Static Ignition Hazards: Bonding and Grounding to NFPA 77

Most solvent vapors ignite at less than 1 millijoule, an energy below what a person can feel. A liquid flowing through a hose, a solvent falling into a drum, powder sliding into a hopper or a person taking off a jacket can store many times that. Static ignition is the cause behind drum-filling flash fires, tank truck loading fires and dust collector explosions, and the control is simple when it is done every time: bond, ground, fill from the bottom and keep insulators out. This course teaches how and why.

You will learn where charge is generated in industrial processes, why nonconductive liquids such as toluene and hexane hold charge while alcohols and ketones let it go, how flash point and the GHS flammable liquid categories in 29 CFR 1910.106 define the vapor risk, what minimum ignition energy means for vapors and dusts, and the kinds of discharge NFPA 77 describes. You will learn the difference between bonding and grounding, what makes an adequate path and how it is verified, the bonding requirement in 29 CFR 1910.106(e)(6)(ii) and OSHA's conditions for plastic containers, NFPA 77 dispensing practice, container, hose and filter rules, grounding of spray booths and electrostatic spraying equipment under 29 CFR 1910.107, static controls in combustible dust processes under the standards consolidated into NFPA 660, grounding of people, and hazardous location awareness under 29 CFR 1910.307. The final module covers the site static control procedure, inspection and testing, training, what to do when a clamp is missing, reporting, flash fire response, contractors and four scenarios from an electronics cleaning bench, a tank truck rack, a powder coating booth and a drum-filling line.

The course is for anyone who transfers or dispenses flammable liquids, from isopropyl alcohol at an electronics bench to solvents, fuels and coatings in plants, labs and paint shops, for anyone who handles combustible dust, for maintenance staff who install and inspect grounding, and for EHS coordinators and supervisors who write and audit the procedure. It builds on the PlanetISO Chemical Handling in Electronics Manufacturing and Hazard Communication and GHS courses. It is a workplace safety course, not an electronics ESD course: the PlanetISO ESD Awareness course covers protection of electronic components.

What this course does not cover. It is general awareness training. Your employer must still train you on your site's transfer points, containers, bonding and grounding equipment, hazardous area classification, written procedure and emergency action plan, provide the PPE hazard assessment for your tasks, and give you the chance to ask questions of someone who knows the site. NFPA 77 is a recommended practice and your site's procedure sets the acceptance values. This course does not make anyone OSHA certified, and OSHA does not approve training providers. State-plan states may have additional requirements, and employers outside the US follow their own regulations. The course closes with a 10-question examination drawn from a bank of 20. On passing you receive a PlanetISO Certificate of Completion for the online instruction, with lifetime access to the course. The certificate does not expire.