Catastrophic Incident Prevention and Proactive Risk Management in the New Biofuels Industry

The purpose of this research is to assist bioethanol manufacturers in preventing catastrophic incidents that could impact the biofuel industry as a whole. The biofuel sector, like other industries, has common hazards and potential consequences related to the handling of flammable liquid processes and storage, dust explosion threats, and toxic or corrosive materials handling. This paper ensures that the reader understands these specific manufacturer process hazards are very real, as demonstrated by past bioethanol incidents and their catastrophic results.

Regulatory obligations are discussed, as well as key engineering resources and design practices, to ensure adequate safeguards are incorporated into the design of a new bioethanol manufacturing facility. Although the industry is new in comparison to fossil fuels, the hazards and safeguards to reduce the risk level are not. Indications suggest that the industry is still catching up with mainstream oil and chemical industries in terms of proactive risk management efforts necessary to reduce the risks to a tolerable level.

It is worth noting that the well-known Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) has made significant headway in the last decade towards making renewable fuels a safe industry. “Since RFA’s Safety Program inception in 2010, it has been responsible for training over 17,000 individuals and conducting over 420 training sessions and events” (RFA Safety Program Again Captures Awards; June Webinars Planned, 2024).

However, this paper is intended to guide preventative measures to prevent an emergency, so a response is not needed. This paper will provide supporting data and direction to the biofuels industry to ensure each is headed down the right path to prevent a future catastrophe.