The Bulletin – April 1963

THE BULLETIN

QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF THE WEST MIDLANDS PETROLEUM ACTS ·A.DM,I'NISTR.ATION GROUP

APRIL. 1963.

VOL. 1. .-·4

Quarterly Journal of the

WEST MIDLANDS PETROLEUM ACTS ADMINISTRATION GROUP

VOL. 1. No. 4. APRIL, 1963.

Exeoutive Colrunitte e Mee tin gs : 22nd. January and 19th. Ma rc h, 1963 ...... " ............ . " .. 1

Group Mee ting held at COLESHILL, 31st. Janu ary , 1 963

by B .E. Mills Esq ., B So., Lecturer in Rad io Chemistry, No rth Staffordshire Colle ge of Technology, Stoke on Trent, on ff THE USE OF I ONISI NG RADIATIO NS Il

HER MAJ ESTY' S I NSPEC TORS OF EXPL OS I VES :

ANNUh.L REP ORT , 1 96 1.

T he Annual Re p ort of He r Ma j e st y ' s I n s p e ct o rs of Ex p losive s u1v,rays ll rovid e s interes tin g and s a lut a ry readi ng for 0.11 conc e rn ed i n t h o ha n d ling , st o ra g e and us o of ex p l o siv e s a n d h i g hly infl amma bl e li q uids. I t is El rmlst for all pe tr ol e u m c,ffic o r s a n d t h oir st a ffs, if only b e c a us e , by r e p o rting in d ot a il acci d e nt s whic h actually oc c urr e d in va ri o u s a r ea s, rural on d urban, d uri ng t h o y ea r u nde r r ev i ow , t he Re p o rt b ri n g s home an awa r e n ess of t he ha z a r ds th a t a r e av e r p r ese nt i n t h e ' storago a n d ha n d ling of e xp losiv e ma t e ri a ls in g en o r a l and p etrol e um s p irit in p a rti c ul a r. 1 · ' i

, Havin g r ead a nd d i g es t od t he Re po rt and p erh ap s breat hod u si g h of r e li ef t h at no n e of t he r e p or te d h av o ocourro d in our a r ea s, it ma y b e ''-fe ll t o i nd ul !;o i n a li ttle s t oc k t aki n g . S om e acci de nts ar e unh a pp il y u nav i odabl o , a lt hou g h t hat bal d st a tome nt d oo s not d i mini sh a n y p os s ibl e tr a g ic c ons oq u e no o • Mo st a c c i d e nts , howeve r, 1 i k emo st ro ad acci de nts, c a n bo p r ovent ed a n d t he loc a l a ut ho rity vrhos e offic o r s ar e k oe n , e f f i c i e nt and z ealou s and wh o ar o able by p ersu a si on t o ob t a i n t ho full i nd'eed t h e oage r ef li conse e s and th e i r s t uf fs , aro thos e wh o st a n d t he b ot t e r ch a nc o of avo idi n g uny f o rm of a cci de nt wh ic h , how eve r s li g ht i n t he went, may at s ome sta g e b o a h i g hl y p ot e ntial d is as t e r.

F amili a rit y b r e od s cont emp t, a nd wo are all awa re of t he c a r e l ess n o s s o r th ou g h tl e ssnes s sh avrn by a s rnu ll mino rit y of po r son s , vvh o hav e by c ontinu a l us age a nd ha n d li n t; , become i nd if fe r e nt t o the ri sks invo l ved Wo wo ul d su gges t t o memb e rs t hat fr om t he de t d l s s ot out in t he Re p o rt, an oxt r act b o takon , submi ttod t o t h e ap p r o p ri at e Commit te o of t he ir Council and t hen p os sibly b y r oso luti on , c i r c u l a tod t o l ic e ns ee s . The s mall a mount of l ub our i nvo l vod IllUy w e ll p ay d i v i de n ds

T he Re p o rt, whi ch c nn b o obt a i ned fr om Ho r lvIa j os tyl St a ti o nery Offi ca , 2 , Ed mund St r e ot, Birming h am 3 P ri co 2/1 0d (I n c. p os ta g e) , vd ll b o th e su b j e ct of a a rticl e i n our n oxt is sue

NEWS IN BRIEF

APPOHIT MENT S •

M.r. C.O. I nnes J ones, B .Sc., M.I.C.B., M.I. Mun.m., A.M.I .W.E., F.R.S.H., Borough Engineer and Surveyor, Royal I Leamington Spa sinDe 1946, has relinquished his post upon beooming the first Engineer .. Manager of the new South Warwiokshire Water Board. Taking over his post is Mr. R.G.W. Drnitt, M.I. Mun.E., A.M.I.C.E., Dip. T.P., A.M.P.T.I., previously Deputy Borough Engineer, Surveyor and Planning Officer at Margate.

Mr. H.W. Garrutt (Chief Building Surveyor, Birmingham) has 'been appointed to the Joint Fire Prevention comridttee of The Central Fire Brigade's Advisory Councll.

REI'I REMENT

•

Mr. B.J.P. Slack, A.F.I.P., Manager, Pump and T Seotion, Engineering De po. rtment, Ess 0 Petroleum Co. Ltd., (Assooiate Member), who has been closely connected with the Group since its inoeption retires from his position with Esso on the 31st. March, 1563, after 35 years service with the Company, 31 of whioh were spent with the Pump and Tank Seotion. We extend to Mr. Slack our best wishes for a long and happy retirement.

NEW" MEMBERS. I .

Coventry City Council Mr. A. Leese, A.M.I. Firf! E., Chief Fire Offioer •

Derby County Borough Council -Mr. W. R . Matthew-si, M.I .W . MeA., Chief I nspector of Weights and Meo.sures. "

Evesham Munioi pal Borough Couneil Mr. J. Hodson, B.Sc. (Eng.), A.M.I .C.E., A . M.I. Mun. E ., Borough SUlVcy()r. '

Gloucester City Council Mr. R. Crowther, Chief Inspector of Weights and Measures.

Mr. L. Burrell, D.P.A., M.I .W.MeA., Chief Weights and Measures, Angus C.C. (Associate) •

1I MOll.M.A·,

Insp or of

Mr. J .R. Coombes, Technical Manager, Wheeled VeHioles, Measrs. Thompson Bros. (Bllston) Ltd. (Associate) I

Mr. K. Sherwood, A.F.I.P., Manager, Pump tond Tank: Section, Engineering Department, Esso Petroleum Co. Ltd. (Associate). Mr. Sherwood suoceeds Mr. Slack in this ap p ointment. (See 'Retirement' above).

NEXT MEETI NG •

The Annual General Meeting of the Grou p will be held at the Council House, Solihull, Warwickshire on Tuesday 2nd. !April, 1963. The Worshipful the Mayor of Solihull, Councillor J .L. Shepherds on, J.P., 0.0. will extend an official we100me members at 10.30 am. The Annual General Meeting will take p1ao e during the morning session. At 2.15 pm. a paper " Pi p elines" will be presented by G.A. Parry Esq., M.S'c., F.lnst. Pet., Manager of the Pipeline De partment, Head Office, Shell-Mex and B.P. Ltd. Shel1 Mex and B.P. Ltd. are one of El. of oompanies oomprising the United Kingdom Oil Pipelines Ltd. Light refreshments I kindly provided by the 1J!ayor, will close the eting at 4 pm.

WEEK SCHOOL PROGRA:r",lili E.

The syllabus of the residential mid-week school to be held at the Shropshire Adu lt College, Attingham Park, Ne ar Shrewsbury, from Monday to Wednesday the 29th. April to 1st. May,1S63 has nO\i.,. been finalised.

Students ass amble on Monday between 5.0 and 6.30 pm. Mr. R.L. Bloor is the administrativo offioer and 'will rece ption and administrative details.

Sir Georg e T revelyi:m, Bt., MeA., Warden of the Colle ge , will exte'nd a welcome to students at 6.30 pm.

During, the p eriod of the Course, the followin g papers win be presented :..;

The and Petroieum Spirit

Petroleum Law and Administration

Planning ' and The Petroleum Officer

The Installation of Underground Tanks

The Testing of and Existing Petroleum Spi rit Under g round I;tora g e Tanks

The' Cons 'truction; Operation and Ma intenance of Petrol Pumps

The Practical , App lic a tion of , . The Electrical Req uirement s of The Mode l Code

The Pre-Licensin g Requirements of The Wes t M i d l and s Petroleum Acts Adini:nistration Grou p

Future T rends in ' Service and Safety

Petroleum Conveyance

W M F.R.I.C., City Ana lyst, COVENTRY.

T.J. Metcalfe, F.I.W.MoA., Chief Ins p ector of Wei ght s · and Measures, SMET HWI CK •

W.C .R. Dale I A oF .1 .P ., Public Control Dept., LONDON COUNTY COUNCIL.

R .S. Rou s eman, A. M.I. Mech. E., She ll Mex & B.P. Ltd., Midl a nd Division.

J. Bee r, M.I.W MoA., Chief I nspect or of Weights and Measures, CITY OF WORCESTER

G.Ashley, Liason En g ineer, Wayne Tank & Pump Co. Ltd., BRACKNELL Be rks.

J .A. Sharp, A .1 .E.E., Senior Assistant .. Engineer, Midlands Electricity Board.

M Gee, Grad. I., Fir'e E., Fire Prevention Off ioer, WOLVERHAMPTON

' R.:M Phill i p s, BoA (Cantab), F" Ins t. Pe t., Senior Engineer, British petroleum.

J. Bee r, M.I.W M A ., Chief Ins p ector of Weight s a nd Measures, CITY OF WORCES TER.

On t he last evening syndicate re po rtE will be discussed by a Panel comp rising Messrs. R Griffiths (Chairman), M Gee, . J .A. Shar p , J. Beer and R. M. Phillips. ·

An exhibition of will be , staged during the oourse of t h e school.

USI NG PETROLEUM SPIRIT.

To The Editor, "The Bu11etin'i. Sir,

I submit the following re ply to "Sabrina! s" enquiry in the third issue of I1The BUlletin ll •

He, or she, asks if the Petroleum Off icer is res p onsible or controlling, amongst other things , cellulose paint for sprayi g. He, or she, understands that some Local Authorities have lice ce conditions covering such use.

Section 1 of the Petroleum Act, 1 928 , has been quoted as an argument for licensing Pet ro1eum Mixtures, and justifiably, because these mixtures are brought within the scope of that Act by Section 1 9 and by the Pet roleum II/[ix tures Order, 1 929.

But the Cellulose Regulations of 1934 defines Cellulose Solution as being "any solution of inflammable liquid of cellulose acetate, of cellulose nitrate, of celluloid or of af Y other substance containing cellulose acetate, cellulose nitra e or other cellulose compound with or without the admixtures of other aUbstances l1 It is we ll known that many cellulose paints do not contain any petroleum.

I consider it would be necessary to p roduce an certificate to prove that any cellulose p aint in question did, in fact, contain a p ercent ag e of petroleum.

