Analysis and performance of safety barriers in industrial processes: Rotary kiln and preheating tower of the cement plant

The safety system is a key element in optimizing the operational safety of industrial facilities. It enables the effective implementation of safety barriers, which are essential for preventing incidents and controlling deviations in the operational parameters of industrial processes. The objective of this work is to contribute to solving specific issues related to risk analysis and the performance evaluation of protective layers at the Sigus cement plant in Algeria. Adverse events are identified using the HAZOP method. Subsequently, certain critical events are selected to calculate the frequencies of initiating events as well as the probabilities of failure on demand (i.e. PFD) of the independent protective layers associated with the preheating tower and rotary kiln. The Layer of Protection Analysis (i.e. LOPA) approach enables the assessment of these safety barriers based on the previously identified risks within the installation. This analysis has led to the proposal of more effective safety measures aimed at reducing risks to an acceptable level, with total PFDs estimated at 5.88x10⁻¹⁰ and 6.5x10⁻⁸ for scenarios 1 and 2, respectively.