A Risk Evaluation of the Chlorine Industry in North America

This study analyzes the risk involved in the chlorine industry in North America. A hypothetical chlorine plant with diaphragm electrolytic cells and a chlorine production of 300,000 metric tons per year was studied. Risk in terms of man‐days lost per year was evaluated for nine stages in the manufacture and distribution of chlorine. The highest risk was found to be “Maintenance of the Chlorine Plant” (37.6% of total man‐days lost per year). “Raw Material Acquisition for Materials in Chlorine Plant” (1.3%) and “Storage of Chlorine at Chlorine Plant” (0.3%) both had very little risk. “Transport of Chlorine to User by Rail, Pipeline, Barge, and Truck Combined” also gave relatively low risk (10.2%), an important result since this risk is involuntary and is the category that usually causes the most concern. The kind of risk evaluation presented here, while relatively new, should be helpful in identifying those areas in industry on which time and money can be spent with maximum benefit to reduce risk.