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CSB Investigation Report No. 2005-02-I-TX 2004 Safety Safety
Marcus Oil Polyethylene Wax Tank Overpressure Explosion (Houston)
Marcus Oil and Chemical, Houston, Texas
Related equipment → Storage tank (storage_tank)
0Fatalities
3Injuries
ExplosionMechanism code STD
⌗Failure Mode · ISO 14224 Mapping
Damage mechanism (recorded in KB)
ExplosionSTD
ISO functional code (as recorded)
ISO 14224:2016 functional failure code
STD · Structural failure
ISO STD — Structural failure.
1What Happened

Polyethylene wax tank: nitrogen inerting design/operation inadequate; improper modification/repair caused overpressure explosion

2Root Cause

Tank nitrogen-inerting system design and operation inadequate; unauthorized modification/repair led to overpressure explosion and fire

3Reliability Lessons (from investigation root cause)
  • The 'Root Cause' above is the core lesson of this accident; not split further.
4Associated Failure Mechanisms (Keywords)
storage tank nitrogen inerting overpressure explosion modification repair polyethylene wax
About the Failure-Mode Code (click to expand)

The recorded code STD is an ISO 14224:2016 functional failure code (describes what the equipment failed to do). The damage mechanism (how it failed) is shown in the Mapping block above. The two are distinct dimensions in ISO 14224.

5Evidence Source (transparent)
Authority：U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB)
Official Report：www.csb.gov ↗
Data Verification：url_landing_only_report_id_authoritative
↗Related Failure Modes · Traceability
Bottom Plate Perforation bottom_plate_perforationBottom Weld Crack bottom_weld_crackUnder-deposit Corrosion under_deposit_corrosionShell Thinning shell_thinningWeld Crack weld_crackCorrosion Under Insulation (CUI) cuiRoof Corrosion roof_corrosionFloating Roof Sticking floating_roof_stickingSeal Leak -> VOC Emission seal_leakDifferential Settlement differential_settlementConcrete Crack concrete_crackPad Failure pad_failureFreezing/Sticking freezing_stickingSeat Corrosion seat_corrosionElement Plugging element_pluggingElement Corrosion element_corrosionN2 Supply Loss n2_supply_lossControl Valve Failure control_valve_failureAntenna Fouling antenna_foulingElectronics Failure electronics_failureWire Sticking wire_stickingDisplacer Perforation displacer_perforationContact Corrosion contact_corrosionFloat Sticking float_sticking
Report No. 2005-02-I-TX · Data from CSB public investigation conclusions, compiled by Reliability AI, for reliability demonstration purposes only. This case is derived from public incident investigation reports for learning purposes only. AIM does not endorse or guarantee its accuracy.