# S H E A S S E S S M E N T F O R M

Doc. Ref: 18.1.138 Page 1 of 10 Amend: 20 Issued: October 2012 Supersedes 1 6 / Jan 2012 

## NOTE: THIS DOCUMENT IS ONLY TO BE USED IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE GUIDANCE PROVIDED IN DOC REF 18.1.157

AND MUST BE COMPLETED AS FAR AS POSSIBLE BEFORE THE SHE ASSESSMENT MEETING



# S H E S U M M A R Y S H E E T

SHE REF No. MISC85 DESCRIPTION OF PROCESS OR ACTIVITY: Opera tion of the Graphene Reactor. This involves charging

the reactor with water, dispersant and graphite. The system is then run in recirculation mode prior to discharging

through an in

- line filter unit. The graphene dispersion is collected as a product and gr aphite is recovered as a wet

cake for reuse DATE: 31/03/14 NEXT REVIEW:

Review after first

batch processed

through the reactor

and filter Author : PL Team Members : PL (Process Engineer) , LG (Senior Technician)

, SR (QHSE Manager) , JP (Process

Manager)

WHAT IS THE WORST CASE SCENARIO WITH THIS PROCESS? (Describe below) HAZOP REQUIRED? No DATE COMPLETED N/A

Technicians are exposed to significant quantities of airborne graphene nanoplatelets over an extended period. HAZOP REF No. N/A

Note: a HAZOP is a lso required if one of the following is true:

1. If new technology is involved, e.g. plant/equipment.

2. I f the project involves a new process or new materials of which we have no experience.



### A HAZOP, IF REQUIRED, MUST BE COMPLETED BEFORE CONDUCTING THE SHE ASSE SSMENT.

HAZARD

REF. NO. HAZARD ACTION REQUIRED ACTION BY

(date/initials) ACTION

COMPLETE

1/A Charging reactor with

demineralised water 1. Consider use of a suitable pump to charge demineralised water into the reactor. PL 11/04/14 Y

3/A Charging reactor with graphite 2. Ensure procedure states that graphite must either as a wet cake or a slurry. PL 01/04/14 Y

1/B Manual issues associated with

charging graphite into reactor. 3. Update and communicate the spillage procedure and cleanliness policy for the a rea. JP 11/04/14 Y

4/B Interaction with other

processes (1) 4. Decontaminate adjacent reactor. LG 11/04/14 Y

4/B Interaction with other

processes (2) 5. Remove and dispose all unwanted samples in Pilot Plant. LG 11/04/14 Y

4/D Fire / explosion

– Pilot P lant is

a zoned area 6. Confirm with Works Engineer how to officially “dezone” the Pilot Plant PL 11/04/14 Y

4/F Overpressurisation of reactor

leading to a violent release of

energy (1) 7. Update procedure to account for operation of the inline filter. PL 11/04/14 Y

4/F Overpressurisation of reactor

leading to a violent release of

energy (2) 8. Confirm the trip overload setting on the pump. PL 11/04/14 Y

5/C Traps, crush, in

- running nips. 9. Update procedures to state that the inline filter stirrer must be shut down before the

filter is opened up PL 01/04/14 Y

# S H E A S S E S S M E N T F O R M

Doc. Ref: 18.1.138 Page 2 of 10 Amend: 20 Issued: October 2012 Supersedes 1 6 / Jan 2012 

## SECTION 1 : ASSESSMENT OF COSHH & ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS

Using the guidance, DOC REF 18.1.157 , identify each of the substances or wastes to be used/produced during this process.

SUBSTANCE S (to be completed by R&D /Production BEFORE the SHE Meeting )

Hazard

Ref. No. Substance Name PHYSICAL FORM WEL

Mg/m 3 HEALTH /SAFETY AND

ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS

1 Demineralised

water Liquid N/A N/A

2 Dispersant (ionic) Powder 10 mg/m3 Not a hazardous substance or mixture

according to Regulation (EC) No

1272/2008

Not a hazardous substance or mixture

according to EC

- directives 67/548/EEC or

1999/45/EC.

