Combustible Dust Testing

Laboratory testing to quantify dust explosion and reactivity hazards

Safety Data Sheets

Develop critical safety data for inclusion in SDS documents

Gas and Vapor

Laboratory testing to quantify explosion hazards for vapor and gas mixtures

UN-DOT
Classification of hazardous materials subject to shipping and storage regulations
Hydrogen
Testing and consulting on the explosion risks associated with devices and processes which use or produce hydrogen
Safety Data Sheets

Develop critical safety data for inclusion in SDS documents

Thermal Stability

Safe storage or processing requires an understanding of the possible hazards associated with sensitivity to variations in temperature

Adiabatic Calorimetry
Data demonstrate the consequences of process upsets, such as failed equipment or improper procedures, and guide mitigation strategies including Emergency Relief System (ERS) design
Reaction Calorimetry
Data yield heat and gas removal requirements to control the desired process chemistry
Battery Safety

Testing to support safe design of batteries and electrical power backup facilities particularly to satisfy UL9540a ed.4

Safety Data Sheets

Develop critical safety data for inclusion in SDS documents

Cable Testing
Evaluate electrical cables to demonstrate reliability and identify defects or degradation
Equipment Qualification (EQ)
Testing and analysis to ensure that critical equipment will operate under adverse environmental conditions
Water Hammer
Analysis and testing to identify and prevent unwanted hydraulic pressure transients in process piping
Acoustic Vibration
Identify and eliminate potential sources of unwanted vibration in piping and structural systems
Gas & Air Intrusion
Analysis and testing to identify and prevent intrusion of gas or air in piping systems
ISO/IEC 17025:2017

Fauske & Associates fulfills the requirements of ISO/IEC 17025:2017 in the field of Testing

ISO 9001:2015
Fauske & Associates fulfills the requirements of ISO 9001:2015
Dust Hazards Analysis
Evaluate your process to identify combustible dust hazards and perform dust explosion testing
On-Site Risk Management
On-site safety studies can help identify explosibility and chemical reaction hazards so that appropriate testing, simulations, or calculations are identified to support safe scale up
DIERS Methodology
Design emergency pressure relief systems to mitigate the consequences of unwanted chemical reactivity and account for two-phase flow using the right tools and methods
Deflagrations (Dust/Vapor/Gas)

Properly size pressure relief vents to protect your processes from dust, vapor, and gas explosions

Effluent Handling

Pressure relief sizing is just the first step and it is critical to safely handle the effluent discharge from an overpressure event

FATE™ & Facility Modeling

FATE (Facility Flow, Aerosol, Thermal, and Explosion) is a flexible, fast-running code developed and maintained by Fauske and Associates under an ASME NQA-1 compliant QA program.

Mechanical, Piping, and Electrical
Engineering and testing to support safe plant operations and develop solutions to problems in heat transfer, fluid, flow, and electric power systems
Hydrogen Safety
Testing and consulting on the explosion risks associated with devices and processes which use or produce hydrogen
Thermal Hydraulics
Testing and analysis to ensure that critical equipment will operate under adverse environmental conditions
Nuclear Safety
Our Nuclear Services Group is recognized for comprehensive evaluations to help commercial nuclear power plants operate efficiently and stay compliant
Radioactive Waste
Safety analysis to underpin decomissioning process at facilities which have produced or used radioactive nuclear materials
Adiabatic Safety Calorimeters (ARSST and VSP2)

Low thermal inertial adiabatic calorimeters specially designed to provide directly scalable data that are critical to safe process design

Other Lab Equipment and Parts for the DSC/ARC/ARSST/VSP2 Calorimeters

Products and equipment for the process safety or process development laboratory

FERST

Software for emergency relief system design to ensure safe processing of reactive chemicals, including consideration of two-phase flow and runaway chemical reactions

FATE

Facility modeling software mechanistically tracks transport of heat, gasses, vapors, and aerosols for safety analysis of multi-room facilities

Blog

Our highly experienced team keeps you up-to-date on the latest process safety developments.

Process Safety Newsletter

Stay informed with our quarterly Process Safety Newsletters sharing topical articles and practical advice.

Resources

With over 40 years of industry expertise, we have a wealth of process safety knowledge to share.

Recent Posts

How Should I Collect and Ship My Possible Combustible Dust Sample?