Another reason why I do not think Petroleum Officers have jurisdiction over cellulose is that Cellulose So lutions Regulations re fe r only to the Chief Ins p ector of Faoto.ries. For instanoe lilf t h e Chief Ins p ector of Fac tories is satisfO ed in res p ect of any factory or wo rksho p or any class 01' process •• 11 And in Regulation 14 we read "The Occ u pier sha ll allow finy Inspector of Fa ctori e s to t ake samp les 17 • Whereas the Petr leum Act, 1928 st a tes IiAny Officer authorised ••••••• may purch ase samp les' ; . The phrase "Any Off i cer authorised" means authorised under the Petroleum Act s and does not, I su bmit, include a Factory Inspector.

Therefore, I am of the oplnJ.on th at y{h ile it a pp ears desirable to licence P etroleum :Mixtures in spraying booths, it does not seem to me to be p ossible in the case of Cellulose Solutions.

It is I nid down in Section 1 9 of the Petroleum Act, 1928, !lHer Ma jesty may by Order in Council a pp ly to any substanoe any of the provisions of this Act s pe cified in the Order ••••• 11. I a not aware of any Order in Council having been made in the oase of Oe11u10se Solutions.

Yours faithfully,

Dudley. L.A. CAVE.

HqLE.

To Tho Editor, liThe Bulletinll.

Sir,

I have read the last i3su e of "The Bulletinll with considerable interes 'b , and would be gr::lteful of the opportunity to comment on Mr c Cnvo l s report on the Ltartling experience of members of hiG staff, l'egn:'ding an outbreak of fire in a manhole.

I cannot recollect the reporting of an accident of this nature before, and when one considel'S the thousands of petrol pumps tested by of woights and measures and consequen'bly th e of ti mes pet rol is returned to underground ta nk s eo.(;h year; .i-c C8n only be conoluded that some unusual circumstanc es in this case. I would suggest that these u nusual circumstances were created by the fitting of a l'ubbc:c hose the bsse of the funnel.

Mr. Cave states tru,rc s'l::;atic does form on nylon, that there o ould have been a bu:'..ld.·up of static in the funn e l, and that any spark had to jump a four-inch gap from the top of the rubber to the metal fill-pipe. I assume from these facts that Mr. Cave believes that a four-inch air gap is much too big for any static olectricity likely to be built u p in the funnel t-o traverse. This view might be theoretically correct, but in practice can one be sure that thi n four-inch gap is maintained? Conditions might arise t o lessen the line of least resis'bance '1:;.0 less than four inches. A crack in the rubber hos 6 may shortE3nthis distance or the static electricity may run down ohMs inside of the funnel and aoross to the inside of the metal fill-pipe. Obvious ly, the fitting of the hose to JGhe base of the funnel prevents the danger of sparking when the funnel is inserte d into tho metal fill-pipe, I do believo a g reater danger is created owing to th e insulation botween funnel and fill-pipe when unforese en condition3 oonlc1 doveloiJ to all.ow the p roduction of El spark as static electl'icity is seoking out a line of least resist ance. I believe it is taking a risk to have insulati on of this k :' r..u when :::;tatic e lectricity is present, and O!le wh::'ch iG nr)t wo rt h taking.

The· risk of spark .for:mution from static electricity could riot possibly a ri se if th e funnel remained uninsulat ed and t he static electricity allowGcl ':GO go t o earth thr ou gh metallio oontinuity be17ifeen funnel and me'cal fill-pipe and not via an air gap. Petrol tankers always have metallic oontinuity between tanker and fill-pipe because of t he danger of static eleotricity, and it doess eem to me that the anS1'fer is to have a funnel made of a non-ferrous metal, or at least to have the base made of a n on-ferrous metal. In this wa y the danger of s pa rking 'whon the funnel is inserted into a metal fill-pi pe would be eliminated and metallic oontinui ty would be reasonably ma i n tained to deal with any static electrioity which might be present.

Yours faithfully,

Chesterfield.

J. BI RKS •

MISCELLANEA

LEAKAGE IN PEr ROL

TANKS.

Air Testing Fails to Disclose the Souroe.

Early last year the Kent Fire Brigade was asked to deal with a situation involving leakage of petrol into a cellar under the forecourt at the large garage of Southern Autos. Ltd., Eastbrook Place, Dover, on which were five delivery pumps

An attendance with the station offioer in charge rwas made, and on arrival it was found that the oellar, whichwaJ about 30 .f'\:;.x 30 ft .. in area and about 5 ft. high, was full of petrol fumes and that a small quantity of spirit was seeping into this area from a hair crack in the south wa1l As an immediate measure; the area surrounding the hair crack was baffled with wood and foam was used to blarti:et off the wa1l within the baffling to oover the crack and prevent further seepage. The atmosphere was irrespirable and men had to work in breathing

Pressure Test.

The fire prevention officer .attended with the looal petroleum officer and agreement was reached to test all of storage tanks and pipelines on the site. This was done Oy means of 10 lb. pressure of an inert gas on eaoh storage tank for El: minimum period of 24 hours. No leakage was found, and from local knOWledge it was supposed that this condition had al;'isen from an accidental spi1lage of spirit While the storage tf1. nks were , being filled. The petroleum officer now considered that the reasons fo r the presence of this vapour had been established and that it would cle a r by evaporation.

, Some tvfomonths later, hOW'ever, a further requesj was reoeived for he l p from S outhern Autos Ltd " when it was fo nd that the trouble had developed again and the va p our had bui t up to such an extent that it was necessary to build a sandbag all at the cellar entrance in order to contain the vapours and prevent possible spread and i gnition.

I

The 100£11 petroleum officer gave instruct.ions thfj-t stringent preonutions in 0 onnection with smoking, the use oB electric lights and fires, and any other sources should be taken. The conditions at this time were giving rise to anxiety, and suggestions we re made to the local authority t1at the oellar should be flooded with water in order to expel the vapours and make conditions safe for further work on what was now sJspeoted to be a leak in the storage vessels. , J

Strong objeotions were made to this, due to the ature of the soil and the p ossibility that the filling of the oel ar would so dispers e the vapours as to widen the hazard and create a danger greater than that which already existed. there was ,doubt that the walls of the cellar would contain -uhe water, and' the possibility of flooding many other premises to the ooncern of the authorities

Meanwhile the company were contaoting their supp iers with a view to seeing if their techni cal section oould assi t in any way by offering an immediate palliative to the danger f om the vapours whioh by now had been tested and found to be ex plos vel

Because of th e diff i culty of water t o the c e ll a r, a dec ision was ma de to e n do a vour to r ed uce t he exp losive natu r e of the situ a tion 'by un inhi bi tory foct o r within thev o. p our u re a To this end firemen, in rre a thing ins e rted abo ut 20 l b of dry ice whi c h wa s left for u p e ri od of 24 hou r s to d i ss i pate und t he a ir then test ed aga in wit h an ex p l o simete r "'Thich p r oved that t he mixtur e was still exp l os iv e

The next day anot he r a tt empt was made a l ong the same li nes a nd a f urt he r 1 00 l b of COl vm s p l aced i n the ce llar, but t wenty-four hou r s lat e r, vvhen a furth e r t es t vvas made yvi th t he ex p l o simeto r, the situ ati on wa s f ou nd to b e wo r se t han before.

Ri sk Clea r ed .

A conf e rence was he l d on site bet'7e oI'. t h e l oca l a uthority petroleum off i ce r , f ir e fri gade office::-s and mec.i-oers of t he company, yv- hen it vrQS deuided th nt t he wh i u11 WE'.8 yvithout vent il at i on of any so r Jc, wo uld now have to be vent il nted 'l'y means of the insertion of n 4 in, p i p e a t high l eve l cnd the subs e quent complete flo oding with vTate r. This cleared t he immedia:ce Va p OUl" r is k with i n t he ar ea , nnd it was dec i ded t hat th e wa t er sh ou l d '00 J,eft in for 4 8 hours b e for e being pump ed. away

Hcwev e r, th e next mc' ...:' : : 5 0. cli r ect o r of the company fill ed h i s co.r from a pump 00nnectod to one of the t a nks and a l mo st immed i a t e ly suffered a b r eakdovvn of his vehiolo by re ason of wate r in th e carburettor. . This coinc i ded w H ;h cu lls tho compa ny were r e c e i ving f r om d i sgruntled moto ri st::; 'who o. ls o vv ere suffe ri ng fro m the same thi ng It wus noy, es t ablished without uny dou bt t ha t there vr us n serious defec t i n at least one of the sto r o.g e t ank s, of wh ich there wo r e fiv e 0, 11 tol d , u ll of which h:1d been i n stnll e d i n o r ab out 1936.

The t a nk vr hich ' vms p r ov e d to bo defect i ve vra s c l e c r ed of its cont onts , pur ged wi th an inert ga s and s ubsequent l y fill ed wit h n wea k cement s ol utio n , as 0. dec isi on hc.cl h e en mndo to t ake this t a nk out of commiss i on complotoly. The p0 8iti on of tho l eak hav i ng be en esJe nblish ed, it was novr consicl o l' od 6 a fc t o pump out th e wat e r w hich h o.d 'l:l 8en put i nto the c e llur e.-nd 'Costs I'vit h i n .'jho oe ll n r und in ad j u c ent p l uces p roved t he utmosphere to be By arr angement wit h t he l oca l a ut hority, K (; nt Fi::- e Bl"i g o.clo ag re ed t o t e st th e r emaining t anks with nn ull a g e .lccmcl p ipe a ppu r :1 tus

Caused by

It wou l d u pp eu r f r om the hied"ory O[ thh; incident th a t there must ncvr ex ist s ome do ubt as t o th e valuo of n ir or ga s testin g of pe tr o leum sto r age t anks l7 i n situ' ! , as in this ca30 u11 t anks , p i p e li nes and ni r vents we r e subj ected Jco 0. p r os c ur e of 1 0 lb. for pe rio ds of from 24 -G O 50 hours without po si t i vo i;,ldic a tion of any defec t. Subs equently it ViTQS p r oved ry visual exnmin a tion t hat the r e wa s a holo in t ho bott om of one t a nk ben eath t he reinfo :'cir..g pluJc e i mmed iat e ly beloW the fill p i p e , p r esumab ly caused l"'y the <Iorrcinuu l us e of 0, di p sti ck It is o. ssum ed t h a t th e uir p r o 8 su!'e t est of f ective l y s ea l ed th e l eak and thus gave a f a lse i ndico.tio n of t he oond ition of the t unk , and net u nti l an externa l p r e ssur e test wa s exerted by t h e "va ter in t he vms t he fuult r evealod , although it se em s fairly c e rtain that n p r ol onged we t t est w ould hav e g i ven r,lenr indic at ion of the tonk f a ilur e

As th e s e sto r age ves so ls ha1 h een inst u ll ed and in continual use for a pe ri od of 26 yen rs, it would u pp ea r des irable that some mor e p ositiv e method of exami natio n of th e cond iti on of such vess e ls a ft e r 0. pe riod of suy, 20 yea rs should b e cons i do rod as n necessity.