3 Graphite Flakes or Wet Cake 4 mg/m3

Taken from

Sigma

- Aldrich

Data Sheet for

product 332461 HEALTH

Acute Toxic ity

- Not Classified

Eye Corrosion

- Sub

- category 2A

Skin Corrosion

- Not Classified

Skin Sensitization

- Category 3

Mutagenicity

- Not Classified

Carcinogenicity

- Not Classified

Reproductive/Development

- Not

Classified

Target Organ Toxicity

- Not Classified

H319

– Ca uses serious eye irritation

H335

– May cause respiratory irritation

ENVIRONMENTAL

Natural graphite is an insoluble, inorganic

substance and is not expected to present

any environmental hazards other than

those expected for an insoluble

particulate.

# S H E A S S E S S M E N T F O R M

Doc. Ref: 18.1.138 Page 3 of 10 Amend: 20 Issued: October 2012 Supersedes 1 6 / Jan 2012 Hazard

Ref. No. Substance Name PHYSICAL FORM WEL

Mg/m 3 HEALTH /SAFETY AND

ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS

4 Gra phene

Dispersion Liquid Unknown Ultrafine dust may cause irritation of the

eyes and respiratory system. Electrostatic

discharges may be generated from dry

material during handling. CAUTION: this

form of carbon has not yet been fully

tested regarding heal th, safety and

environmental effects.

Precautionary statement

– P285: In case

of inadequate ventilation wear respiratory

protection.

# S H E A S S E S S M E N T F O R M

Doc. Ref: 18.1.138 Page 4 of 10 Amend: 20 Issued: October 2012 Supersedes 1 6 / Jan 2012 WASTES AND EMISSIONS (to be completed by R&D /Production BEFORE the SHE Meeting )

Hazard

Ref. No. Substance Name PHYSIC AL FORM EXPOSURE HEALTH /SAFETY AND

ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS

5 Processed

Graphite Wet Cake 4 mg/m3 As per dry graphite above. The graphite

wet cake will be collected in a barrel and

will be reprocessed.

# S H E A S S E S S M E N T F O R M

Doc. Ref: 18.1.138 Page 5 of 10 Amend: 20 Issued: October 2012 Supersedes 1 6 / Jan 2012 

## SECTION 1: ASSESSMENT OF COSHH & ENVIRONMENTAL HAZ ARDS

– EXPOSURE

Using the guidance, DOC REF 18.1.157 , identify the level of exposure to each of the substances or wastes mentioned above.

(Occupational health surveillance should be taken into account when considering controls

– see PSI MISC 27 for details of current arrangements )

Hazard

Ref. No. IDENTIFIED EXPOSURE (CHARGING /

DISCHARGING /WASTE RELEASE ETC) NUMBER EXPOSED/MEDIUM OF

RELEASE EXPOSURE TIME /

INTENSITY PPE CODE OTHER CONTROLS IN

PLACE

1/A Charging reactor with demineralised water 2

- Contact < 60 min Std.

2/A Charging reactor with dispersant 1

- Contact / Inhalation < 60 min Std. (+ G ) Paper dust mask

- G

3/A Charging reactor with graphite 2

- Contact / Inhalation < 60 min Std. (+ G ) Feed graphite in as either

a wet cake or a slurry to

minimise dust formation

4/A Discharge reactor through inline filter 2

– Contact < 60 min Std. Wear a plastic apron

5/A Discharge graphite wet cake from filter 2

- Contact < 60 min Std. Wear a plastic apron

PPE KEY (additional to basic hat, glasses & safety shoes)

A : Half

- face mask with A1B1E1K1P3 filter. B : Full

- face mask with A2B2E2K2P3 filter. C : ‘Airstream’ air

- fed hood. D : ‘Tornado’ air

- fed hood.

