EVACUATION AREAS FOR TRANSPORTATION ACCIDENTS INVOLVING PROPELLANT TANK PRESSURE BURSTS

Evacuation areas are defined for those transportation accidents where volatile chemical propellant tanks are exposed to fire in the wreckage and eventually explode with consequent risks from fragments in surrounding populated areas. An evacuation area with a minimum radius of 600 m (2000 ft) is recommended to limit the statistical probability of fatality to one in 100 such accidents. The result was made possible by the derivation of a distribution function of distances reached by fragments from bursting chemical car tanks. Data concerning fragments was obtained from reports or tank car pressure bursts between 1958 and 1971. (Author)

• Supplemental Notes:
  • Conf-Presented at the 1972 Jannaf Propulsion Meeting, New Orleans, 27-29 Nov. 1972.
• Corporate Authors:

  Lewis Research Center

  National Aeronautics and Space Administration
  Cleveland, OH  United States  44135
• Authors:
  • Siewert, R D
• Publication Date: 1972

Media Info

• Pagination: 19 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Chemical agents; Chemical reactions; Chemicals; Crashes; Evacuation; Explosions; Flammable materials; Gases; Hazardous materials; Probability theory; Railroad transportation; Safety; Statistical analysis; Tank cars
• Identifier Terms: U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration
• Uncontrolled Terms: Flammable gases
• Old TRIS Terms: Evacuating transportation
• Subject Areas: Data and Information Technology; Railroads; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00051465
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: National Technical Information Service
• Report/Paper Numbers: NASA-TM-X-68277
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: May 7 1976 12:00AM