With ncknovll edgements to flMotor Traderll

Extracts from l\IIinut es of a of the Mid l ond Prevention Officers, held at Wo lverh ampton on the GrOUlJ of 1962. 5th. Dece!nber, , I ,. I ;

Fires and Fire Prevention on SIll£\ ll River Craft •

Th e Hono'r u'ry Secre t a ry mentioned 0 r eport in "The Times " about u woman and a baby h aving been taken to a Luton Hosp it a l on the 24th . October, 1 962 , a ft er un ex p l o sion in a t wo -b e rth cabin oruiser stor ed i n u commercial ga ra ge in Iv]ano r Road , CUddington. Th e woman had been tr oL ted for cuts and burns a ft or ent e ring the cruiser to bre1iv t ea The child, a g irl aged n inet een months, had been p l ay i ng t wenty I yards away; she hud b een out abo ut th e face and b ody by g la[3 from wind ow s of 0. house nearby. '

The Hono rary Seoretary s a id he h ad mentioned t is subject at the same Committee meet i ng whe re one diffioulty foreseen vms the onfo rc ement of a ny l eg isl at ion whioh might be , pass e d. A memb e r of t he Committoe who wo r ked in a coast b. l area,wi,thmnny riv e r and s ea go i ng craft, havin g r ecoived notioe cif th e question, had sent for statistics and wa s ablp to :re po rt that in fiv e yoars t he re had b ee n no fil' es in his County potr oi eum s p irit as a fuel for boat s . :Mn rdon (Worcester), thou gh interested in t h is further informa tio n , I enquired Who. th e ::mSVier t o floati ng on WfiOh petr o l e Uin was ke pt? The r e was a n tanker ' disch a r g in g into t he riv e r - po r ho.psi the g r ou nd oould b eg rd:od so tha t tho s p irit flov{ed aV-Tay fr om t ho river? He sugg es ed, a Nati onal Codo for Boats similar t o th a t for Ca ravans. ho Chairman (Mr. M Gee) mentioned a forthcoming mee ti ng of Petroleum Offic e rs in Suss e x, London, t he Ea st and West Midl ands with r opresento.tive s of the Home Office at wh ioh it wa s hopod t o establish u Natio na l Ass oo iation of Petroleum I Officers; if this was formed poss ibly this might bathe means of initiati ng t he ac ti on Mr. Mu rd on sought.

Faotories Act, 1 96 1 Cellulose Soluti on s Regulations S .R. & O. 1 934 No 9gJ .

IvI:r". Ashl ey (Wals u ll) mentioned that th e Mi nut e of , a meeting of another Group had inclu ded a referenoe t o the administ rativ e p r oced ur e when moans of , escape wero inadequa o. He enquired whe ther an Off ioGr of t ho Firo Bri gade co uld in l\1.do in a Notioe und e r Soction i-JD of th e Ac t D. r efo rence to the " Regulations. H. M Ins pectors of Factories s oemed to va , in th e ir opinion und i n Vla ls a ll if th e ro was any criticism ef he manner in 'which the Regu l at ion s we r e administered it would be dealt with by the Ins p ector. The Cha irman ref erred to' accident in Glasgow'due t o th o misuse of petroleum s p irit. This accident, whio h had fatal results, t h r ovv Uj) th e questi about th e IlUS e" of petroleum s p irit in mnnuf Elcturo. Unt th e acoident, H. M I n s pecto r of Factories had insisted t ha t Was res pon sibl e for the use of pe tr ol eum s p irit, afte r the • , I o.ccid ent,wh en asked what aot i on ho p r oposed totako, ho ao bt e d his powers. As a result, th e Int o Mr. J.W Robertson, B,. L., Chief Ins pector. of We i g hts and W]o usu r es and Chief pot r oloum l Officer, h ad i ns titut ed p r oceod ing s. The Stipendiary in reaohi ng his deoision exp r ess ed his o p inion that Petroleum Officers we r e res pon sible for b oth uso und stora go • Th o ChciirIIl;Un oonsidorod that this decision uppliod equally 0 mixtures 0'£' petroleu m, such a s 0 ellulose pa ints t.hose , oont a ining nitro-ccllulose.

:Mr. Ge e said his Authority weronow: s p r().y booths .He added thnt the Executive Corrunitte e ,of tho West Midlnnds Petroleum L,ots Administration Grou p were oonsidering the matter with a view to reoommending th e ir members to license spraying booths.

It vvas agreed there members sh ould be oareful to use the p rooise ,wQros used in the statutes, e.g in the context 'k eep ' rather than I store! because the definitions g iven in tho dioti6naries vvero not th e same.

In view Jf the refer e me ,t ,o the Glas g ow ac)ident by the Chairman of tre Midland GrQu p of Fire Prevention Officers and to the from !1 Sabrina !1 and Wll'. Ca ve on the question of use of Petroleum Spirit and Cel lulose Paint, we re p roduce with acknowled g ements to li Th e Monthly Review", , ,J ournal' of tho Institute of Wei g hts and Measures Administration, det n ils ')f the ! Glas g ow Case ' to g ether "wi,th the decisio!l.)f the Sti p endiary Ma g istrat e (Editor)

On the lOth. December, 1 952 , a fatal accident')ccurred in a factory in whicn a youth vvas burned t"') death when carrying s p irit in ±Vi O op en p ails The s pirit he was carrying was :('or , use in a p roces s in the factory. The r e being some doubt as ,to whether proceeding s could be under the Faotory Acts, i decided that n test case sh"mld be t a ken by the Glasgow Wei g hts and Measures De p artment under ,a general (\ondition contained in the licence which stated that all ste p s should be taken at all times to prevent th e esca pe ofinflrummable va p our.

The questiO!. before the court then became vrhether the local a.uthority had p Olil or under tho Petroleum to make aonditions a p plioable to the use of , potr.)leum s p irit. At t h e first hearing the defence raised objection to the relevancy of the charg e and argued that the ?etroleum Act was an Act for the safe ke eping "')f petroleum s p irit, and t h nt the local authority could make of licence for saf e k ee p ing , but not for the use of p etroleum s p irit in the foctory. It was further a rgued t h at the only person who could make conditions for t he us e of p etr.)leum s p irit wa s the Seo retary of State, who had e xercis ed his p awe rs in making the Petroleum Sp irit (M ot.)r Vehicle ) Re gulotions, 1928, which deal with the k e eping and use of p etroleum s p irit for moto r vehicles.

The p rosecutor oontented himself with th e one argument that kee p ing meant kee p ing until the petroleum s p irit was finally consumed either in t he of or in m"')tor vehicles.

Tho Sti p e ndiary Wmg istrato, a pp reci a ting the imp ortance of the p oints at issu o , oonsidered the a r guments before . making his decision , which was as follo \'rs :-

liThe Res p ondents ar e char g ed that being persons to whom a p etroleum spirit licenco has been g ranted to store in their p remises at 78 , Tullis street , Glas g ow, p etr.)leum s p irit as set fo·rth in the said licenoe, they did on l Oth Decemb e r, 1 952" oontravene Condition 5 of t heir lic e nce by failin g to take ev e ry p recaution for preventing the leaka ge of p etroleum s p irit or the escape of inflammablo va p our and they did cause and p ermit. William Campbell ,a g ed 16 years, now doceased, to oarry in ±llIJ' o op ert p ails quantities of p etroleum s p irit amounting to four g allons from the BalG.ta Depo.rtment to the Curryin g in their p r emises: Contrary to the Pet,roleum (C ons"olidatipn) Aot I 19'28, Section 1 (3) . '

When th c complaint was call e d in Oourt th0 1 R0s p ondonts statod objections to the relevancy of the comp taint, (1) tha t Oondition 5 attached to th e lic onc c is ultra vires of the local aut ho rity and ( 2) that t ho o omp laint is laoki ng in specification. I cann ot a g r c E) t h at th0 objections stated arc Bound.

Tho Petr oleu m i:.. ct, 1 92 8, d e als with t he storag e, safo ke ep ing , US a a nd .hand ling Jf petr oleum and petr o 10um s p irit. Section 1 enabl e s a local aut h ority t o g rant a lic e nce t o Iteep potro1eum s p irit a n d Se ction 2 ( 3) giv es a ut ho rity to 10c a i authorities to attach to any p etrol e um lice n c e , such oonditions as they think as to t ho mod e of storag e, t h e nature and situation of th e p r emises in wh ic h , a n d th o n a tur e o f t h e g o ods with v{hich p etr o l e um s p irit is t o be stor ed , t he faciliti e s for tho testing of p etrol oum s IJ iritfr om ti mo to time, alld gen o rally as te tho saf e ke ep ing of petrol e um s p ir.it. Under t h at p rovision the local authority h a v e ma de a condition of lic e nce tha t the lic e noe hold e r must take ev e ry p r ooaution to p rev o nt t h e lo a ka g e of petroleum s p irit or a ny infl ammabl o va p our. The havo obj e ct e d t o this p r ov ision on th o g rounds t h at the 10 9 0.1 aut h ority have n o power unde r Soct ion 2 ( 3) to make a rw o0:ttdition dealing with t he us e or handli ng of petrol e um s p irit ad the p owers conforre d to th e m onl y r c l a t c t o st o r a g e a nd k eo p ing

I oannJt a g ro e that objection is sound. The Act is framod g e ne rally for t he prot ec tion of t ho publio in the use of p otroleum a nd petrol oum s p irit, a nd I cannot find any found 8ti on for th o narrow restrict ed v i ew whioh the w ould s ook t o a pp l y t o t he p rovisions. Th e safe ke ep in g of potrol e um s p irit, in my vi ew , mu s t b e e xt e ndod beyond the more stura ge of p etrol e um s p irit and cov o r t h e ma int e nano e of thp spirit for uso a nd in us e The o mp mvorin g p rovisions in seotioh 2 (3) must b a int e rpret e d reas onably a nd in my vi ew So cti'on 2 (3 ) I is sufficient "0pe r mit th e l oc a l a ut h ority t o at tac h Conditi on 5 t o the lic e nce. , ' I

I a m stre ngthene d in t h at viow by referring to Seoti on 10 C\Il.d Se ction 1 2 of t h e il. ct whi c h d o al wit h ( n ) tho us e of petr o l e um s p irit in mot or v e hicl e s and (b) t he us e of s p ecial olasses of p etrole um s p irit. It s eems t o me t h at those s p ooial provisi o ns in Secti on 1 0 a :n,d Se ction 1 2 Vl ore n ecc s s nry to p rovide an additiona l p rconution in relati on t o the use of p ctrolOUt-r s p irit in mechanioally p ro pe ll ed vohiclos a n d in s p o ci a l olass e s Of p etroleum s p irit. In t he and handling of t he normal p etroleum s p irit th e n o rma l us e of COnLme rc c th e ' p rovisio s of Section 1 and S e cti on 2 ( 3) must hav o be e n h e ld to be ade qu to. I r op el this objoction to th o r o levancy and hol d that oondi, ion 5 is within -I:;he p owors g runt od to th o l ocal uuthority in Sect on 2 (3) of th e L. ct.

