【Haichuan Chemical Accident Updates】An accident at a reactor in Shandong Province resulted in injuries and deaths; the facility has been shut down for rectification
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Haili Pharmaceutical Group Co., Ltd. (referred to as “Haili Pharmaceutical”) recently disclosed that an accident occurred in a reaction vessel in the workshop of its wholly-owned subsidiary, Shandong Haili Chemical Co., Ltd. (referred to as Shandong Haili), during the production process, resulting in 2 deaths. The on-site rescue operations have been completed, and the cause of the accident is under investigation. Haili Pharmaceutical stated that immediately after the accident, the company activated its emergency response plan. The company’s leadership rushed to the scene to take charge of the situation, reported the incident to the relevant local authorities in accordance with the proper procedures, and actively cooperated with those authorities in carrying out rescue and investigation efforts. The company also took care of matters such as providing support to the families of those affected. At present, all necessary actions are being carried out in an orderly manner. It is reported that Shandong Hailier is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the company, and it serves as the main production site for active pharmaceutical ingredients for Hailier Pharmaceutical. At present, Shandong Hailier has suspended all production for safety inspections, and is fully cooperating with the relevant authorities in investigating and analyzing the causes of the accident.
Looking forward to the subsequent investigation results and accident report
The information disclosure is way too simplistic; it doesn’t even describe what happened during the accident.
At around 11:10 a.m. on October 15, 2019, an explosion occurred at Guangxi Lankan New Materials Technology Co., Ltd., located at No. 3 in the eastern section of the Northern Industrial Cluster in Luchuan County, Yulin City. The accident resulted in 4 deaths and 7 injuries (3 of whom were seriously injured), with another person being hospitalized for observation due to health issues. Following preliminary inspections of the accident site and the surrounding area by experts, no fire broke out as a result of the explosion, and no fire-fighting water was used. **The debris was collected within the factory premises, and it did not affect the production activities of nearby enterprises or the daily lives of local residents. At present, the relevant responsible persons have been brought under control by the public security authorities in accordance with the law. The handling of the accident scene has been largely completed; the injured are being treated in hospitals. Follow-up actions and site cleanup are being carried out in an orderly manner, and an investigation into the responsibilities for the accident has been initiated.
According to available information, Hailier is mainly engaged in the research, development, production, and sales of pesticide formulations, pesticide intermediates, active pesticide ingredients, and water-soluble fertilizers. The company’s main products include insecticides, fungicides, herbicides, imidacloprid, acetamiprid, emamectin benzoate, and dichloro.
On February 21, 2017, an explosion occurred in a reactor at Lixin Chemical Co., Ltd., located in the Tengger Economic and Technological Development Zone in Alxa League, Inner Mongolia, resulting in 2 deaths and 4 injuries. A reaction kettle is an intermittent reactor equipped with a stirring device; depending on the pressure requirements of the process, chemical reactions can take place under conditions of an open system, a sealed system at atmospheric pressure, pressurized conditions, or negative pressure. Reactor vessels are widely used in industries such as chemicals, pharmaceuticals, dyes, food, and biochemistry. They are high-temperature and high-pressure equipment with a high degree of risk, prone to material leaks as well as fire and explosion accidents. During the production process, enterprises should focus on preventing various hazardous factors, use reaction vessels properly, and carry out proper maintenance.
On December 20, 2020, a reporter from The Beijing News learned from the Publicity Department of the Anda Municipal Party Committee in Heilongjiang Province that the two people who went missing following an explosion in an emulsification reactor at the Hainaibel Chemical Co., Ltd. plant in Anda had been found; doctors confirmed that they were dead. Rescue operations at the accident site have been completed, and preliminary evidence collection for the accident investigation has begun. According to tests conducted by environmental monitoring agencies, the atmospheric conditions at the accident site were normal. To date, the accident has resulted in 3 deaths, 2 serious injuries, and 2 minor injuries; the injured are being treated in hospitals.
On January 10, 2020, Putian Yongxing Food Chemical Co., Ltd. was producing dehydroacetic acid (a raw material). Fresh toluene, free of moisture, was used in the first reactor; care was taken during production, with the addition of divinylbenzene being carried out at a slow pace. The heat generated by the reaction was promptly absorbed by the refrigerant, ensuring stable control over the production process. On January 11, during the production in the second reactor, toluene recovered from the production in the first reactor was used. Water is slightly soluble in toluene, and it was difficult to control the addition rate of divinylbenzene; as a result, the heat generated by the reaction could not be absorbed promptly by the refrigerant, causing the reaction temperature to rise rapidly. Since the reactor was sealed, the pressure inside it increased quickly, leading to an explosion. As the explosion occurred, static electricity was generated due to the high-speed flow of toluene, which ignited the toluene and other flammable materials, ultimately leading to a fire.