ASCEND PERFORMANCE MATERIALS TEXAS INC

Employee sustains back laceration when container ruptures

At 8:30 a.m. on May 24, 2018, Employee #1 was in charge of setting up a booth representing the control laboratory for a safety day event at the plant, which involved approximately 1,000 employees, visitors, and vendors. Employee #1 wanted to have a fog effect at the booth to attract visitors. Employee #1 made plans to have a coworker #1 get dry ice for the effect. When coworker #1 could not get dry ice, coworker #1 asked coworker #2 to get liquid nitrogen from an adjacent lab. Even though the control lab does not use nitrogen, Employee #1 knew it was available at the development lab. A container designed for high vapor pressure volatile petroleum hydrocarbons was filled with liquid nitrogen for use in generating a fog effect at the control lab booth at safety day. The container, a stainless steel container rated for a maximum pressure of 150 psi of liquid, not gases, was placed under the display table at a safety day event by coworker #2. It ruptured after 20-30 minutes of exposure to the heat outdoors causing flying debris to strike Employee #1, who suffered a deep laceration in her back. There was no pressure relief device on the container. container.