. Th e uth e r objoction to this oomp laint wa s . th at .the oomp laint is lacking in s p e oificati on. Th e r e s p ondents mnintained that'th o char g e did not ex p iain in what vyay th oy ' had to tako the p recautions re q uired by ConditLm 5 of th e lioence. " It is surely vrithin the knmvl e d go of t he o ourt t h at p etroleum SPiil.t gives off a hi g hly va p our. Tho ·obmp laint alle g es that ap p roximatoly four g allons of petroleum s p irit was carried a lad of sixt ee n y e ars in tw o ope n p ails in such circlliustancos as · ould causo the o soap e of hi g hly va p our. In nw vi O'VJ' that is reasonabl o s p ecification that tho r e s p ond e nt s fuilo d to -tiako precautions t o p r event t he e sca p o Jf inflammabl o va p our. I

I oonsequontly ro p el thes e objoctions t o the r e levanoy a nd hold the oompl a i nt as r e lov ant u nde r the i l.ct " •

Tho case wa s lat e r h oard in th e Central Polic · Court, tho firm boing found guilty and fined £ 10 •

PIPING FUEL TO 'THE IVIT DLANDS.

If an a pp lication made earlierth2s year for authority to lay n p i p eline is grante d , an initial three million tons of oil a year will p ass through after it comes into op eration in 196 5/ 66. Annual throu g h p ut would increase t o six milli on tons by t h e 1 970's.

The a p plication was ma d e t o the Ministry of Pow er by United Kingdom Oil P i pelines Lt d Founder members are t h e Ess o , Mobil Oil, Petrofina, Re g ent and Shell-Mex and B.P. Oil C omp ani e s.

Oil su p p li e s f or t h e Midland s and much of London would p ass throu g h the pi p eline from the refineries on the Thames Estuary the Mersey and ' Southampton Water.

!1 Motor Trans p ort!1.

MIN IST RY APPOI UTMENT •

M r \IV M C J ones, vl1'ho was e d uoated' at the County Sch oo l, Mol d a nd University, has 'been a pp ointed the first Ins p ect o r under the Pi p elines Aot by the Minister of Power.

He will be . res p onsible f or a dvising the Minister on technio a l matters ariSing out of the a.dministrati on of the Aot, with a s p ecial c oncern for safety matters.

Among his f irst tas k s will be that ' of advising the Minister on details of t h e recent a pplioati on by United Kingdom Oil Pi p elines Ltd. , t o build a oross-country lin1c-UP . including the Ellesmere P ort .Rt?finery.

After g r ad uatin g fr om Liver p o ol in oivil engineerin g and g eolo gy, Mr. J ones s p ent four years with J,ocal authorities in Wallasey, Crevl e a nd Flintshire. He then joined the overse a s st a ff of t h e Burmnh Oil Comp any, and since then he has s p ent twenty-four years in the E a st, workin g in Bur xr.a, I ndia o. nd Pa k ist a n

Mr. Jones h a s h ad considerable exp erience of work on pi p elines, and during the p ast seven ye a rs has .been chief engineer onsevera1 xrnjor p rojects of t h is t y p e.

"Lhr e r p oo l P ost " •

See P a g e 82

ATrINGHAM PARK " SHREWSBURY.

The residential school will be held at the Shropshire Adult College, Attin,gham Park, Near Shrewsbury from Monday 29th. April until Wednesday tst. IvIa y, 1963. Those visiting the College tor the first time will find it a valuable experience to take part in a course in sur'roundings of great Georgian architeoture vdth all its spacious'ness and dignity. Whilst those who arc Park will find tho oourso and onvironment refreshing and reWo.rdinfo

Sir Georgo T rovelyo.n, Bt., M.A., Tho Warden, to weloome students, und at soriw sto.ge of the course conduot a tour of tho house, pointing out its architocturnl styl e and beauty. The following short d8scription of Attingham Park has been kindly provided by Sir Goorge.

Attingham Park is one of Shropshiro's finost country houses, built in the y oa rs 1783 87. The architeots of the period wore dirootly inspired by tho disoov e rios of freak and Roman civilization made in tho middlo of the 18th. ' , dtho olas sicnl style of architocture iri this oountry was adnVto.c'L np. refined to meet the tastcsof an ologant and aristocratio ' s ' ' iety. Attinghnm is a very beautiful exrunp10 of the period, builtb Georgo Steuart ' for the 1st ° Lord Berwick, who was a member of tho" ' " ' distinguished Shropshire family of The ect, who must not be oonfused with IiAthenian li stuart, was oonunissioned after he had oompleted Attingham to build St. Chad' s ShrewsbUry, giving us one of the finest Georgian churches in the Qountry. ' '

,

In 1947 tho 8th. Lol'd Berwick, shortly before his death, bequeathed the house and estc.to to the National Trust oTw p great showrooms are now open to the publio on Tuesday ond Thursday nf'ternoons (2.30 to 6.3°) • Lady Berwick has a ppo rtments t on the Ea st sido of the main blook ,and the , rest of the house has be n leased to the Governors of tho Shro p shire Adult College as a reside tinl centre for nduit education, running short coursos on many subjeots md open to all. Thus Attingham p rovidos of the ha pp iest solutions to the p roblem of finding a ' fitting usa for. th eg rent , 0 aunt ry hous o.s in our c hang inga g e °

The Exterior. " , Tl1.e ext e ri0J:" of the contral bloc,k is ,austere, w th little relying for effect proportion ond made imposing, from the dis"tnnt view from Tern Bridgf' by its immerise toniple-like portico. Tho pillars era in ,thr r' e groat drums of , sandstone from the Grinshill quorl'ios, recognisable by its mineral veining. The house is a brick struoture baced w th blocks of this fUl:nousbuilding stono whioh, was first used " by , tho Romans.

Ty p ical of tho classicb.l buildings, the design is , exactly sy!nmetricnl, -t;he oentral blO , ck boing f1 nnked by OOl0f:ndOS with the elongated oolumns which are a feature of Stmw.rt's ork.

The two elegant pavilions with their flnt pilus , ers were originally Library and Orangery, and are navy used as es ' ate office and the Wa rden's house °

A somewhat unusual feature is the way the oolonnaded wings ,e.re thrmyn so :far 'back. The explanation lies in nn in Attinghum architoo-bural history. St ouart , s grent houso was bu11 t on to tho front of the Quoen Anne house' ' belonging to the Noel-Hills" whioh was d.emolished in the 1 I,e.

Tern Hal1 comp l et e ly fill ed t he little o ourty a rd. What is left of th e outsi de wa ll is nov\, (lapped by a ba lustrade • The d u mmy windows in t he colonnade are in fact Tern Hall's drawi ng room ' ,windoW's blocked in and faced vve r wit'h st one The old house was, s o t o s peak ; swal.loWed u p by the new one .'

Beh ind the oolonnades li e s th e Great Office Court as it was c'alled , with its ' de1ightful olock t owe r and bell cu po l a '

The Front Ha ll.

Cl ea rl y t he e.rchitect was a i ming [It g iving the s ole mn effect of a temp l e ,e ntrance afte r one had pa ssed under t he g re a t po rtic o Ro u nd t he F r ont Hall a r e p ilast e rs and columns of It a lian lsc ag i ola l work , and on the g rey ma rbl ed wa lls are pa i n ted ' g risaill e ! pane l s of classical mytholo gy, giving t he effect of scul ptur ed reli efs .;

On ent e ring the front hall you may be sur p rised at not s ,ee ing the usu a l g r and stairc as e 'W hen Steu a rt ' buil t the house tho i nne r wu ll of t he front hall was l eft open , t he cou p led columnsEJtc.nding fre e and g i v i ng access t o 0. noble stairlTmy with .- w rou g h,¥ir on b ani.st e rs s v\'eep ing from ri ght to l ef t. The p lan of th e house, fi ne though it wa s, l oft no p l ace for a g r eat .bo.ll;l(oom or p ictur e , ga ll e ry, o.nd when t he 2nd . Lo rd Be r wi ck returne d fr om t he Grand Tour i n Itnly 'Ilvith his large c oll ac ti on of p ictures, he called ,i n the Regenc y n rchit ect , John Na sh, t o g ut Steuart's st a irc us.e and buil d h i m t he p r esent Gall e ry (1 8°5) • . httinghrum is t h us uvery int erest i ng combination of the of two g r eat a rchit eo ts.

The Picture

The Pj,cture Ga ll ery is an imp r e.ss i ve r oom with _C orinthiun columns ut e ith e r ond, lit from uboveby ooved c e iling This is of i nt e r est , for th e fr umewo rk of c us t ir on a rch e s was made in .Ab r aham Darby ' s wo rks at Coal then the g r e.at of th e industria l r ovo luti on Th is n ppen rs to be :t hE), f irst time that cast iron and g l o. ss We r e used as. u med ium for domesticarchiteo tur e , und wns nn expe ri ment which Na sh fo ll cwed in th o King 's Pav illi on a t Bri ghto n t en yeu rs I nt e r.

Behi nd fine maho ga ny doors we f ind Nash's staircase He wa s faced wit h a diff icult p robl em be0Quse Tern .Ha ll still sto od a f ew f eet .nway across the p resentcourtynrd.and he had t he r efo r e to g ot the maximu m effect i n t he mi n i mum of s pac e , He giv e s us .the ,mo st , ori g i na l circulur sta ircuse , th e banist. e rs of charniing vr r ou g ht ir OIlWQ l\k, th e mahogany .inlo.id ,and ,i:;he wall s fluted i n l? l uste r. ,

.' The p ictur e co ll eet i on is dealt with i n the Nut i ona l Trust o a t a l og u e ' ( 9d ) • Tho c ha r ming or ga n i n i t s She r at on cas e is a musical treas ure of t he h i ghe st p ossible int e r est " It is si gned nSmnuel(}r een , London, 17 88!1 GreeJ:1, :was our l ead i ng organ build e r of t ho and th t? o r gan is contempo r ary with the house . is i n pe rf ec t condition and is one of t he few or g ans of this pe ri od which have n ot been i n any way modernised.

Th e Drawing Room

Th e c olour sch eme of t h is noble room is n s p lendid example of lat e 18t h o entury decoration

The ceiling is by I talihn p last o r wo rk e rs who had a po. rtioui u r flair for this ty pe of' wo rk.Th e g ener·o.l eff eet of brillianc') i n t he r oom is . achiev ed by th e use of mirrors cmd go l d , the g r eat ch ande li e r b e ing reflect ed to infi n ity in the t wo o ppo sing mirrors.

