Stop sending ‘divers’ into an oxygen-depleted environment to unload reactors

Oil refineries and industrial cleaning companies must stop sending people down into oxygen-depleted reactors to remove catalyst. In an oxygen-depleted reactor, these ‘divers’ are at great risk, despite safety instructions and control measures. A single mistake can lead to a fatal accident. That makes the work inherently unsafe.

The Dutch Safety Board has issued this urgent appeal following an accident on 3 February 2023 in which an employee of T.I.M.E. Service Catalyst Handling lost his life when working inside a reactor at Zeeland Refinery. He became buried under the catalyst inside the reactor and could not be rescued in time.

Erica Bakkum (Dutch Safety Board member): ‘Whatever control measures you put in place, the risks of an accident are unacceptably high. Divers can fall, become buried, suffocate, or be burned – four truly terrible scenarios. Escaping is almost impossible and the options for rescuing a diver are limited.’

The Safety Board calls on refineries to proactively invest in innovations, and to devise and develop alternative ways of removing catalyst from reactors. It also urges the sector to pool lessons learned and experience gained. Zeeland Refinery has already ceased deploying divers inside oxygen-depleted reactors.

Reactors are used to convert crude oil into usable products such as diesel or LPG. Catalyst used in a reactor needs to be replaced periodically but it ignites if it comes into contact with oxygen. The reactor is therefore first filled with nitrogen, creating an inert atmosphere.