www.truckandtrack.com Autumn 2024 Truck and Track 59 DANGEROUS GOODS Oxygen is produced on commercial and industrial scale by a process termed ‘air separation’. To understand the process, we need to examine the boiling points of the major constituents of Air - Nitrogen, Oxygen and Argon. The basic process of air separation commences with giant turbines sucking air from the atmosphere, followed by purification and cooling cryogenically until it’s in the liquid phase (‘liquid air’). The next stage is passing the cold liquid air through an insulated fractional distillation column, from which liquid Nitrogen, Oxygen and Argon are separated and collected. Due to the high energy usage required in the Air Separation process, these plants are normally situated close to a power station (to gain the lowest kWh cost) and/or a large volume user, eg near steel works, chemical or oil refinery complexes (where large volumes of Nitrogen and Oxygen are required commercially). It should be noted that the air surrounding a steel works, chemical plant or refinery has many impurities, so purification of the air (sucked from the adjacent atmosphere) needs to be considered. The Oxygen produced from an Air Separation Plant is a cryogenic liquid referred to as LOX. It can be supplied in bulk by insulated pipeline direct to the user (a steel works for example) or by a cryogenic bulk tanker, an insulated Dewar Vessel (akin to a super-insulated vacuum flask) or vaporised and compressed into high pressure gas cylinders as GOX. Chemical Incompatible Materials Acetic acid Chromic acid, nitric acid, hydroxyl compounds, ethylene glycol, perchloric acid, peroxides, permanganates Acetylene Chlorine, bromine, copper, fluorine, silver, mercury Acetone Concentrated nitric and sulphuric acid mixtures Finely divided metals e.g. Aluminium, magnesium, calcium, lithium, sodium, potassium Water, carbon tetrachloride or other chlorinated hydrocarbons, carbon dioxide, halogens Anhydrous Ammonia Mercury, chlorine, calcium hypochlorite, iodine, bromine, hydrofluoric acid Ammonium nitrate Acids, powdered metals, flammable liquids, chlorates, nitrites, sulphur, finely divided organic combustible materials Aniline Nitric acid, hydrogen peroxide Arsenic & associated Reducing agents Azides Acids Bromine / Chlorine Ammonia, acetylene, butadiene, butane, methane, propane, hydrogen, sodium carbide, benzene, finely divided metals, turpentine Calcium oxide Water Activated Carbon Calcium hypochlorite, all oxidizing agents Carbon tetrachloride Sodium Chlorates Ammonium salts, acids, powdered metals, sulphur, finely divided organic or combustible materials Chromium / Chromic Acid Acetic acid, naphthalene, camphor, glycerol, alcohol, flammable liquids in general Copper Acetylene, hydrogen peroxide Cyanides Acids Flammable liquids Ammonium nitrate, chromic acid, hydrogen peroxide, nitric acid, sodium / hydrogen peroxide, halogens Fluorine All other chemicals Hydrocarbons gases / liquids eg butane, propane, benzene Halogens (eg fluorine, chlorine, bromine), chromic acid, sodium / hydrogen peroxide Hydrocyanic acid Nitric acid, alkalis Hydrofluoric acid Ammonia (aqueous or anhydrous) Hydrogen peroxide Copper, chromium, iron, other metals & metal salts, organics eg alcohols, acetone & aniline, nitromethane, combustible materials Hydrogen sulphide Fuming nitric acid, oxidizing gases Hypochlorites Acids, activated carbon Iodine Acetylene, ammonia, hydrogen Mercury Acetylene, fulminic acid, ammonia Nitrates Sulphuric acid Nitric acid Acetic acid, aniline, chromic acid, hydrocyanic acid, hydrogen sulphide, flammable liquids / gases, copper, brass & heavy metals Nitrites Acids Oxalic acid Silver, mercury Oxygen Oils, grease, hydrogen: flammable liquids, solids or gases Perchloric acid Acetic anhydride, bismuth and its alloys, alcohol, paper, wood, grease, oils Organic Peroxides Acids (organic or mineral), avoid friction, store cold Phosphorus Air, oxygen, alkalis, reducing agents & caustic alkalis Potassium Carbon tetrachloride, carbon dioxide, water Potassium chlorate Sulphuric and other acids Potassium perchlorate & other chlorates Sulphuric and other acids Potassium permanganate Glycerol, ethylene glycol, benzaldehyde, sulphuric acid Silver Acetylene, oxalic acid, tartaric acid, ammonium compounds, fulminic acid Sodium Carbon tetrachloride, carbon dioxide, water Sodium nitrite Ammonium nitrate and other ammonium salts Sodium peroxide Ethanol/Methanol, glacial acetic acid, acetic anhydride, benzaldehyde, carbon disulfide, glycerin, ethylene glycol, ethyl /methyl acetate Sulphides Acids Sulphuric acid Potassium chlorate, potassium perchlorate, potassium permanganate, metals eg sodium, lithium This list is not comprehensive as it outlines only the most common reactions Selected Reactivity Hazards TRUCK & TRAILER SOLUTIONS WELCOME TOALLPORTS GROUP allportsgroup.co.uk
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTE1MTA=