The greatest hazard often arises after the explosion
An explosion is primarily associated with a sudden pressure wave and flame propagation, affecting people, equipment and structures within a fraction of a second. These are the most visually dramatic aspects of such an event and therefore tend to dominate media coverage of industrial accidents. From a process safety perspective, however, the actual consequences are often more complex.
Analyses of real-world incidents show that, in gas and dust explosions, the greatest number of casualties is frequently caused not by the direct effects of blast overpressure itself, but by structural collapse, fires and projectiles generated as a result of damage to equipment and installations. Blast overpressure often acts as the initiating factor for subsequent events that ultimately determine the overall severity of the accident.
The pressure wave propagates at high velocity and acts on all elements within its range. Depending on the level of overpressure reached, it may cause glazing failure, damage to walls, deformation of steel structures and, at higher pressures, failure of load-bearing structural elements or rupture of process equipment and installations. Damage to infrastructure can, in turn, initiate a domino effect, leading to further releases of hazardous substances, fires or secondary explosions.
It is also important to recognise that not every explosion scenario develops in the same way. The nature and severity of the consequences depend on the substance involved, process conditions and the location of the event. In some cases, blast overpressure will be the dominant hazard; in others, fire development, intense thermal radiation or the release of hazardous substances may govern the overall consequences. For this reason, explosion consequence assessment should always take into account the specific characteristics of the installation being analysed rather than relying on a single universal accident scenario.
Secondary effects determine the overall scale of damage
From the perspective of explosion protection design, consequence analysis does not end with determining the expected blast overpressure. A key aspect is assessing how the blast load will be transferred to the structure and what secondary effects may subsequently develop within the facility. The assumed explosion scenario therefore has a direct impact on the selection of protective measures and on the methodology used to assess structural safety. This subject is discussed in more detail in our article on the design of explosion protection measures for industrial buildings. [Read the article]
Explosion safety is therefore not limited to answering the question of whether an explosion can occur. It is equally important to determine what will happen during the first few seconds after the explosion. In many cases, it is this part of the analysis that determines whether an accident remains a localised incident or escalates into an event with significantly more severe consequences.
Please feel free to contact me, if you would like to organize a training session for your team or discuss a program tailored to the specifics of your organization.
Author: Sebastian Słaboszewski
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