Misdeclaration of Charcoal Cargoes + Fire Risks on Shipping Vessels

格雷格•欧文斯

分享皇家88账户注册篇文章

2023年10月10日

In recent years, the number of reported fires on cargo vessels has increased, with over 200起船舶火灾事件报告 仅在2022年,就达到了十年来的最高水平. Sixty-four ships have been lost to fires in the past five years. Many fires reported on shipping vessels have been attributed to misdeclared dangerous goods, 比如化学品, 电池和木炭.

Jensen Hughes has recently investigated a number of fires at sea involving charcoal cargoes. The cargoes in these particular incidents were in the form of charcoal discs or tablets, 也被称为水烟煤, 水烟炭, 水烟炭, 水烟炭, 条岸边煤, 煤片或煤片. Used for heating tobacco for smoking in hookahs or “water pipes”, the tablets are typically packaged in foil tubes of around ten tablets and then packed in branded cardboard boxes.

危险货物

Charcoal is considered a self-heating substance and at risk for spontaneous combustion, which can cause a fire and result in considerable damage to a shipping vessel and its cargo. 正因为如此, it is listed in the International Maritime 危险货物 (IMDG) code, 根据un1361, 运输名称为“碳动物或植物来源”. 属于un1361的材料描述为:

来自有机来源的黑色物质. 特别是包括炭黑, other non-activated carbon materials and charcoal produced from materials such as bone, 竹子, 椰子壳, 黄麻和木材. 易缓慢受热并在空气中自燃的. The material as offered for shipment should be cooled down to ambient temperature before packing.

In accordance with the IMDG Code, goods listed 根据un1361 fall into Class 4.2, “substances liable to spontaneous combustion” and comprise “pyrophoric substances” and “self-heating substances”. 皇家88账户注册将包括水烟木炭, 哪一种是用椰子壳做的, 水果森林, 竹子或其它硬木.

国际危规特别条文第925条对木炭的豁免

IMDG Special Provision 925 allows charcoal cargoes to receive an exemption from being declared as dangerous goods. 被认为是无危险的, 然而, 产品需要满足第3部分中所述的标准, 第三章.3、的代码,如下:

A consignment of carbon if it passes the tests for self-heating substances, 如《皇家88娱乐》所述(见33).4.3.3), and is accompanied by a certificate from a laboratory accredited by the competent authority stating that the product to be loaded has been correctly sampled by trained staff from that laboratory and that the sample was correctly tested and has passed the test.

上面提到的测试是联合国测试N.4. The first stage of this test involves placing a wire mesh cube filled with the product “in its commercial form” in a test oven maintained at a temperature of 140°C for a period of 24 hours. The product passes the test if the internal temperature of the sample does not exceed the oven temperature by more than 60°C at any time during the test period and does not display any evidence of having ignited.

如果样品通过了第一阶段, it is deemed that the product should not be classed as a self-heating substance under Class 4.2. 如果不合格,则视为属于第4类.2 and further stages of testing are required to determine the packing group.

确保木炭货物安全

Carriers must be vigilant in identifying cargoes that contain charcoal, since charcoal cargoes are frequently misdeclared and can result in fires. Bills of Lading and other documents often given no indication to carriers that the cargo contains charcoal. 例如, 在皇家88娱乐的调查中, 皇家88娱乐看到了各种各样的描述, 如“水管片”, “水管配件”和“水烟配件”, 用于装载水烟/水烟木炭, 通常附有与木炭无关的HS编码.

An important part of IMDG Special Provision 925 is that the cargo must be accompanied by a certificate from a laboratory accredited by the competent authority”. Carriers should ensure that such a certificate is provided for charcoal cargoes that are not declared as dangerous goods.

然而, cargoes described in the above manner is often not supplied with the test certificate required to declare charcoal cargo as a non-dangerous good. 因此, it seems that such cargo descriptions may be used deliberately to disguise the presence of charcoal and misdeclare the cargo as non-dangerous goods.

如何解决皇家88账户注册个问题? Precautions taken for charcoal cargoes declared as dangerous goods should also be applied to any charcoal cargoes deemed not to fall under Class 4.2, “self-heating substances”, due to the Special Provision 925 exemption. This would include protecting the container from exposure to direct sunlight and other heat sources as well as stowing the container in an accessible location for firefighting purposes in the event of fire.

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作者简介

格雷格•欧文斯
Greg is a Senior Investigator with vast experience in fire and explosions.