E : Half

- face mask’ 3M 6059’ for Fine Chem. F : Visor and a pron G : Paper dust mask

# S H E A S S E S S M E N T F O R M

Doc. Ref: 18.1.138 Page 6 of 10 Amend: 20 Issued: October 2012 Supersedes 1 6 / Jan 2012 

## SECTION 2: IDENTIFICATION OF OTHER HAZARDS

Using the table in the guidance, DOC REF 18.1.157 , identify any other hazards not already mentioned above.

Hazard

Ref. No. HAZARD DESCRIPTION CAUSES CONSEQUENCES CONTROLS IN PLACE

1/B Manua l issues associated with charging

water into reactor. - Lifting containers of water

and pouring into the reactor - Potential for spillages of water

– especially in the presence

of electrical equipment;

- Injuries to the operator when

lifting the water

– he will need

to work on a raised platform;

- Potential for a fall

– especially

when working on the platform. - Training / supervision / SOPs

- Filling the reactor will be a two person

job;

- Only fill the reactor using containers

containing no more than 5 L of water;

- In l ine mixer motor is IP 55 rated ;

- Use hand pump to fill reactor direct

from IBC of DMW

4/B Interaction with other processes (1) - Operation of the equipment

adjacent to graphene

reactor - Potential for gas explosions or

exposure of the technicians

working on th e graphene

reactor to other

nanomaterials

. - Training / supervision / SOPs

- Methane gas supply to adjacent reactor

has been blanked off;

- Inline mixer motor is ATEX Rated;

- Standard instruction to be issued to

operators to avoid running adjacent

equipment simul taneously;

- Adjacent reactor to be decontaminated

.

4/C Spillages of pro cess materials

– in particular

graphene dispersion or wet graphite cake. - Incorrect valve operation;

- Leaks from pipelines /

process equipment;

- Spillages when transferring

materials or ch arging or

discharging the reactor or

filter;

- Maintenance activity on the

reactor leading to break ins

of process lines

. - If the graphene dispersion

dries the operators could be

exposed to graphene

nanoplatelets

– especially as

airborne particles;

- Graphite i s a mineral and

contains some silica in the

form of quartz: therefore there

is the potential to expose the

operators, maintenance

technicians or anyone else

operating the equipment to

quartz dust. - Training / supervision / SOPs

- All spillages will be promptl y cleaned up

using the existing procedures;

- There is a bund underneath the reactor

to catch any spilt material;

- Prior to carrying out any maintenance

activity the equipment will need be

decontaminated and suitable PPE worn

if handling dry material or if th e spillage

has been allowed to dry.

4/D Fire / explosion

– Pilot Plant is a zoned area - Presence of methane and

hot surfaces / sparks from

electrical equipment - Injury to personnel and

damage to equipment - Methane supply has been capped off

– effectively r emoving the need to Zone

off the area;

- Adjacent reactor will not be used at the

same time as the graphene reactor;

- The In Line Mixer is ATEX Rated.

1/C Working at heights when charging reactor :

potential for falls from height - Falling over when working

on raised platform - Injury to individual;

- Spillage of reactants. - Training / supervision / SOPs

- Use of a suitable raised platform;

# S H E A S S E S S M E N T F O R M

Doc. Ref: 18.1.138 Page 7 of 10 Amend: 20 Issued: October 2012 Supersedes 1 6 / Jan 2012 Hazard

Ref. No. HAZARD DESCRIPTION CAUSES CONSEQUENCES CONTROLS IN PLACE

- Awareness of hazards when working

on raised platform;

- Charging the reactor will be a two

person job, so that the individual

worki ng on the platform will be passed

any reactants that need to be fed into

the reactor.

4/E Slips, trips and falls - Poor housekeeping;

- Trip hazards due to wiring,

raised objects etc. - Injury to individual;

- Spillages of reagents;

- Damage to equipment - Housekeep ing standards in the rotary

furnace room.

5/B Services failure

- Loss of electricity supply - P otential for filter to block up

and over

- pressurise. Could

lock in material into the filter.