ATTINGHAM PARK SHREWSBURY

The gilded furniture in this room and the Picture Gallery is n rare collection of the traditional Italian furniture of the Century, g reat in the use of ge sso and marble. h a s it that it wns once the roy al suite of Mn rshal lVIurat and his Queen Curoline Bonapn rte, when Napoleon hnd established him as Kin g of Na ples. The monograph on the day-bed is p ossibly the Queen's. The t hird Lord Bervvi ck was ap p ointed Ambassador to Naples by WilliC'4Tl Pitt" whos e po rtrait hangs above the mnntelpiece in the o ld dining roo m. He was in Naples after Murat's execution, und it se ems li ke ly that he then o.cquired th e roy a l suite to furnish his English cou nt ry home.

The ormolu t ab le-centre p ieces si gned Thcmire 1 Paris were made by Napoleon 's go l dsmi th and the set of ohina on the mantelpiece and in the big cu p bnard are by Dagoty, po rcelai!l maker to Empress J osephin e . ,

The ronrble figure of the nymph is by Canova (abJut 1800), who uls o carved the p ortrait bust of Pauline BorghesG another of Napo leon's sisters.

The Old Dining Room. , •

This r oom , now used as the chief lecture room for the Adult Colle ge , opens off the Front Hall and National Trust visitvrs are most we lcome to go in and s ee it, if lectures o.re not i n p r og ress •

The ceiling, a lsv by the Italians u nde r Steuart's direction, is a su pe rb and or i g ina l des i gn of g ra pe s and o oIf,' the theme repeated in tl;l e oornice cnd pane ls. Th e r()om is painted "Pompe ian red 'i , the bold colour scheme being entirely suc cessful throu g h t he breaking up with v,hi te und go ld. The po rtrait near the librury door i s one of t he p re sent Lad! Beyond this room is the Library, used by the College and containing shelves of finely bound volumes from the Benvick collection. The Room, formerly Lord Bervvick 's s and now used by th e Wa r den , is one of the most charm;i.ng exa of ' 18th. century indo o r decoration, aguin vvith It a lianceili and p ilasters r ound the 1;./a11s •

•

Over t he Front Gates is carved t he motto of Bervdck family, QUI UTI SCIT El BONA . This is pe rha p s best , translated I1To him who knows huw to use (them) a re ' the goo d I thi n g s (of this lif e) I! a no t unfittiJ;]. g challenge for the entrance gat e of an ad ult oollege.

Atti n g ham in an extensive park h y Humphrey Repton, who u nde rto ok the wo rk of clearing t he oourse of the River Tern v/h ich flows to the east of the house, so that u vieW' could be obtained of the point whe re it fla ws into t e Severn just beyond Tern Bridge. There is a delightful valk up lithe Mile Wa l k" beyond the g rove of cedars of Lebanon, and across the river is n deer pa r k with a herd of some 130 fallow deer. The Stable Block st ands on a rise to the of the house. It is a 'v{ell p ro po rtioned s qun re with a 9tone front, ty p ical of Steuartts vvork md once oontaining stnbli:qg for sixty hors es • The Wa lled Garden , now used as a ma rktet ga rden is hnlf a rnil e away, as was ubual in t he planning of Ithe 18th. oentury mansion.

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETINGS

MEETI NG HELD AT DUD LEY ON TUESDAY 2 2 nd . J ANUARY J 1 963 .

Present Apologies

G . N. Dean Esq . (Chairman) and l'Iossrs. J. Beer , R .L. B1 oo r, R P. i'ilr. S V. Rob ins on (F or C H Cr awf or d) , R E .J. ' R od en, J.A. Sha r p and the Hono rary Sec retary.

H. Griffiths Esq ( Vic e Cha irman) and Mr. A .E. Lyne.

Group Mee tin g

Th e Cha irman outlined the arrangements for the Mee ting at C oleshill.

Bulletin.

The Ed itor re p orted on the cost of p roducti on and the question .f 0. cha r ge pe r copy was discussed It was felt, however, that as t he Grou p had dee ided t o issue a "B ulletin lf quarte rly for t we l ve mont hs , t he best time to dis cuss its future wo uld be at t he Annual Heeting in Ap ril, 1963.

Spraying Booths .

After c onside r ab l e discussion on this it em , it was agreed to defer t he matte r until t he next }/Ieet ing t o enable me mbers to study conditions of licence 'for S p raying Booth s, submitted by Gee o.nd t hose conta ined in Dr. Watt 's "Law Relating t o Pet r oleum Mixtures 11 •

L ic e C

ondi

t i ons •

Th e att a inment of unif.rwity, whe r e p ractio ab le, in administration, being one of the ma in objects of t he Grou p , Mr. Gee k ind ly offo r ed to ana lyse the L i cence Conditions a pp li ed hy t he of tr,e Conunit tee and submit his su g g e stions to t he next Meet ing

Pilot Heeting .

The Chairman r e p o rt ed on the p r ooeed ings at th e Meetin g in London on t he 1 7th . Decembe r, 1 96 2 , attended by sev en Membe r s of t he Wes t M i dlands Gr ou p A further Re p ort will,..-.e f ound on Page 35 in Bull et in No 3

1IlEETI NG HELD AT DUDLEY ON TUESD AY 19th. }iiARC H, 1 96 3

Present Apologies

G.N Jl ea n Esq (Cha innan ) H Gr if fiths E s q (Vice-C ha i rman) und Hessrs R .L. Bloo r, C . H . Cr awf o r d , lVI. Gee , R . P . Ho l dawuy , F.A. LynEij R E .J. Roden , J.A. Sha r p and the Hono r ary Sec ret ary •

An apology was r ece i ved from IvIr. J. Be e r.

Forecourts Condition No'3 . 3 e;,nd 4. I

The Chairman read lengthy correspondence the Petroleum Companies on these items and considerable discussion ensued resulting in a decision that No. 3 (Vent Pi pes) remain unaltered and that No 4 (Tanker Stands) be amended by reducing the tv1JO distan')es of fourte e n feet to four fe e t. 111r. Sho.rp kindly offered to produce sufficient )o pios of the ame.ndeo, minimum requirements for Forec ourts ete ., and these 'vf ill be a t the earliest opp ortunity.

Mid Week School

The Hcrior ary Seoretary re p orted that the Clerks of all Local Authorit y Hembers had beon droulated

Bulletin Costs

The Editor submitted a statement of the cost involve d in producing liThe Bulletin" , und it was res oJ.vedthat as from April , 1963 eGpies should be made available at the Jate If one pe r Local Autho rit y Member , one p er Associate lliember und that additional co p ies could be obtained at a Subsc ri ption ate of 5/- pe r copy.

Ljungman's Self Ometer .

The Hono rary Sec r etary read corresp0ndence from ¥.lr. R Billings of Plymouth, where 0. Service Station (;f these instruments is in course ef cGnstruetion , and submitted plans ef the p ro po sed layout. The Committe e felt that bef(;re making any comment, further pa rtioulars were desi rabl e and t.jhe Seo r etary was askeu. to o'\:)tain these from Mr. Billings •

Honorary Membe rshi p •

. The Chairman PGinted out that althou g h the had been in existance for nearly riv e ye a rs, and the provided for the conferring of Honcrary Membership on pe rsons who had rendered exce ptional servic e to t h e Grou p , no one had , as yet, been so honoured . He sugg ested t hat Honorary Membership should be bestovfed on t h e f oll ow ing :;.J ers ons :-

1. J.A. Shnrp Es q " A.I E E 2. R M Philli p s Esq ., B oA (Cantab.), F. Inst. Pet 3 •• ViI R C Dale Esq., A F I P 4 B .J.F. Sl ack Esq., A F.I P.

Ap plication for Membershi p .

Th e Secretary reported seven a pp licntions for membershi p nr associate The Committee ngreed .

L i ason Off ioer.

The Honorar;1 Sec ret ary state d in vievv of the fact that the Chairman would vacate that office in Ap ril, and in . order to retain his active service to t he Grou p , it was thou fl ht desirable to a pp oint him as Liason Officer The Secret ry went to inf orm the Committee that as he (the Secretnry) would be retiring in 1964 ,' it wo uld p r obab ly be better if Mr. Dean Wer e a pp ointed as ,Wssistant Se cretary and thereby.' be ini u p odtion to take; over full S'e er etaryship in 1964. ' This w s agroed. However, t he Hcnorary pO J.nted out the , it would be a for intense re g 'ret to him to ' g ive u p the office, and said if means found whe reby h'e could carry on the ·wo:.. 'k, he wo uld 'be deli g htod The Committee a g reed to look into the p ossibilities •

Spraying Booths

, This adjourned item was again introduced by Mr. Gee It was obviouCl from the start that ()onsiderable divergence of opinion Gxisted in the Gonunittee as to Cl. Petroleum Officer has the power to control Spraying Booths So acute was the difference of thou g ht that 'a lthou gh one Condition vvas a g r eed " it was appa r e nt that progreso wo uld be painfully sI ovv" • Time bEl in g's ho rt , 'i t '''as therefor e decided ( 1) .that the opinion of the HonoraJ:"lJ Le ga l Advisor be sought on the p owers of Petroleum Officers in 00nnection with Spraying Booths and (2) that D. full session be g iven to framin g Conditions when the opinion of the Ho n orary Lega l Advisor is knovm.

Annual flleeting Arran g ements .

The Honor a ry Secretary re po rted thes e were in hand and would be Cl ircul a ted without delay.

Any Other Business.

(I) ('2)

It was agreed ,that !TThe Bulletin" Editor should be an ox-officio member of the Executive Conunittee. A query from , Mr. Burrell (Ang us e.c.) re g arding the bendl.ng of Suction ,and Vent P i pe s was considered

The Hono rary Secretary was instructed to re p ly on the' lines indicated.

I t was ag r eed to disc ontinue the Annual ' Subs0ription to the Institute of Petroleum.

The Chairman su gges ted that a useful innovation would be to sta g e D. Mock Prosecution

The Conunitt oo decided to further consider this item.

M I se ELLANEA • Continued from Page 76'.

Pipeline Pact Criticised.

The a g reement between Trunk ripelilles and British Railways and the British Waterways Board is strongly criticised in a Conunons Motion by back bemh M P .'s. ' They'describ e it 'as tantamount to Gxtension of nationalization of p rivat e industry ry methods.

Construction of a 262 mile long ,o il pipoline from Canvey Island, in th e Thames Es \u ary, to Ellesmer o Port, Cheshire, is contemplated in the p rofit sharing a g reement. The M P • ' s view the re p orted agroement wi th conoern. Demands for a debate are " expected.

