In the early morning hours of May 16, 2012, a thunderstorm rolled into the Bristol, PA, plant that produced acrylic polymers. Lightning struck in the tank farm area. Within seconds, an ethyl acrylate tank exploded and was followed a few minutes later by a butyl acrylate tank explosion. The explosions and ensuing fire led to a lengthy shutdown; fortunately, there were no injuries. This article details the investigation into the complex sequence of events that led to the two explosions. The tank installations complied with the industry lightning standards, but if the tanks met industry standards, why did the explosion happen? While the exact mechanism could not be determined with certainty, the ignition of the atmosphere in the ethyl acrylate tank most likely occurred from a spark discharge inside the tank's headspace, likely between internal components at different electrical voltage potentials. This type of mechanism could invalidate the Faraday Cage assumption inherent in current industry guidance and may represent a hazard that is not currently well-recognized. It should also be noted that, while lightning cannot be prevented, the outcome of a lightning strike can be mitigated by the use of safeguards such as inertion, flame arresters, diking, and foam systems.

中文翻译：

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那是一个漆黑的暴风雨之夜——丙烯酸酯储罐爆炸调查

2012 年 5 月 16 日凌晨，一场雷暴袭击了宾夕法尼亚州布里斯托尔生产丙烯酸聚合物的工厂。闪电击中油库区。几秒钟内，一个丙烯酸乙酯罐爆炸，几分钟后丙烯酸丁酯罐爆炸。爆炸和随之而来的火灾导致了长时间的停工；幸运的是，没有受伤。本文详细调查了导致两次爆炸的复杂事件序列。储罐装置符合行业雷电标准，但如果储罐符合行业标准，为什么会发生爆炸？虽然无法确定确切的机制，但丙烯酸乙酯罐中的气氛很可能是由罐顶空间内的火花放电引起的，可能在不同电压电位的内部组件之间。这种类型的机制可能会使当前行业指南中固有的法拉第笼假设无效，并且可能代表目前尚未得到充分认识的危险。还应该注意的是，虽然闪电无法防止，但可以通过使用保护措施（例如惰性、阻火器、堤防和泡沫系统）来减轻雷击的后果。