Derivation of risk areas associated with high-pressure natural-gas pipelines explosions including effects on structural components

A number of high-profile incidents involving transmission pipelines in urban and environmentally sensitive areas have recently focused public attention on pipeline safety. The consequences of incidents that involve large diameter, high-pressure transmission pipelines can pose a significant threat of damage to people and properties in the vicinity of the failure location. This study attempts to develop a risk assessment procedure for the estimation of the annual probability of direct structural damage to reinforced concrete (RC) buildings associated with high-pressure natural-gas pipeline explosions. First, blast hazard is estimated using the Multi-Energy method and then blast fragility of single RC columns through pressureimpulse equations. The results are combined to assess the annual risk of structural collapse and the extent of ground area where the failure of a high-pressure pipeline carrying natural gas can lead to the collapse of RC buildings. © Copyright 2014, AIDIC Servizi S.r.l.