The ir resolution points out th a t under it the no.tionaliz eO. bodios have secured a righ" to acquire a 50 % stak e in its equity of the p rivate company and possibly to acquire its assets at some uns pec ified date The motion makes , plain M P. ' s belief that such an agreement is contrary to the whole tenor of the Pi pelines Act, 1 962

lIDaily Telegraph"

PRACTICAL PROBLEMS

JThe Fire Service Committee of the Ass ociation of Munici pal Co r porations have rece ntly had oorres p ondence with the Home Office concerning the licensin g of garages etc., where p art of all the p etrol on the premises is in the ruJl tanks of motor ve1:licles •

We re p rint this corres p ondence, which a pp e ' red in the " Munici pal Review" Supp lements dated September , 1 2 and February, 1963, with acknowledgement to the Assooiation of Municipal Cor p orations. , ' I

,

Petroleum Spirit Licences . We are asking the Home Qffice to consider the Petroleum Spirit (Motor Vehicles etc.) Re gulations, 1 92 9 , to provide that whe e potrol is c ontc.inod in the tc.rL<:s of v ahic l:lt:! !!tored within enclosed p remises t he Re gu1ations should be deemed to a pply to suoh premises and regard should be paid to the number of vehicles stored in the premises instead of the number of gallons which mi g ht be oontained in the tanks of these vehicles. We ho p e t hat it may be possible by this means for local aut h orities to establish more adequate oontrol over such p remises as basement and sub-basement gara g es, multi-storey car parks and motor vehicle showrooms. We do not feel it is neces,sary to seek to a pply the Regulations t o car parks in the open air, provided that no is stored at ! such car parks otherwise than in the tanks of the pari ed vehicles.

We have consi d ered t h e following reply from the Home Office.

' I

We cannot of course ex p ress an authoritatii e opini on on a quest ion of law, but our vi ew is, and we have so informed local aut horities who have raised th point with us, that Secti on 1 of the Petroleum (Consolidation) Act, 1928, ap plies to garages and the like where part of all the petrol on the premises is in thl fuel tanks of motor vehicles , and accordingly that ap propriate precautions may be imposed by the lioensi authority as conditions of the licenoe. As regards the smaller premis es where less than, sixty ' gallons of petroleum s p irit is being kept, inoluding that in t.he tanks of vehicles, we recognise that oases may oocur where conflicting oonsiderations may arise in virtue of the ?etroleum Spirit ( Motor Vehicles) Regulations, 1929, and that there is an argument that the Regulations sh uld be modified to r emove possible about t h e p ositi n of these premises •

• The p oint is one which we have' noted for f rther consideration, along with others , in'a review of the 92 9 Regulations . We have noted your sugg estions in the matter and bear them ,in mind

We have noted the ' present position and will ask that the Association be consulted when the 1929 Regu1atio s are under review.

GROUP MEETING

i· /. I .:; i " , ' t t., ) ,(\ '-A L

A meeting of the Grou p was held at the Co unoil House, Coleshill on Thursday 31st. January, 1 963 There we re present 37 Local Autho rity Representatives, 11 Assooiate Mem("3rS, 3 Technioal Officers and 7 Visitors.

The Chairman, Mr. G N Dean, introduoed Counoillor R.J. Earlo J.P., Chairma n of the Meriden Rural District Council Extendin g. a cord ial weloome t o delegatas, Councillor Ea rle referred to the imp ortant wo rk and duties of these res p onsible for the administration of t he Petroleum Acts, and trusted that the meeting would be of valu e to the offic ers c cncerned, and that delegates would enjoy th e surroundings of the nevv Council Chambe r. He then invited all p res ent to p artake of coffee and biso uits. Mr. Dean, on behulf of the 'uombor&, thanked Couno illor Ea rle for his we lc ome and hos p Hality. "

APOLOGIES. 21 a p olo g ies 'were received.

REPORl'S. The Group Meeting Repo rt of the 1st. November, 1962 and tlote Ex ecutive Coromittee Reports of the 23 r d October Ul'.d4th, December, 1 962 wero confirmed.

MATTERS .ARI SI NG.

Spra;ying Booths. The Hcnorary Secretary informed membe rs Bulle;;in.

that the Execut iv e Joromittee we r e actively enga g ed in draw ing u p sug g ested cOLditions of licence to cover s p raying booths.

Mr. Metc a lf e ref u rred t o the cost of prod ucin g "The Bulletin" and asked if the p r esent subscription rat e was sufficient to oover this cost. Mr. Beer a n d tho Editor bri ef ly r eplied to the e ffect tkut costs w ere heavy and that the Ex ecutive Ccromittee would oonsider the q uesti on a nd re ll ort to the Annual Me e ting , wh ich will be held in Ap ril.

The C ai rn.an t hen calle d u p on Hr. B E Mills, B .Se " Locturer in Ra d io Chemist ry at the North Staffordshire ('ollego m.' Teohnolo g y, Stoke on Trent, to p resent his pap er entitled " T\o Use of Ionising Radiati o1 s fl ,

In intro d ucing his p a p er, Mr. Mills dealt first of 8.11 with t he nature of io:rising r adiutiolts u n d t hen with misoellaneous ind ustri ul a pplications, making s pe oiul to th e Petr oleum Industry.

THE USE OF IONISI NG RADIATIONS

by B. E. Mills, B.Sc., Lecturer in Radio Chemistry, North Staffordshire Coll e g e of Technology

The use of radioactive mat erials is becoming widespread in industry, medicine, and res earch; it is becoming more necessary that peo p le should have a n appreciation of these us e s and the p0ssible hazards associated with these app l ications. Th e be ginnin i:, of this a p preciation mus t b e gi n with an insi ght into t he "privat e life of the atom".

This private commences about 500 B.C. wh en certain Greek philosophers, conc e ived the idea that matter was made up of small particles, grains or se eds, these particles we re giv e n the name "atom" (=indivisible or uncuttable). The philopophers, Democritus (468-37Q B.C.) and Le ucippus, a contemporary of De mocritus, were t h e two philosophers who intro duced the concept of atomism i.e. the discontinuous nature of matter. The atomic theory of Democritus and Leucippus was, how e ver, based on such flimsy g rounds t hat Aristotle (c. 340 B.C.) was able to bring to b e ar such destructive criticism that the theory ceased to occupy the f oremost place in Greek thought. Only i n the last 70 od d years has it be e n possible to verify that mat t er is disc ontinuous, and nowa days the conc ept is univers a lly a c ce p t e d as a fa c t rath er than a the ory. Another conc e pt which has consi d erable b earing on our " b i og raphy of the atom" is that the vast multitude of s ubstan ces known to exist in th e Universe is i n fa c t d e ri v ed from quite a s mall number of substances call e d" ele me nts", i. e. substanc e s which cannot be broken dow n into simpl e r substanc e s by chemical means. They may be c onsi c l ered as th e "building blocks" f r o m which all other are built.

It 'rhe world o f ch emical r eactions is like a stag e on which scen e aft e r sc e n e is ceasel e ssly p lay ed. The actors on t h e stage ar e th e e l emen ts".

When e l e ments combi n e or join to ge ther they prod u ce materials called comp oun ds. The number of elem ents is quite smal l, 103, yet the number of co mpounds is quite co n sidera ble, well over a million. Th e atom is the smallest possible particle of an el eme nt, each el e ment has its own particular kind of a t om. Symbols are used t o re p res ent the atoms of th e elements.

e.g. H is the sy mbol re p rese nting th e hydro g en at om 0 11 " " 11 " oxyg en " C " " tl " " carbon " U It " " " !I ura n iu m "

When atoms j oin or uni t e t he r e sultant p article is called a molec ule, e g . t wo oxyg en at oms u nit ed t o one carb on atom produ ces a mol e cul e of a compoun d call e d carbon dioxide, CO 2 • Any partiole c onta i ning two or more atoms "joi ne d to g ether" is called a molecul e to distinguish it from a n atom.

ULTIMATE p articl e s of co mp ounds ULTIMATE partic l e s of el eme n ts

..

MOLECULES ATOMS

Structure of the atom.

The c on cept of a ,1 atom as a n indivisible particle be gan to give way in the lat t er half of the 19th century. At that time the atom's e ssentially electrical character began to s h ow itself, i.e. e x periments could be devised in which the atom behaved as it were an e lectrically charged particle. Again, at the end of c. he 19th century certain atoms were found to disintegrate, i.e. b re ak down, spontaneously by the emission from the atom of highly energetic electrically charg edjparticles. This indicates that the atom was net just one piece of matter as originally thou ght, but itself composed of s maller particles. The following is a necessarily simplified picture of the a tom as indicated by present knowledge:-

(1) Atoms poss es s weight. Atomic weights are simply a means of comparin t; the weights of a n atom with the weight of a standard atom,

e.g. a to mic we i ght of oxygen = 16 ato mic weight of carbon = 12

i.e. The oxygen atom is 16/12 times hea vier than the carbon atom.

It is n" w possibl e to determine the actual weight of an atom, oxygen atom weighs 16 x 1. 66 x gram, i.e, 5.855 x 10 4 lb. This mea ns there are 17 x 10 atoms per lb. of oxygen,

(2) The atom ca n be basically divided into two parts

(a) A small central part, called the t-.'U CLEUS, in which most of che weight of the atom is concentrated; nuclear material has a very hi {:,h density app r ox. 10 tons per cu. inch.

(b) Surrounding this nucl e us, at a relatively large distance are a number of much lighter particles called electrons. There are arran ge c! in a series of "shells" at various distances from the nucleus. This picture of the atom is similar to the solar system, ioe. heavy sun surrounded by the li ghter pla net s at relatively lar ge distances from the sun.

Some i d eas concerrJing the small size of the atom may be obtained from the following:-

If an atom could be magnified so that the nuclet!s · would be the size of a g olf ball, then the distance across an atom of uranium would then be rather more than a third of a mile ••••• perhap s this helps to realis e t ha e atom is mainly empty space.

The nucleus · only occupies a minute fraction of the total volume of th e atom, i8e. a one million millionth part,

It is ne \".' nec e ssa ry t u have a clos er look at the atom ••••• ELeCTRONS: much light e r than the lightest atom, e.g. the hydrogen at"m is about 1 840 times h ea vier than the electreno The electron c an be fairly readily obtained from any k ind of matter, e.g. detached from metals by heating (thermi on ic valves), or from some materials by exposure to li ght (photo-electric cells) etc. They are charged with electricity of' the negative

It is the electrons, Le. number of thEm! and the way they are arranged around the nucleus which principally determines the chemical properties of the a tom. :NUCLEUS: more compl e:x t han ori ginally thought •••••• composed of smaller particles called nucleons; there are two kinds of nucleons, i.e. protons and neutrons.

Protons: possess positive char ge of the same magnitade as that possessed by the electron. Their mass is about tne same as the hydrogen atom. The pre se nce of this particle l in the nucleus gives to the nucleus a positive charge, tfu

number of such charges being equal to the number of pro to s in the nuoleus, and since the atom is electrically neutral then the number of protons inside the nucleus = the number of electrons su r rounding th e n ucl e us. The number of prot on s in the nucleus is an i mpor tant number, called the number atom. Each element has its own particular number.

e.g. The hydrogen nucleus contains one proton. Atomic Num er=l The carbon 11 It six protons. It 11 =6

JThe oxygen 11 11 eight 11 11 11 =8

Neutrons: has a wei ght about equal to that of the pr o ton. They possess no electrical chargo. The protons and neu t rons are held ti ght l y in the nucleus by extremely powerful forc es , th e nature of which is not completely understood.

