Safety Department

Imperial College London

Southside Building
South Kensington Campus
London SW7 2AZ, K
!el" #$$ %&' 2& 7()$ )$2* +a," #$$ %&' 2& 7()$ )$2$
safetydept-imperial.a/.u0
111.imperial.a/.u0
Guidance Note GN 027
Safe Handling, Use and Storage of Compressed Gases
January 2002
!his 2uidan/e 3ote should 4e used to assist in the /ompletion of ris0 assessments for a/ti5ities
in5ol5ing /ompressed gases using the standard Safety nit form" Risk Assessment for an
Activity Involving Compressed Gases / Cryogenic Liquids %issued 6anuary 2&&2'. !his
guidan/e does not spe/ifi/ally /o5er /ryogeni/s as guidan/e on this su47e/t may 4e found in
Guidance Note: Liquid Nitrogen - torage! "se and #ransportation $it%in College
&remises' !he guidan/e is also aimed at la4oratory a/ti5ities in5ol5ing /ompressed gases and
therefore does not /o5er 4ul0 storage issues. !he 4asi/ prin/iples of ris0 assessment are outlined
in the 8S9 leaflet" Five steps to risk assessment (INDG 163).
STE !" #dentification of $a%ards
!he main ha:ards asso/iated 1ith /ompressed gases are"
impa/t from the 4last of a gas /ylinder e,plosion or rapid release of /ompressed gas. !his
/ould happen irrespe/ti5e of the type of gases in5ol5ed.
impa/t from parts of gas /ylinders that fail or any flying de4ris. As a4o5e.
/onta/t 1ith the released gas. Spe/ifi/ ha:ards 1ill 5ary a//ording to the nature of the gas 4ut
inhalation and s0in ; eye /onta/t are all issues. 3on<to,i/, non</orrosi5e gases may /ause
asphy,iation if they are a4le to displa/e o,ygen from the lo/al atmosphere, therefore
5entilation may 4e an issue.
fire resulting from the es/ape of flamma4le gas. Lea0ing flamma4le gases su/h as hydrogen
may ignite and result in a fire. =ou 1ill need to re/ord on the form the types of flamma4le
gases you re using.
impa/t from falling /ylinders. !his may o//ur during transit or during storage if not properly
se/ured.
Some ha:ards are /ommon to all types of /ylinder %sudden release, impa/t' 1hilst others %to,i/,
flamma4le' are spe/ifi/ to /ertain types of gas. =ou 1ill therefore need to note 1hat types of
gases or gas mi,tures you ha5e, 1here they are lo/ated and ho1 they are mo5ed 4et1een
lo/ations.
STE 2" #dentification of people &$o may 'e at ris(
=ou should identify on your ris0 assessment form those 1ho may 4e at ris0. !he 1or0ers dire/tly
in5ol5ed in using the gases are usually at most ris0, though others /ould 4e affe/ted > other
1or0ers in the 5i/inity %a large fire or lea0 of to,i/ gas /ould affe/t those in a 1ide area', /leaners,
maintenan/e staff ? /ontra/tors %are they introdu/ing additional ris0s 4y 4eing there e.g. hot
+irst @repared A
st
. Be5ie1 2
nd
. Be5ie1 *
rd
. Be5ie1 $
th
. Be5ie1
6anuary 2&&2
6ohn Lu0e
@age A of C
1or0sD' and other 5isitors. =our /ontrols should gi5e priority to prote/ting the 1hole 1or0pla/e
and e5eryone 1ho 1or0s there i.e. gi5e /olle/ti5e prote/ti5e measures priority o5er indi5idual
measures (Management of Health and Safet at !ork "eg#lations 1$$$% "eg#lation &)'
STE )" E*aluation of e+isting control measures , are t$ey ade-uate or does more
need to 'e done.
