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Assessing the risk of an LNG terminal

Publication ,  Journal Article
Keeney, RL; Kulkarni, RB; Nair, K
Published in: TECHNOL. REV.
1978

The La Salle Terminal for receiving and vaporizing liquefied natural gas from Algeria would be built by the El Paso LNG Co., between Galveston and Corpus Christi, Texas. To reach it, LNG carriers would enter the Matagorda ship channel from the Gulf of Mexico. As part of the authors' risk analysis, they studied the probability of a collision scenario in which one tank of an LNG carrier was ruptured so as to instantaneously release 19,400 cubic meters of LNG. A 10 m.p.h. east wind would move the resulting vapor cloud toward the town of Port O'Connor, where fatalities from possible ignition of the vapor cloud might exceed 400. The method of formal risk analysis described in this article has several important features: it permits integration of judgments from experts in various fields into a logical framework, assumptions can be stated explicitly, sensitivity analyses can be conducted to appraise the significance of the assumptions, and the public risk can be systematically estimated. In addition, because explicit risks are assigned, strategies to reduce risks can be identified. The analysis showed clearly that the risks to the public from the operation of the La Salle Terminal were below those to which the population in the vicinity of the terminal is exposed at the present time. The study was used in preparing the safety analysis report submitted to the Federal Power Commission. The final Environmental Impact Statement issued by the Federal Power Commission has stated that the levels of public risk associated with the La Salle Terminal facility are acceptable.

Duke Scholars

Published In

TECHNOL. REV.

Publication Date

1978

Volume

81

Issue

1

Start / End Page

64 / 72
 

Citation

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Keeney, R. L., Kulkarni, R. B., & Nair, K. (1978). Assessing the risk of an LNG terminal. TECHNOL. REV., 81(1), 64–72.
Keeney, R. L., R. B. Kulkarni, and K. Nair. “Assessing the risk of an LNG terminal.” TECHNOL. REV. 81, no. 1 (1978): 64–72.
Keeney RL, Kulkarni RB, Nair K. Assessing the risk of an LNG terminal. TECHNOL REV. 1978;81(1):64–72.
Keeney, R. L., et al. “Assessing the risk of an LNG terminal.” TECHNOL. REV., vol. 81, no. 1, 1978, pp. 64–72.
Keeney RL, Kulkarni RB, Nair K. Assessing the risk of an LNG terminal. TECHNOL REV. 1978;81(1):64–72.

Published In

TECHNOL. REV.

Publication Date

1978

Volume

81

Issue

1

Start / End Page

64 / 72