14-Apr-21

Source Models
Chapter 4 in C&L

Source Models
✓ Most accidents in chemical plants result in spills of toxic, flammable, and explosive
materials.
✓ Accidents begin with an incident, which usually results in the loss of containment of
material from the process. The material has hazardous properties, which might include
toxic properties and energy content. Typical incidents might include the rupture or
break of a pipeline, a hole in a tank or pipe, runaway reaction, or fire external to the
vessel.
✓ Source models are selected to describe how materials escape from a process. The
source model provides a description of the rate of discharge, the total quantity
discharged (or total time of discharge), and the state of the discharge (that is, solid,
liquid, vapor, or a combination).
✓ Source models are an important part of the consequence modeling procedure
Qm Qm2

Qm1

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Why Are Source Models Needed?

System description Risk = f (Probability, Consequences)

Hazard identification

Scenario identification

Accident Accident Source models are used to

probability consequences determine and estimate
the consequence of an
accident
Risk determination

Risk &
hazard N
Modify design
acceptable?

Y
Accept system
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Consequence Modeling Selection of

Release Incident
e.g. rupture of pipeline

Selection of Source Model to

Describe Release Incident
Results: Total quantity released, Chapter 4
release rate, phase

Selection of Dispersion Model

such as neutrally buoyant,
heavier than air, etc Chapter 5
Results: Downwind conc.,
area affected, duration

Flammable Toxic
Flammable
and/or Toxic?
Chapter 6 Chapter 2
Selection of Fire and Selection of Effect Model
Explosion Model e.g. Probit Model
e.g. TNT Equivalency Results: No. of individuals
Results: Blast overpressure, affected
radiant heat flux

Mitigation
Factors

Consequence 4
Model

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Introduction to Source Models

✓ Source models are constructed from fundamental or empirical equations representing
the physicochemical processes occurring during the release of materials.
✓ Frequently the results are only estimates because the physical properties of the materials
are not adequately characterized or because the physical processes themselves are not
completely understood. If uncertainty exists, the parameters should be selected to
maximize the release rate and quantity. This ensures that a design is conservative.
✓ Release mechanisms are classified into wide and limited aperture releases.
✓ In the wide aperture case, a large hole develops in the process unit, releasing a
substantial amount of material in a short time. An excellent example is the overpressuring
and explosion of a storage tank.

✓ For the limited aperture case, material is

released at a slow enough rate that
upstream conditions are not immediately
affected; the assumption of constant
upstream pressure is frequently valid

Types of limited aperture releases

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Release Mechanisms
✓ For gases or vapors stored in a tank, a leak results in a
jet of gas or vapor.
✓ For liquids a leak below the liquid level in the tank
results in a stream of escaping liquid.
✓ If the liquid is stored under pressure above its
atmospheric boiling point:
o A leak below the liquid level will result in a stream
of liquid flashing partially into vapor. Small liquid
droplets or aerosols might also form from the
flashing stream, with the possibility of transport
away from the leak by wind currents.
o A leak in the vapor space above the liquid can
result in either a vapor stream or a two-phase
stream composed of vapor and liquid, depending
on the physical properties of the material.

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Source Models Covered

There are several basic source models that are used repeatedly and will be developed
and discussed here. These source models are
✓ Flow of liquid through a hole
✓ Flow of liquid through a hole in a tank
✓ Flow of liquids through pipes
✓ Flow of gases or vapor through holes
✓ Flow of gases or vapor through pipes
✓ Flashing liquids
✓ Liquid pool evaporation or boiling
Other source models, specific to certain materials, are introduced in subsequent
chapters. Some source models has been already covered in Chapter 3 (Specify some!)

Mechanical Energy Balance Equation

The mechanical energy balance describing the various energy forms associated with
flowing fluids is:

For incompressible liquids the

density is constant, and

where:

gc a unit conversion factor used to convert mass to force or vice versa

SI: gc = 1 (kg·m)/(N·s2)
AES: gc = 32.174 (lb·ft)/(lbf·s2)
Ws is the shaft work (force.length/time)
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Source Model: Liquid through a Hole

✓ For this limited aperture release, assume a

constant gauge pressure Pg within the process unit.
The external pressure is atmospheric; so ΔP = Pg.
✓ No pumps/turbine/compressor → Ws=0 P = Pg + 1
✓ Velocity of the fluid within the process unit is
assumed negligible.
✓ Δ𝑍 ≈ 0
✓ F≠0
✓ Substituting in the mechanical energy balance with
incompressible flow assumption and solving for 𝑢ത
✓ Pressure drives liquid thru
hole
✓ Pressure energy converted to
The mass flow rate Qm resulting from a hole of area A KE as liquid escapes
is given by ✓ Frictional losses

Co: discharge coefficient, which is a complicated function of the Reynolds number of

the fluid escaping through the leak and the diameter of the hole
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Source Model: Liquid through a Hole, cont’d

The following guidelines are suggested for 0.700

0.650
the discharge coefficient (Co) 0.600

✓ For sharp-edged orifices and for Re# >

Discharge Coefficient

0.550

30,000, Co → 0.61. For these 0.500

0.450
conditions the exit velocity of the fluid 0.400

is independent of the size of the hole. 0.350

✓ For a well-rounded nozzle Co → 1. 0.300

0.250
✓ For short sections of pipe attached to a 0.200
1 10 100 1000 10000 100000
vessel (with a length-diameter ratio Reynolds Number

not less than 3), the Co → 0.81.

✓ When the discharge coefficient is Discharge coefficient for sharp-edged orifices.
unknown or uncertain, use a value of Other charts are available for different
1.0 to maximize the computed flows. configurations

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Source Model: Liquid through a Hole - Example

At 1 PM the plant operator notices a drop in pressure in a pipeline transporting benzene.
The pressure is immediately restored to 100 psig. At 2:30 PM a 1/4-in-diameter leak is
found in the pipeline and immediately repaired. Estimate the total amount of benzene
spilled. The specific gravity of benzene is 0.8794.
Solution
The area of the hole is

The density of the benzene is

Assuming a discharge coefficient of 0.61 for this orifice-type leak:

The leak is assumed to be active between 1 PM and 2:30 PM, a total of 90 minutes.
The total quantity of benzene spilled 11

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