/urt$er assessment
If you are using to,i/ or /orrosi5e gases, you 1ill need to /arry out a separate assessment under
the (ontrol of S#)stan*es Ha+ardo#s to Health "eg#lations 1$$$ . If you are in5ol5ed in the
manual handling of /ylinders you 1ill also need to /arry out a separate assessment under the
Man#al Handling "eg#lations 1$$,' Begarding manual handling, the follo1ing points should 4e
/onsidered"
the material safety data sheet %ESDS' may 4e used to esta4lish the mass and dimensions of
the /ylinder.
esta4lish and gripping points 4efore lifting < some /ylinders ha5e hand holds su/h as the 5al5e
guard.
use suita4le @@9 e.g. dura4le /lothing, glo5es, eye prote/tion, foot prote/tion.
use suita4le /ylinder trolleys.
gain assistan/e if ne/essary.
If you ha5e ans1ered FnoG to any of the Huestions in @art * of the ris0 assessment form, it is li0ely
that a/tion 1ill 4e ne/essary"
iped systems
@iped systems should 4e installed to a re/ognised standard e.g. as laid do1n 1ithin British
Compressed 2ases Asso/iation %BC2A' Code of @ra/ti/e $. Systems 1ill 5ary in /omple,ity, 4ut
1hate5er the /ase, they 1ill reHuire suita4le maintenan/e either under the @ressure Systems
Safety Begulations 2&&& or the @ro5ision and se of Wor0 9Huipment Begulations A))I. sers
should also /arry out 1ee0ly inspe/tions. !hese, should 4e mainly 5isual inspe/tions to determine
that"
the eHuipment loo0s to 4e in good order, is 4eing used /orre/tly and all ne/essary eHuipment
is fitted.
the manifold frame1or0 and /hains are in good /ondition.
the FpigtailsG are in good /ondition.
the system is operating normally and no defe/ts ha5e 4een reported.
the area is /lean and is not 4eing used as a general store.
the regulators are /orre/t for the gases and pressures 4eing used.
5al5es open and /lose /orre/tly.
Storage , (eeping cylinders in la'oratories
0eep the a4solute minimum in la4oratories.
separate /ylinders from populated 1or0spa/es.
as far as possi4le, segregate o,idants from fuels.
do not 0eep 5ery to,i/ or pyrophori/ gases indoors.
ensure that area is adeHuately 5entilated.
ensure that area is adeHuately lit.
gas dete/tion and alarms should 4e seriously assessed.
ensure that appropriate signage is present.
@age 2 of C
ensure that /ylinders are stored upright %unless they are spe/ifi/ally designed to 4e stored any
other 1ay' and are adeHuately restrained 4y /hains or straps unless they are spe/ifi/ally
designed to 4e free standing.
a5oid e,tremes of temperature, in/luding dire/t sunlight.
0eep /ylinders a1ay from sour/es of ignition and other flamma4le materials.
Storage , (eeping cylinders in outside locations
Eu/h of the a4o5e 1ill apply. Ideally, industrial gases %o,ygen, nitrogen, argon et/.' should 4e
stored in a /aged /ompound. !he floor should 4e le5el, ha5e adeHuate drainage and 4e of a
/onstru/tion that is a4le to support the 1eight. Some degree of 1eather prote/tion is
re/ommended > this 1ould assist safe handling, a5oid puddles, i/e formation in /old 1eather et/.
0edical gases
Eedi/al gases are /lassified as medi/al produ/ts and should 4e stored in a dedi/ated area
separated from non<medi/al /ylinders. A 1ell 5entilated area 1ithin a 4uilding 1ould 4e suita4le >
the area should 4e se/ure against unauthorised a//ess and display appropriate signage. Large
/ylinders should 4e stored upright and smaller %or rounded 4ase' /ylinders on suita4le ra/0ing
%ideally 4et1een 0nee and shoulder height'. Be a1are that some medi/al gases /an 4e affe/ted
4y high and lo1 temperatures > 4e familiar 1ith the produ/ts that you are using. Sto/0 rotation
should 4e applied > use the oldest filling date first and do not use out of date /ylinders.