Provided the pump also

stops, we won’t pressurise up

the unit;

- If the i n line mixer stops, there

is no adverse impact on the

process apart from ceasing

the exfoliation. - The system has been designed for

containment: the pressure rating of the

filter and the pipelines are above the

pump dead head pressure;

- If the in line shear mixer stops, the

material can be reslurried

.

4/F Overpressurisation of the reactor leading to a

violent release of energy - Incorrect valve operation

leading to the inline mixer

being dead

- headed;

- Blockages in the line or the

filter. - Loss of containment of

reactants;

- Damage to equipment

– in

particular the inline filter mesh

if the differential pressure is

too high. - Operating procedures

– in particular

ensuring valves are in the correct

position;

- System is designed for inherent safety:

we cannot exceed the m aximum line /

filter pressure rating as we have

stainless steel pipes at the pump

discharge and the filter is rated above

the pump dead

- head pressure.

5/C Traps, crush, in

- running nips. - Running with inline filter unit

open

. - Injury to individual - Standard o perating procedure to

ensure inline mixer stirrer is shut down

before the filter is opened up.

# S H E A S S E S S M E N T F O R M

Doc. Ref: 18.1.138 Page 8 of 10 Amend: 20 Issued: October 2012 Supersedes 1 6 / Jan 2012 

## SECTION 3: RISK EVALUATION

USE THE MATRIX IN GUIDANCE, DOC REF 18.1.157 , to evaluate the risk presented by each of the hazards identified in Sections 1 and 2

- with

the EXISTIN G control measures in place (identified earlier).

NOTES: 1. Any risks evaluated as HIGH or VERY HIGH must be reduced using additional control measures.

2. Risks evaluated as MEDIUM may have to be reduced using additional control measu res.

2. All actions must be assigned to a person and timescales included.

3. Record the Residual Risks of each hazard with ALL control measures in place & actions completed.

Hazard

Ref. No. HAZARD DESCRIPTION HAZARD/

SEVERITY LIKELI

HOOD /

EXPOSURE RI SK

(No./level) ACTION REQUIRED ACTION BY (DATE

& PERSON) RESIDUAL

RISK

1/A Charging reactor with

demineralised water 2 3 6 / Very Low 1. Consider use of a suitable pump to charge

demineralised water into the reactor. PL

– 11/04/14 6 / Very

Low

2/A Chargi ng reactor with dispersant 2 2 4 / Very Low

3/A Charging reactor with graphite 7 2 14 / Low 2. Ensure procedure states that graphite

must either as a wet cake or a slurry. PL

– 11/04/14 14 / Low

4/A Discharge reactor through inline

filter 7 2 14 / Low

5/A Discharge graphite wet cake from

filter 7 2 14 / Low

1/B Manual issues a ssociated with

charging graphite into reactor. 2 3 6 / Very Low As per action 2 to ensure that graphite is fed

into the reactor as a wet cake or a slurry to

minimise the likelihood of exposure.

3. Update and communicate the spillage

procedure and cleanline ss policy for the area. JP

– 11/04/14 14 / Low

4/B Interaction with other processes

. 7 2 14 / Low 4. Decontaminate adjacent reactor.

5. Remove and dispose all unwanted

samples in Pilot Plant. JP

– 11/04/14

LG

– 11/04/14 14 / Low

4/C Spillages of process materials

– in

particular graphene dispersion or

wet graphite cake. 7 3 21 / Medium As per action 3 above. JP

– 11/04/14 14 / Low

4/D Fire / explosion

– Pilot Plant is a

zoned area 5 1 5 / Very Low 6. Confirm with Works Engineer how to

officially “dezone” the Pilot Plant PL

– 11/04/14 5 / Very

Low

1/C Working at heights when charging

reactor: potential for falls from

height 4 3 12 / Low

4/E Slips, trips and falls 4 4 16 / Low

5/B Services failure 1 2 2 / Very Low

# S H E A S S E S S M E N T F O R M

Doc. Ref: 18.1.138 Page 9 of 10 Amend: 20 Issued: October 2012 Supersedes 1 6 / Jan 2012 Hazard

Ref. No. HAZARD DESCRIPTION HAZARD/

SEVERITY LIKELI

HOOD /

EXPOSURE RI SK

(No./level) ACTION REQUIRED ACTION BY (DATE

& PERSON) RESIDUAL

RISK

4/F Over pressurisation of reactor

leading to a violent release of

energy 7 2 14 / Low 7. Update procedure t o account for operation

of the inline filter if made permanent.