Posted by Fauske & Associates on 06.05.18

By Rachelle Andreasen, Dust Projects Manager and Mark Yukich, Customer Service Lead, Fauske & Associates

This is a common question that comes into our hazardous dust testing lab (see also the FAQs of Hazardous Dust Testing and helpful videos further down) . As a result, we felt it would be helpful to create a dust collection kit. It is not a requirement to use our Fauske & Associates (FAI) Dust Collection Kit, but it is available if you will find it helpful to collect your sample. The kit includes 4 half-gallon plastic jars with screw top lids, 4 labels and an FAI Pen to fill out the labels. If you would like to order a kit and/or get a quote for testing, contact us at dust@fauske.com. Pictures of the Dust Collection Kit are shown below:

FAI Dust Collection KitFAI Dust Collection Kit outsideItems needed to move forward with sample characterization are the Safety Data Sheet (SDS), completed sample test options form, payment information and signed terms & conditions. Please fill out all forms completely to let us know who is sending in the sample and the tests you want completed. There are many times where we have a “mystery sample” because a customer sends us the material, but no other paperwork to know who sent us the sample. This is sure to delay the turnaround on your final results.

Some items of note needed for testing are listed below:

Safety Data Sheet (SDS) – There are some customers that don’t have an SDS available to send us, but we still need an explanation as to the material’s compositional properties. This information is needed for our lab personnel to know how to handle the material and what personal protective equipment to wear when running tests in our lab.

In addition, it is best to send the SDS or explanation of the material with the sample in the event that the package opens during shipment.

Sample Test Options Form – The test options form will need to be filled out for each sample submitted for testing. The test options form will serve as a guide for our lab to complete the appropriate testing you want to have run on your sample. The sample name that you provide on the form will be the name that is listed in the final report. Helpful hint: When naming your sample, make it a name that will make sense to you and anyone from your company looking at this report in the future. This extra step will allow your team to review the report at any time and know that the sample was collected from, “Dust collector in mixing room #1.” The bottom line is that you want the sample name to be a useful guide for your team to know where the sample was originally collected.

Payment information – We will need a purchase order or credit card information in order to put your sample in our queue. We will not invoice for the testing until the test and report are completed.

If your account set up team needs any vendor documents completed, or if you will need our credit card authorization form, let us know at dust@fauske.com or 630-323-8750. We will take care of any of your testing related questions.

One final note, any paperwork that you include with the shipment can go into the box. However, please don’t put the forms in with the actual sample. We want to ensure that the paperwork is kept clean and the sample remains as representative as the day you pulled the material from your facility. The two items that are needed to be included in a sample shipment are the SDS and Sample Test Options Form. We want to be sure your sample arrives to us in good condition with the appropriate paperwork to get your sample started right away.

OTHER FAQs OF HAZARDOUS DUST TESTING

Because potentially hazardous or combustible dust exists in most manufacturing facilities, a state of the art dust testing lab will frequently receive a number of questions from a variety of industries.

Many plant managers and facility safety experts are not sure where to start when it comes to possible hazardous dusts. Here are a few questions we frequently answer :

Q: Where is the best place to collect material for testing?

A: Typically, the finest and driest material present within the facility presents the greatest hazard. With this being said, it is recommended that the material be collected from the dust collector filter, elevated surfaces within the facility, or the dust collector bin. If finer material cannot be collected, and you know that finer material may be generated in the process, it is recommended that you request particle size reduction prior to testing.

Q: Can I use historical data to design my dust collector?

A: No, it is not recommended to use historical/literature values to design a dust collector or to size explosion protection. Historical values are a good reference to identify if your material has a trend of being explosible and/ or combustible, but there are so many other factors that play a role in ensuring your specific facility has data that truly represents the material within your process. It is important to consider the characteristics such as particle size distribution, particle morphology, and moisture content.

Q: How much material do I need to submit for the Explosion Severity Test?

A: Typically we recommend that at minimum of 500 g (1 lb) is submitted for the Kst test; however, depending on the density of your material more material may be needed. It is also recommended that additional material be sent if particle size reduction is requested.

Q: How long does it take to get results?

A: Explosion Severity (Kst) testing is one of the most labor intensive dust testing services we offer. Depending on how the sample behaves during testing, a typical Kst test can take anywhere from 4 to 6 hours. However, depending on the nature of the material and the clean-up involved, testing may take longer. To read more about Kst and Pmax testing, visit this resource.

Combustible dust characterization is an important step in plant management and facility safety. There are no dumb questions. Whether meeting new OSHA, NFPA or NEP standards or just taking precautionary steps, get your dust tested. Ask us more at dust@fauske.com or 630-323-8750. www.fauske.com

Check out these videos for more assistance: Dust Collection Video

 

Topics: Combustible Dust

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