1egulators and accessories
=ou 1ill need to ensure that you ha5e the right regulator for the purpose. =our gas supplier 1ill 4e
a4le to spe/ify the regulator that you need for your appli/ation and safety. B92LA!JBS AB9
IE@JB!A3! < JB!AI3 !89 CJBB9C! 9KI@E93! A! !89 J!S9! A3D 93SB9
J32JI32 SA+9!= WI!8 CAB9 A3D EAI3!93A3C9.
inlet pressure < filled pressures of gas /ylinders /an 5ary. 9nsure that the ma,imum rated inlet
pressure of your regulators /an /ope.
outlet pressure < /he/0 that the regulator 1ill deli5er the right outlet pressure for your
appli/ation %regulators 5ary in their outlet pressure'.
material /ompati4ilities < /he/0 1hether the regulator /ontains any materials 1hi/h may rea/t
or degrade 1ith the gas you intend to pass through it.
/onsider fitting e,/ess flo1 5al5es 1hi/h isolate the gas supply in the e5ent of a malfun/tion.
Care and maintenan/e
1hen you pur/hase a ne1 regulator ma0e a note of the date of manufa/ture ; pur/hase. Some
suppliers sell regulators that are already tagged 1ith a /ode, date and Fdo not use afterG date. If
not, it is a good idea to atta/h a tag to the regulator that /ontains this information. Laminated
tags ; pou/hes are /ommer/ially a5aila4le for this purpose.
Some e,isting regulators /an 4e dated 4y e,amining the /ode imprinted on the re5erse side.
Jnly M#re- still use the letter ; num4er /ode %and their eHuipment is no1 manufa/tured
o5erseas'. !he /ode is e,plained in the diagram o5erleaf"
@age * of C
C1FS
Denotes: Decade Year Month
New or Service
Exchanged
A = 197-
= 19!-
C = 199-
D = "##-
# - 9
o$
decade
A = %an&ar'
= Fe(r&ar'
C = March etc)
S = *an&$act&red
as new
+ = service exchange
Exa*,-e: C1FS = %&ne 1991
new
If you possess regulators that are not /oded and you are una4le to date them, then it is
ad5isa4le that they are repla/ed. All ne1 regulators should 4e sour/ed from reputa4le
suppliers and /onform to appropriate standards %e.g. BS, 93, ISJ et/.'.
the lifetime of a regulator is ( years %2 years for regulators used 1ith /orrosi5e gases'. A
regulator 1ill age irrespe/ti5e of the amount of use it is put to. Begulators that 4e/ome
damaged, /ontaminated or dysfun/tional should 4e repla/ed as and 1hen ne/essary.
user /he/0s should ideally 4e /arried out ea/h time prior to use > these are primarily 5isual"
la4elling, /ontamination, damage et/.
maintenan/e /he/0 should 4e /arried out annually 4y a /ompetent person. !here are
/ommer/ially a5aila4le ser5i/es for this and also training /ourses on ho1 to /arry out
inspe/tions. A typi/al inspe/tion /he/0list is gi5en in the Appendi,.
ersonal rotecti*e E-uipment 2E3
@@9 may 4e reHuired a//ording to the /ir/umstan/es"
la4oratory /oats, goggles, fa/e shields, /ryoglo5es for liHuid nitrogen and other /ryogeni/s.
la4oratory /oats or o5eralls 1ill prote/t /lothing 1hile mo5ing /ylinders.
stout glo5es and safety foot1ear 1ill prote/t the hands and feet 1hile mo5ing /ylinders.
eye prote/tion should 4e 1orn 1hile /hanging regulators.
+or /ertain spe/ialist appli/ations, full 4reathing apparatus may 4e reHuired > the need for this
should 4e determined 4y ris0 assessment. If 4reathing apparatus is reHuired it must 4e
adeHuately maintained and operated only 4y trained users.
All @@9 should 4e adeHuately stored on hoo0s, in /up4oards or in dedi/ated mountings %e.g. 1all
dispensers for safety spe/ta/les, purpose 4uilt 4o,es for 4reathing apparatus' and not left lying
around on 4en/htops 1here damage and /ontamination is a ris0.
Emergency procedures
9mergen/y pro/edures should 4e defined and users should 4e familiar 1ith 1hat to do in an
emergen/y"
+ire
operate the planned fire drill for the area in Huestion. Jn arri5al, emergen/y ser5i/es should 4e
informed of the types of gases present in the area affe/ted.
if possi4le, isolate any piped supplies to the area affe/ted 'ut do not ta(e any unnecessary
ris(s.