8. Confirm the trip overload setting on the

pump. PL

– 11/04/14

PL

– 11/04/14 14 / Low

5/C T raps, crush, in

- running nips. 4 2 8 / Low 9. Update procedures to state that the inline

filter stirrer must be shut down before the

filter is opened up PL

- 01/04/14 8 / Low



## Major Accident Hazard Assessment (COMAH)

(See Doc Ref 18.1.157 for guidance)

DOES THE PROCESS CONSTITUTE A MAJOR ACCIDENT HAZARD? No



## Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations ( DSEAR )

DOES THE PROCESS ALTER THE DSEAR RATING OF THE PLANT INVOLVED ? Yes



## SECTION 4 : OVERALL FINAL ASSESSMENT OF RISK

THE OVERALL RISK IS T HE HIGHEST INDIVIDUAL RESIDUAL RISK LEVEL IDENTIFIED IN SECTION 3

OVERALL

RISK LEVEL CRITERIA FOR DECISION / ACTION S REQUIRED SELECT

1 LOW or

VERY LOW While this allows some actions to be carried out on an ongoing basis, THE PROCESS OR ACTIVITY MAY BE

PR OGRESSED. X

2 MEDIUM Efforts may be required to reduce the risk. Risk reduction measures may be required within a defined time period. The

process may be commenced as long as the personnel present at the SHE Assessment Meeting agree that the risk has

been reduced ‘ as far as is reasonably practicable ’

.

3 MEDIUM

HIGH Risk reduction measures should be implemented within a defined time period to reduce the overall risk to MEDIUM or

LOWER

.

Where the risk involves work in progress, action should be taken withi n a short time period, or the work should be

stopped.

4 HIGH or

VERY HIGH The process or activity SHOULD NOT BE COMMENCED until the risk has been reduced to MEDIUM or LOWER

.

Where the process or activity is already in progress, it SHOULD BE STOPPED IMMED IATELY & only restarted once

the risk has been reduced to an acceptable level.

# S H E A S S E S S M E N T F O R M

Doc. Ref: 18.1.138 Page 10 of 10 Amend: 20 Issued: October 2012 Supersedes 1 6 / Jan 2012 

### PERSONNEL PRESENT AT THE SHE ASSESSMENT MEETING:

PRE

- PRODUCTION AUTHORISATION:

The COMAH implications of this process should have already been checked as part of PSI CLE 16.

Please confirm by checking the box that this is the case. Checked X

All actions necessary prior to commencement of this p rocess or activity have been completed. Any other actions must be completed by

the target date and reported to the Production Administrator as and when complete.

SIGNED: JP / PL POSITION: Operations / Process Manager : <SIGNED ON ORIGINAL> DATE: 01 April 1 4



### N.B

. The operation/process to which this SHE relates must not be started until the Pro cess Manager or deputy has signed above.

(NOTE: T his assessment has been carried out to comply with current COSHH, IPPC, COMAH, PUWER, LOLER, Management of Health & Safety Regulations,

and the Thomas Swan & Co. Management System. )



## SECTION 5: REVIEWS

SUMMARY OF REVIEWS CARRIED OUT:

(Information to be recorded should include: date, reason(s) for review, changes made, new controls introduced, actions, perso ns present a t

review

DATE DETAILS OF REVIEW ACTION S REVIEWED BY

15 Jul 14 Review following 3 months of operation Nothing to report: we have changed the recipe but this does not

affect the scope and actions from this SHE Assessment PJL