Aerospace Seminar
Guggenheim 133 (Lees-Kubota Lecture Hall)
Investigation of an Explosion in a Polymer Manufacturing Plant
Erik Christiansen,
Ph.D., P.E., C.F.I.,
Exponent, Failure Analysis Associates,
A violent explosion occurred in a chemical plant while employees were attempting to troubleshoot an apparent blockage in a pipe containing tetrafluoroethylene (TFE) monomer. The blast caused heavy damage to the facility and resulted in three worker fatalities.
The presenter was part of a team that conducted an investigation into the cause of the incident. This presentation will discuss the facts of the event, and then go through each step of the multi-disciplinary engineering analysis that allowed investigators to determine the root cause of the failure. Finally, a synopsis of the lessons learned from the investigation will be also presented.
For more information, please contact Julia Cosse by phone at 626-395-4467 or by email at [email protected].