@age $ of C
/ylinders may 4urst, 5ent or e,plode 1hen su47e/ted to e,treme temperatures so a5oid Ffirst
aidG fire fighting %e.g. using e,tinguishers' unless the fire is small and /an 4e dealt 1ith 5ery
Hui/0ly. 9rr on the side of safety < if in any dou4t, e5a/uate and lea5e to the professionals.
it may 4e possi4le to /ool /ylinders 1ith a hose from a safe distan/e > the emergen/y ser5i/es
1ill de/ide 1hether this is appropriate.
do not approa/h any /ylinder 1hi/h has 4een affe/ted 4y fire. !he emergen/y ser5i/es and
supplier %e.g. BJC' 1ill deal 1ith matters 1hen safe to do so and the supplier 1ill re/o5er them
for disposal.
Lea0s of to,i/ and /orrosi5e gases
Supplies should 4e isolated if possi4le, if ne/essary, 1earing appropriate 4reathing apparatus. It
is essential to in/lude emergen/y pro/edures as part of the CJS88 assessment for gases in
these /ategories. +irst aid measures should also 4e /onsidered.
#nformation, instruction and training
All users of gases and /ryogeni/s must re/ei5e adeHuate information, instru/tion and training.
formal training is offered periodi/ally 4y the Safety nit > this is normally deli5ered 4y
spe/ialists in the gas and /ryogeni/s industry. Che/0 the Safety nit 1e4 pages for a5aila4ility
of training /ourses. !he Safety nit 0eeps formal re/ords of attendees at all /ourses.
on<the<7o4 training and instru/tion and, if ne/essary, super5ision, should 4e /arried out 4y the
department. 2as users should 4e fully in5ol5ed in any ris0 assessment pro/ess. Departments
should 0eep internal re/ords of any training pro5ided > /he/0lists 1ith ti/0 4o,es are a suita4le
means of re/ording.
STE 4" 1ecord t$e findings
!he ris0 assessment form represents a re/ord of your findings. =ou should file it in a safe pla/e
and 4e a4le to produ/e it 1hen reHuired. @art $ of the form ena4les all a/tions to 4e noted and
/ompletion dates re/orded. =ou should /ommuni/ate all your finding to the o//upants of the
la4oratories.
STE 5" 1e*ie& t$e assessment
Bis0 assessments 1ill not remain 5alid for e5er < there 1ill in5aria4ly 4e /hanges to eHuipment,
su4stan/es, physi/al layout et/. therefore you should re5ie1 your assessment periodi/ally. =ou
are not, ho1e5er, reHuired to amend your assessment for e5ery tri5ial /hange 1hi/h may o//ur.
!he front page of the assessment form ena4les you to re/ord the dates of any su4seHuent
re5ie1s.
6EN7#8
@age ( of C
G6S 1ESSU1E 1EGU96T:1 #NSECT#:N 06#NTEN6NCE CHEC;9#ST
#tem Serial Num'er<
7epartment = 9ocation<
1egulator type 2one or t&o stage3< Gas type<
>es No Comments
A. Date /oded and identified to BS93 ISJ
2(&*.
2. Corre/tly la4elled" ma, inlet and outlet
pressures, name of gas ? supplier.
*. Clean and free from /ontamination.
$. Corre/t range of /apa/ity for 1or0 in
hand.
(. Inlet in good /ondition.
C. Jutlet in good /ondition.
7. @ressure ad7ustment s/re1 /apti5e.
I. @ressure ad7ustment s/re1 turns freely.
). Inlet pressure steady %inlet pressure
gauge appears to 4e fun/tional'.
A&. Jutlet pressure steady %outlet pressure
gauge appears to 4e fun/tional'.
AA. Jut4oard gas lea0s from regulator.
A2. Internal lea0age from first to se/ond
stage.
A*. Jutlet pressure /reep.
A$. Safety pattern gauges fitted %e.g.
gauges to 93 (I2'.
A(. 2auges undamaged 1ith no sign of :ero
error.
AC. @ass ; +ail.
A7. Che/0ed 4y.
AI. Date of inspe/tion.
@age C of C