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Clean Hydrogen Partnership

Explosion on a hydrogen tank at a food oil manufacturer

Event

Event ID
1230
Quality
Description
A hydrogen explosion occurred at a company producing soyabean oils. The exact location and causes are unknown, the only fact being reported was that the hydrogen involved a hydrogen tank conversion process, and that the tank was outside the company buildings. It is unclear if the tank was a hydrogen storage tank, or a reactor for hydrogenation of oil.
One fatality.
Event Initiating system
Classification of the physical effects
Hydrogen Release and Ignition
Nature of the consequences
Macro-region
Asia
Country
United States
Date
Main component involved?
Unknown
How was it involved?
Unknown
Initiating cause
Unknown
Root causes
Unknown (No additional details provided)

Facility

Application
Chemical Industry
Sub-application
Food production
Hydrogen supply chain stage
All components affected
tank
Location type
Unknown
Operational condition
Unknown (No additional details provided)
Description of the facility/unit/process/substances
Part of the processes managed in the affected plant were bleaching, hydrogenation, deodorisation and refinery of soybean oil. The hydrogenation process consisted in mixing unsaturated oil and hydrogen at temperature ranging between 140C to 250 C, in presence of a metal catalyst. Liquid vegetable oils contain fatty acids with double bonds between carbon atoms. Hydrogen breaks the double bonds and attach to the carbons, converting the unsaturated fat into saturated or less unsaturated fat.

Emergency & Consequences

Number of injured persons
0
Number of fatalities
1

Event Nature

Release type
gas
Involved substances (% vol)
H2 100%
Presumed ignition source
Not reported

References

Reference & weblink

Hydrogen Insight news of 22 September 2025<br />
https://www.hydrogeninsight.com/innovation/only-15-of-hydrogen-related-… />
(Accessed January 2025)

JRC assessment