The electrons are maintained i n their shells by the attraction betwe en negative and the positive charges of the protons in the •

Th, D1.:niber o f nucl eo ns in lS called the MA C'''' NTu' ,. ) -'" ) (_. \ ') JlL ), : h. -:':-;,.) Q

i.e. A = Mass number = numb of proton D + nwr..b er of neutrons

The hydro ge n at om has th e leA.s-G mass number, i.e. unity.

Th e number of protons in the nn.::.le us is called the A'ID MI C NUMBER (=Z)

i.e. Z = At omic number = Mass number Number of neutrcns = A _( 11 )

An element is corr.po sed of atoms all having the number of protons; hence either the chemical symbol or the a tomic number distinguishes one atom from another, e.g. oxygen atoms indicated either by symbol 0 Qr Z = 8. Now it is possible for th e atoms of an el e ment to differ from I each other in the nu.mb e r of n e u t rons in the nucleus. A collectio n of atoms having the mass is kno vm as an of the el em ent • • • ••••• isotopes of an elem en t diff'ET fro m ea ch oth e r 'by the number of neutrons th9y contain •

Isoto p es are conve nie n tly desig nated thus

E .g. Isotopes of oxygen are indicated thus: mass numbe.r 16 0 17 0 180 atomic number 8 8 8

Isotopes of hydrogen irr 2H 1 3H 1

Isotop e s of uranium 23 8U 235U etc. etc. 92 92

RADIOAr:'I'TVT'T'Y

Th e discovery of one important phenomenon Tlsually l eads to another.

1895- w. C. Roentgen discovered

X-rays

1896 H. Becquerel found that uranium or any material which contains it aff e cted a photographic plate even when kept in total d arlmess. Becquerel, and others consi d. ered that this was because the uranium atom was emitting rays or radiation which could affect the plate in the same way as did light. Marie Curie t e st e d a wide variety of substances and found that a mineral called pitchblende was especially effective. She eventually isolated from the pitchblende two new elements, polonium and radium,both these elements were found to have properties similar to uranium .0'. radium was found to be a million tim e s more effective than uranium. It was quickly realised that th e emission of the radiation required considerable energy, and that somewhere within the atom was a veritable power house of energy, if only ways and mea n s could be found of' harnessing this power.

It was also found that most of the radioactive atoms were th ose with lar t;e values for atomic numb er (Z) and mass number (A).

e.g. 84PO etc.

All nuclei with mass numbers greater +,han 209 and atomic numbers greater than 83 are naturally radioactive; t h is is thought t o be du e to t he gr e at forc e s of repulsion between the relatively large numbers of protons their nuclei will contain. Nuclei are basically of two kinds, either stable or unstable; the stable nuclei are nonradioactive. It is no w that unstable nuclei are those with too many n e utrons or too many protons for its particular mass number, this me an s that if the number of neutrons in the nucleus is divi de d by the number of protons in the nucl e us is t oo hi Gh or too lo w for the pa rticular value of the mass nu mber th en the nucleus is unstable.

e . g . If ratio N/Z is too high, there are too ma ny neutrons.

If ratio N/Z is t oo low, there are too many protons

Chang e s go within the nucleus which ultimately in the N/Z ratio b e com e of the correct mag nitude, these changes result in th e enussion of c e rtain particl e s or radiations, i.e. r a dioactive , e cay. During decay it is f ound that either A or Z, or both, will altero

e.g. 40K 19 40 "decays" to produoe 20(',a

"decays" to produce I

( otable) (the element thorium)

Three kinds of radiation can b e emitted b y nuclei undergoing this change in their N/Z ratio.

ALPHA RADIATION, this radiation is not very penetrating, i.e. a thin sheet of paper vvill prevent it from passing. This radiation '{' as eventually found to be a particle, the nucleus of the element helium. It has a mass of four, i.e. it has a weight 4 times that of a hydro b en atom, and it has 2 positive oharges. It is expelled from nuclei with speeds of approx. 36,000,000 miles an hour. It penetrates betwer n 1 to 3 inches of air, or about 4 thousandths of an inch 0 aluminium. The expulsion of this particle raises the N/Z ra.tio.

BETA RADIATION, is a particle with the mass equal to that of the electron, it possess e s one negative charge; it is in fact an electron, but is called a beta particle to indicate its origin from th e nucleus. It is expelled f rom nuclei with very high speeds, i.e. approx. 177,000 miles per second. It can penetrate about 11 yards of air or a pprox. one third of an inch of aluminium. It does noTt travel in a straight line, but has a very erratic path. I

GAMMA RADIATION, not a particle, but is the same.kinf of radiation as light, X-rays, or wirel e ss waves ••• l.e. called electro-magnetic radiation. They travel not as I particles but as a wave. Wave motion consists of a series of crests and trou ghs, the distance between two successive crests or successive trou ghs is call e d the wave length of the radiation. Gamma rays are simply waves very short wave l en gth. The shorter the wave length, the easier the waves can penetrate matter.

All thre e radiations have one common property, an property, i.e. they bring about a proc e ss calle Vlhen one of these radiations passes near to neutral atom, it can caus e an electron to be ejected from the atom, this pro duc e s an "ion pair", i. e. the atom denuded of or mo re of its electrons is no longer aectrically neutral, but is positively Charged, and is called an ion, this and the 'iknocked out" e l ectron comprise an ion pair. Ionizat i o n is the main process by which radioactive radiations lose their energy, and each time an ion pair is formed th e radiation loses some of its ener gy r

ALPHA radiation: los e s its energy very readily and gives a short den se ion track, it forms more than 30,000 ion pairs per centim e tre, the rapid loss of its energy accounts for its poor penetration of matt er.

BETA radiation: poor ionising power compared to the alpha radiat i on, produces about 50 ion pairs per centimetre.

GAMNlA radiation: al thou f,h not particl e s, gamma can cause i on ization, approx. 5 io n pairs per centimetre.

It is obvious that in a quantity of radioactive material all the atoms do not decay in the same instance of time, but only a proportion of them decay. The rate of decay, i.e. number of atoms decayin g per minute or per second is surprisingly e property which is characteristic of the particular isotope as well as the weight of the isotope present.

The PROPORTION of atoms which decay in say one minute is quite independent of ho w ma ny etoms are pres ent.

e.g. Starting with 10,000 atoms, then if 1000 atoms decay in on e minute, the proportion decaying is 1000/10,000 = 1/10 i.e. one in ten. Then when only 100 a toms remain the same proportion will decay, i. e 1/10 x 100 = 10 atoms a minute.

The time required for an initial number of atoms to be reduced to one half this number, i.e. time for the activity to b e reduced to half its initial value, is called the half life. At the end of on e half life th e number of atoms will be halved, but so will have the decay rate, so it tak e s same tim e for half the remaining atoms to d e cay as it did for half the original number of atoms. The half life vari e s from isotope to isotope, but is constant for a given element.

e.g.lle h a s a half life of 20 minutes, hence if had at 11.00 o'c l oc k we had e xactly 1000 atoms of lIe, then at:

11000 o'c l ock there would be exactly 1000 a toms of lIe 11.20 " " " " " 500 " " 11.40 " " " " " 250 " " 12.00 " " " \; :i 125 11 "

" " "

e tc. etc.

'i' hr ee h a lf liv e s reduce th e acti vi ty to one-eighth of original a ctivity. Ten half lives brin g about a thousand fold reduction i n activity.

Uses of I onizing Ra dia tions

"

The uses of radioactive substances are so div erse that the followin g c an only be a brief survey of the us e s of radioactiv e substances:-

(a) Me asureme nt of mixing processes Mixing efficiencics have been det e rmin ed using radioactive trac ers for many products, i.e. cattle fo od, gramophone r e cords, e tc. th e us e of radioactiv 8 isotop e s an ab l e s a check on the unifor i·,i t y of constituents. A radioa ctive is oto pe is add ed t o the bulk of material before the mixing proc e ss, the finish ed product is t e sted for radi oactivit y if the mixin g proc e ss is d 'ficient, all the finish e d pr0duct should have th o amount of radioactivity.

(b) Isotop e s have b ee n used to traca the mo vo me nt of bulk throughout a particular proc e ss, and also it enabl e s on e to d otormin o th e fat e of each part of it this mathod has b e en appli e d to the glass and th e c e ment industries.

(c) Tracers ha v " b C(' rJ us ed in the p etrol oum industry, a gr ea t us er of radio a ctiv e me thods.

e g . Ca talyst b ea ds in a "Cat-cracker" hav G b een lab e ll ed by tra cG rs a nd their move mt) nts trac ed within th e syst em. Leakag e d e t e ctibn b e twe en tub eS in a h uat exchange r. Th e distribution of flow in a distillation column by using a radioactive s ubstance solu 10 in oil and tracing th e mo veme nt of this trac ed liquid in . the column.

(d) Thickn e ss and density gauges.

When a mat e rial is int 0rpos 6d b e twe e n a radioactive sourc e and a suitabl e det e ctor , th e proportion of radiations which p en etrate th e mat e rial diminish os as the thickness of th e matorial incr 0as c s. Hen c e the r eading on the d e t e ctor can be int erpret e d a s the thickn ess of th e materi a l. li!i +.h this arrangeme nt th e mat e rial does not hav e to touch th e instrument, it can b e us ed to measur e I thiokn ess ran ging from s ay v ery thin tissue pap er to say 3 or 4 inch e s of st eel. Another thickness gaug e dcp ( n d s on th e fact radiations ar e scatt er e d back by he substanc e to be me asured; th e amount of radiations b a ck s ca tt er e d b eing proportional to the of the material, an advantag e of this is -C hat both d et e ctor and source ar e on the same side of th e mat e rial.

(e) Isotopes c a n b e us e d to measure l e aks in pip e s, a suitabl e gamma emitter is dissolv ed i n th e liquid a n d aft er a short p eriod of time is replac e d by inacti ve liquid; th e activ e liquid will, of . cours e , have l e ru(e d into th e surrounding soil, a suitable detector will r ev eal th e s e sourc e s of l e aks.

Time d OGS not p e rmit me to give further uses of ioni,zipg radiations, but it must b 9 obvious that much more could be I s a id about ·the e v e r incr easing uses of radioactiv e sUbstancrc s.

Discussion

Mr. F. T. Harrison ( Rowley Re gis) enquired if th ere Significanc e in th e fact that the numb er protons se emd to correspond with the atomic weight.

were a I in

Mr. Mills: This is rar ely so. Ne utrons and protons add up to atomio we ight.

Mr. J. Be e r ( Worc e ster) ask e d: How do we ionis e atoms, and what happens to atoms on ionisation?

Mr. Mills replied that ionisation is achieved by many prooess e s. Radiations, alpha, beta, and gamma, on passage through matt er oause the atoms to lose electrons, i. e become ionised. After a certain tim e the atom denuded of air e lectron (call e d an ion) eventually recombines to form the neutral atom a gain.

