As a fast-growing part of the energy sector, the biofuel industry has become an attractive place to work and invest. To protect your company in the biofuel industry, it is essential to recognize potential workplace hazards of biofuels and their production processes, and take steps to protect workers from harm. In addition to common workplace hazards such as walking and working surface hazards and electrical hazards, biofuels present three major types of hazards:

• Fire and explosion hazards
• Chemical reactivity hazards
• Toxicity hazards

Types of Biofuels

There are two major types of biofuels:

1. Ethanol is a flammable liquid that is readily ignited at ordinary temperatures. Renewable ethanol is produced through the fermentation of grains or from materials such as waste paper, wood chips and agricultural wastes.
2. Biodiesel is a combustible liquid that burns readily when heated. When it is blended with petroleum-based diesel fuel or contaminated by materials in manufacturing, it can become more flammable.

Fire and Explosion Hazards

To protect workers, it is essential to prevent unintended releases, avoid ignition of spills and equip your facility with appropriate fire protection systems and emergency response procedures. Necessary engineering controls include the following:

• Good facility layout
• Proper design of vessels and piping systems
• Proper selection of electrical equipment for use in hazardous areas
• Adequate equipment such as alarms, interlocks and shutdown systems.

Creating and maintaining proper administrative controls is equally important. These might include the following:

• Operating procedures
• Good maintenance practices
• Safe work procedures

Chemical Reactivity Hazards

Some processes for making ethanol from materials such as wastepaper and wood chips use concentrated acids and bases, which can react vigorously with many materials. Failure to control potentially dangerous chemical reactions could result in rupture of equipment and piping, explosions, fires, and exposures to hazardous chemicals. Preventive measures include the following:

• Controlling the rate and order of chemical addition
• Providing robust cooling
• Segregating incompatible materials to prevent inadvertent mixing
• Creating detailed operating procedures

Toxicity Hazards

Biofuels and their components present toxic exposure hazards that you need to carefully control to protect workers. Consult each chemical component’s safety data sheet (SDS) to determine the potential for toxic exposures to feedstocks, products and other chemicals used in biofuel processes, including caustic, sulfuric acid, ethanol and biodiesel, as well as hydrocarbons used for blending and alcohol denaturing. Take the following measures to reduce risk:

• Take release prevention, ventilation and drainage into consideration during design, fabrication and the creation of maintenance practices.
• Require the use of appropriate personal protective equipment when needed.

OSHA Standards

There are a variety of Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards that apply to manufacturers of biofuels, including the following:

• Process Safety Management of Highly Hazardous Chemicals
• Flammable and Combustible Liquids
• Hazard Communication
• Personal Protective Equipment
• Respiratory Protection
• Permit-Required Confined Spaces
• Lockout/Tagout

If there are hazards in your workplace that are not covered by an OSHA regulation, it is still essential that you take steps to control it. OSHA can fine for violation of the General Duty clause, which states that employers must provide workers a place of employment free from recognized hazards that cause or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to employees.

Ensuring Safety

Your workers’ safety must be your first priority. It is not only right–it makes economic sense. Reducing claims will also reduce your workers’ compensation insurance premiums. For more resources on loss control programs, contact the insurance professionals at INSURICA.

This is not intended to be exhaustive nor should any discussion or opinions be construed as legal advice. Readers should contact legal counsel or an insurance professional for appropriate advice. ©2025 Zywave, Inc. All rights reserved