Potential Explosive Hazards from Hydrogen Sulfide Production in Ship Ballast and Sewage Tanks.

Abstract

Hydrogen sulfide produced by sulfate-reducing bacteria is a well recognized toxic hazard in storage tanks on HMA Ships, however, it also has the potential to be an explosive hazard. Hydrogen sulfide can cause explosions when its concentration exceeds 4% in air. A number of storage tanks on HMA Ships theoretically have the potential to produce enough hydrogen sulfide to exceed this figure. This report assesses the likelihood of this occurring in ballast and sewage holding tanks. Sewage tanks pose the greatest risk of an explosive hazard occurring and this situation is exacerbated when seawater is used for flushing or a concentrated sewage is produced due to reduced flushing volumes, as is the situation with EVAC systems. Ballast tanks that contain only seawater and Deiso F76 pose minimal risk, but any contamination of the tanks with biodegradable material would increase this risk considerably.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Dec 01, 1998
Accession Number
ADA360622

Entities

People

  • Lyn E. Fletcher

Organizations

  • Defence Science and Technology Group

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Counter IED
  • Ground and Sea Platforms

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Bacteria
  • Ballast Tanks
  • Chemical Reactions
  • Chemical Synthesis
  • Chemistry
  • Contamination
  • Explosions
  • Explosives
  • Hydrogen
  • Materials
  • Microorganisms
  • Organic Chemistry
  • Organic Compounds
  • Organic Materials
  • Risk
  • Storage Tanks
  • Waste Management

Fields of Study

  • Environmental science

Readers

  • Aviation Safety Risk Assessment.
  • Environmental Engineering
  • Materials Science and Engineering.