According to the CCTV news client, on April 18, local time, an ice factory in Chonburi Province in eastern Thailand exploded, causing ammonia leakage in the plant and spreading to the surrounding area.
According to the latest statistics, 160 people have symptoms of varying degrees due to ammonia leakage, including dyspnea, chest tightness, dizziness, eye congestion, etc., of which 9 have severe symptoms, 50 have moderate symptoms, and the rest have mild symptoms and have been treated.
Ammonia is a toxic gas that is widely used in production operations;
Ammonia gas is flammable and can explode when exposed to open flames;
Liquid ammonia is often used as a refrigerant, and once it leaks, it can have a wide range of effects around the leak point.
Ammonia gas has strong corrosiveness, corrosive and irritating effect on contact skin tissues, after ammonia poisoning, the throat and mouth feel obviously irritated, ammonia inhaled into the human body, easy to enter the blood through the alveoli, combined with hemoglobin, and destroy the oxygen transport function. After inhaling a large amount of ammonia in a short period of time, tearing, sore throat, hoarseness, cough, bloody sputum, chest tightness, dyspnea, etc., and pulmonary edema can occur in severe cases. When the concentration of ammonia in the air reaches 500-700 milligrams per cubic meter, there may be "lightning" death, and excessive inhalation of ammonia will lead to high ammonia concentration in the blood, which will cause cardiac arrest and respiratory arrest, which is life-threatening.
Here are a few ammonia leaks
A warning from the case!
1
On July 28, 2021, a leak occurred in the C set urea plant of the urea branch of an ammonia company in Yunnan, resulting in the death of one person from ammonia poisoning and one person being slightly poisoned.
2
On June 17, 2020, an ammonia leak occurred during the production process of a chemical company in Ma'anshan, Anhui Province, causing poisoning of three people on the spot, of which two died and one was injured.
What should I do if there is an ammonia leak?
【First Aid Measures】
Inhalation: Quickly remove from the scene to fresh air. Keep your airways open. If it is difficult to breathe, oxygen should be given, and if breathing stopped, artificial respiration should be carried out immediately and medical attention should be sought in time.
Skin contact: Immediately remove contaminated clothing, rinse thoroughly with 2% boric acid solution or plenty of water, and seek medical attention promptly.
Eye contact: Lift the eyelids immediately and rinse thoroughly with plenty of running water or saline for at least 15 minutes and seek medical attention.
【Fire extinguishing method】
Rescuers must wear full-body fireproof and poisonproof suits to extinguish the fire in the upwind direction, cut off the air source, if it cannot be cut off, it is not allowed to extinguish the flame at the leakage, spray water to cool the container, and move the container from the fire to the open area as much as possible.
Fire extinguishing agents: mist water, anti-solvent foam, carbon dioxide, sand.
【Leakage Emergency Response】
Eliminate all ignition sources. According to the area affected by the gas, the warning area is demarcated, and unrelated personnel are evacuated to the safety zone from the crosswind and upwind directions. It is recommended that emergency responders wear fully enclosed chemical protective suits with built-in positive pressure self-contained air respirators, and if it is a liquefied gas leak, they should also pay attention to anti-frostbite, prohibit touching or crossing the leakage, cut off the leakage source as much as possible, and prevent the spread of gas through sewers, ventilation systems and confined spaces.
If it is possible to flip the container so that it overflows liquid instead of gas, build an embankment or dig a pit to contain liquid spills, neutralize it with acetic acid or other dilute acids, or dilute and dissolve it with spray water, and at the same time build a dike or dig a pit to contain a large amount of wastewater from it.
If possible, the residual or leakage gas is sent to the washing tower or fume hood connected to the tower by exhaust fan, if the cylinder leaks, it can be immersed in water if it cannot be plugged, and the tank farm is preferably equipped with water or dilute acid spraying facilities. Isolate the leakage area until the gas is exhausted, and the leaking container should be properly disposed of, repaired, and inspected before use.
Isolation and evacuation distance: small leakage, initial isolation of 30 meters, downwind evacuation of 100 meters during the day and 200 meters at night, large leakage, initial isolation of 150 meters, downwind evacuation of 800 meters during the day and 2300 meters at night.
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Source: CCTV News, China Chemical Safety Association, Hubei Fire Protection, Shandong Emergency Management, Shenzhen Emergency Management, etc