awareness in Europe than in the US. When Vahid moved from the UK to the US in the early 1990s, he felt the demand (the “hunger,” as he put it) for that knowledge.

“There really weren’t many labs out there at the time that were offering a full range of dust explosion testing or companies that provided practical advice to industry,” he recalled. “There definitely was a gap that we could feel and it was really showing itself by, for example, the number of people who were attending our public workshops that we were giving on various topics of process safety.”

By the early 2000s, a number of major dust explosions had occurred in the US, all of which raised greater awareness of the hazards of combustible dust. Then OSHA came up with the National Emphasis Program on Combustible Dust. More recently, NFPA 652 has imposed requirements for dust hazard analyses.

How has safety awareness changed over the past three decades?

During the early 1990s, Vahid worked with major chemical and pharmaceutical companies that were, in his words, “trying to do all the right things.” They were asking for their materials to be tested and their facilities assessed for fire and explosion hazards.

“What has changed is that awareness has now gone into many other industries and companies, (even) mom-and-pop companies, whereas before only major corporations were interested in these types of services,” he explained. “But now, it’s steadily moving down to much smaller companies.”

What has driven these changes?

In recent years, the major driver for change has been NFPA 652. OSHA and both local and state fire departments are also becoming more familiar with combustible dust safety and are asking companies to demonstrate that reasonable measures have been taken to prevent dust fires and explosions in their facilities.

Dr. Chris Cloney added that social media has also played a role in awareness. Whenever an incident occurs, no matter where in the world it happens, the news is immediately out there, reminding everyone that dust safety is still an issue in multiple industries.

How can we improve safety in dust handling industries?

Vahid emphasized the importance of awareness and ongoing training. “I think it’s important to convey the message to the industry that, very often, the hardest part is to diagnose the problem. But after that, if they are in good hands, these solutions ought not be very expensive and cumbersome.”

He has come across companies that hesitate over learning about potential hazards because they worry about having to spend more money than they can afford. “Very often, there are practical ways of ensuring safety that ought not break the bank, so to speak.”

Vahid explained that doing a dust hazard analysis does not necessarily mean that a company will end up having to install explosion relief vents or suppression systems on everything or have rated electrical equipment everywhere.

“If you’re able to correctly identify the ignition sources, for example, that might exist in a facility during normal or abnormal operating conditions, we then very often find that there are ways to control or eliminate those ignition sources. Then we don’t necessarily always need to go for explosion protection.”

NFPA 652 provides the option of doing a performance-based risk assessment to devise alternative safety approaches, but Vahid cautioned that experience and expertise are especially critical in this situation.

“Let’s say, for the sake of argument, that a mechanical spark or mechanical friction causing heat is the sole ignition source. If we have a proper preventive maintenance program in place, we can eliminate that. Or if we have proper testing done and see what the maximum temperatures are, we can probably determine that even if there is a mechanical failure, the heat and the temperature that is then generated won’t be able to ignite the powder under those conditions.”

Conclusion

Vahid’s company, Stonehouse Process Safety, will be exhibiting at the International Powder Show at the end of April (now moved to October) and offering a free process safety consultation to attendees. People are encouraged to ask questions and get answers that could make a huge difference in safety at their facilities.

“We recently did a survey of the people in our database to assess their understanding of NFPA 652 and its requirements. Around 150 people responded, and it is interesting that about 25 to 30% of people don’t have a complete understanding of NFPA 652. So there are still uncertainties out there, and it is really up to us to increase awareness. We are hoping that this free consultation at the International Powder Show will make that gap smaller”

If you would like to discuss further, leave your thoughts in the comments section below.

You can also reach Vahid Ebadat directly:
Tel: 1-609-455-0001
Email: [email protected], [email protected]
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vahidebadat1/
Website: https://stonehousesafety.com/

If you have questions about the contents of this or any other podcast episode, you can go to our ‘Questions from the Community’ page and submit a text message or video recording. We will then bring someone on to answer these questions in a future episode.