Mr. D. Hall ( Ne wcastle-under-Lyme) said he had two qu e stions. In the place, he wonder ed when using a radioactive isotope in say a distillation process, the el e ments the process becam e contaminated by radiation the co bal t so they themselves radiate, and secondly, is it possible to use a radio-aotive isotope in testing an underground tank leakage? The point being that in th0 event a leakage, thE. escaping liquid would the isotop e outsid e th e tank where it could be det e cted, despit e probably six

Mr. Mills: The answer to th b que stion is No. Only radio-activ E.: isotop e s arc strong enough to penetrate pipe walls, so th e only signal rec e ived th e pollution is the one we are se eking.

On the second qu estion the answ er is Yes, as it is possible to betw oen any radiation emanating the isotope directly through the tank walls, and b (; tw e en radiation emanating from l e rucing liquid outside the tank wd-lle.

Mr. L. Bloor (Kidderminst e r). With regard to isotopes us ed in cattle for example, sur ely have to be ma nufactured on th e spot, otherwise activity is lost in a short while.

Mr. Mills: This is dealt with calculating such loss and activating isotop e s accordingly.

Mr. S. V. Robinson (Brierley Hill) : Re v erting to the question of tracing leakag e s, is thj.s isotope equipment available to layme n?

Mr. Mills: The Atomic Energy Authority only supply radioactive isotopes to authorised channels, i.e. Coll e g es, Univ ersities and the such like, but you oan be assured th ose bodies are only too ffilling to assist you have any probl ems of this natur e , i.8. leaking supply lin es or tanks that defy tracing by conventional means.

Mr. Ge e proposed a vote thanks to Mr. Mills f0r his exc ellent and 0dllcational paper, which had b ee n so well rec eived by me mb 0rs.

Mr. Mills, in responding, r eferred to an excellent publication by "Pelicanll ent:.tled "Isotopes", by J. L. Putman.

The me e ting then adjourn e d for lunch.

The session . took the form of an Op en Forum under th e heading lIYOURQUESTIONS ANS WERED". Mr. Dean introduced the panel of experts comprising M6ssrs. T. J. Metcalfe, F .I.W. M.A. (Chairman), M. Gee, Grad I..Fire E., and J. A. Sharp, A.I.E.E.

In opening the session, Mr. Metoalfe reminded members that the panel had be en formed at the request of a number of members who were present at the Brierley Hill me eting. He hoped that his panel would be able to provide most of the answers and invited members present to oontribute to the disoussion.

(1) Mr. L. A. Cave submitted the first question on behalf of Mr. J. D. Davies (Bridgnorth R.D.C) An existing installation on a village High Street has the pump and tank adjoining the footpath. A test on the tank proved unsatisfaotory. Upon the question of re-licensing, oan this be oonsidered as a renewal of an old installation, or should it be treated as a fresh application for an installation, thereby subjeoting it tethe modern prelicensing conditions relating to distance from highway, eto. (Mr. Davics submitted scale plan of surrounding site).

Mr. Another tank should not be permitted in this position. It is the practioe in Wolverhampton to refuse the replaoement 1' the tank in unsuitable or dangerous positions. The site plan indicated that a suitable alternative site oould be provided and this should be insisted upon. However, if suCh an alterrAtive site was not available, a replacement tank would not be a..,Uowed.

The point was that every effort should be made to either reduce the numb er of dangerous or unsuitable sites, or, to attempt to bring them into line with modern practice.

Mr. Metcalfe: The Local Authority may well have power to revoke or suspend a licence when the .tank is found unsound. The applicant is then left with no other course than to apply for a new lic ence • I would agree with Mr. Gee regarding sub-standard installations, remembering the licensoo has the right of appeal to the Home Office. From the plan, there does not appear to be any diff'icul ty in siting a new tank within the licensee's premises, well away from the highway.

(2) Mr. T. A. Sharpless (Nat,ional Benzole) said, following the first question, does the panel's answer mean that if a tank is oonde.mned a licensee cannot restore a tank without making a fresh application, and further, why cio wait until a tank is worn out before requiring the more stringent conditions that are applied to new installations.

Mr. Gee: This is to a large extent' true. If the tank cannet be replaced and an alternative site can be found, a fresh application must be made because of the ohange of site. If the installation has been lioensed for a considerable number of years, ' and is of sound construction, when any part of the installa tif'n fails, I would suggest that the condition which prohibits al terations w.i. thout approval may be used. In which case approval for the alteration would not be given.

Mr. Metcalfe: The latter part of the questienis a fair one, but it must be remembered that 'a licence was originally granted to what we now call a sub-standard site. The Home Offioe would not support a Local Authorit.y who refused to relicence where no alteration has taken place. , -9.3-

There must be a change in keeping.

(3) Mr. S. V. Robinson (Brierley Hill) asked should there be a dead-line date to bring sub-standard installations up to standard.

Mr. Gee: This would b e uni'ai:r, many licensees are trading under licences wh:', ch should probably never have been bTanted. In many the department for the petroleum licences has been changed, or the pre;-licensirig conditions may have altered, but it would be unreasonable to refuse a licence at a ieadline date on a sound installation for these reasons. If dangorous conditions exist, action should be taken to remeqy these conditions, or the liconce could t.hen be refused, but if it is only a matter such as filling over a footpath, it is to wait for some fault to develop in the installation. Further, the licensee should be warned beforehand of any limits which may be imposed. In some cases, they can b0 attachud to the Conditions of Licence.

Mr. Metcalf'e: Agre od. Difficult to state any time limit. With rGgard to sub-standard sites or installations, it is often possible to seek the support of distributing compan.;.es, which, together with the good sense of licensees, may effect the necessary remedy.

(4) County Aldierman G. H. Bartlett (Cannock R.D.C) asked if there was any frequenoy of inspection with regard to . electrically-operated petrol pumps, and Local Authorities made such a requirem ent a condition of licence.

The panel agreed that periodic testing was advisable, and that this should be a licence ccndi tion. A period of three years was suggested as reasonable.

(5) Mr. D. Hall (Newcastle-under-Lyme): Do you recommend black heat radiators in kiosks: Is surface temperature too high?

Mr. Sharp Alternative forms of electrical heating for kiosks are limited due to the size of the building and low ceiling height. Our requirements for electrical goar in these buildings within 20 ft. of petrol openings, etc. are flameproof below 4 ft. from ground level and totally enclosed above that height. We have recommended the use ef oil-filled radiators which are obtainable with flameproof thermostats. Where heaters are fitted above 4 ft. they must be of the totally-enclosed pattern, and the type of heater that the questioner has mentioned would not meot with the requirements. Where the kiork is outside the 20 ft. zone, such a heater could be used.

(6) Mr. A. R. Crossley (Meriden R.D.C): Is it necessary to have separate switches on . each pump, i.e. separate lighting and power switches?

Mr. This question has been clarified by the Homo O:f'fice. I wrote to thorn sc-me time ago referring them to the Model Code of Principles, which states: "The supply circuits of each pump should be separately protected by fUses circuit

breakers". I pointed out to them that this indicated that each pump 1lI0tar and light should be controlled by separate circuits, and the Home agreed with this interpretation. They pointed out, however, that if we thought that both the lamps and pump motor could be adequately protected by one cirouit, then they would not objeot to this being done. Arising out of this decision by the Home Office, we prepared a specification on petrol pump installations showing one way of a chiev:lng this protection and which we think is quite adequate for such installations.

Regarding the switching of the pumps, it is desirable from the user's point of view to have separate switches to control the light aOO the pump. When the garage or filling station is closed the pump motors can be isolated from within the premises, thus ensuring greater securit,y, and the lights can be left in circuit as long as the user wishes.

(7) Messrs. Edwards and Hamlet (Electrical Contractors' Asaoc.) Do we think that double-pole fuses should be used on petrol pump installations? On all our recommendations we specify single-pole fusing.

Mr. Sharp The G-roup "Executive Committee were against double-pole fusing for such installations ' and deprecated the insertion of a in the neutral conductor on A.C. ciroui.ts. The dangers were fairly obvious; under faw,. t conditions the neutral fuse oould rupture, the phase oonductor "live", and could very easily be the cause of an accident. Furthermore, in several Codes of Practice and the Regulations issued by the Institution of Electrioal Engineers, it was recommended that the neutrel conductor should be solid.

(8) Mr. (Stoke-or.-Trent). Mr. Spencer stated that in his intrinsically safe circuits are insisted on.

Mr. Sharp The use of intrinsically safe oircuits on petrol pump installations in their present form is unneoessary. That does not mean that such oircuits would never be required; on the contrary. With the rapid progress being made in petrol pump design, involving suoh things as rea1-out meters, ooin-operated pumps, etc., intrinsically safe circuits will, I am sure, be used extensively in the future. The present Mqdel Code of Plincip19s already caters for these circuits, and is already mentioned in the Principles of Construotion for Basement, Sub-Basement G-arages and Underground Car Parks.

(9) Mr. Hamlet (Eleotrical Contraotors' Association). What advioe can you give on installing lead-covered .wire . armoured oable between the pump and switoh-board?

. Mr.Sharp asked MroHaml et why he would use this type of oable on suoh jobs. It was .oostly to purohase and costly to install due to the "making off" of the cables into the appropriatfi/ boxes which, in the case of the pump, would to be flameproof.

Mr. Hamlet stated that on rural installations M.I.C.C. cable could not be used due to

liah-01''\;l''{J o.f:l"i..\rp.s whic-.h occur on the supply lines and which could cause damage to M.1. C• C. cable s • Furthermore, we would not permi. t them to use oonduit underground.

In the case of conduit being buried in the . ground, the Group did n.t make this restriction. This formed part of the Institution of Electrical Engineers' Regulations and was introduced in 1955. Referring to the use of M.I ,C .C. cable on rural supplies, simple precautions can be taken to reduce this risk by the installation of a This device has been available for many years to counteract any surges which may occur on the supply lines.

(10) Mr. R. A. Bullers C:l alsall) had a series of questions:-

Ca) On interceptors, he asked if it were considered necessary to always fit them owing to the compararively high cost.

Mr. Gee: Intercepters should be installed on new sites irrespective of cost. Petrol is always liable to be spilled and enter drains. Three stage interceptors can be installed for much less than £100. Cost should enter into any argument where safety is concerned.

Cb) Is licensee responsible for removing film of oil contained by interceptor?

Mr. Gee: Yes, and a check should be made to ensure that this is done properly.

Mr. Metcalfe: Agreed. It is noticable there is more spillage nowadays, due probably to the design of vehicle fillers; the Group had taken up this point with motor manufacturers.

Cc) What acti,n can a Petroleum Officer take where a new building is built over an existing tank, work having been completed unknown to the Petroleum Officer, i.e. plans have been altered since Griginal approval,

Mr. Gee: No alteration should be permitted and a condition of licence should be inserted to cover this point. If, despite this conlition, the licensee carried out alteration, it is up to the local authority to prosecute and p0ssibly require the offending erection to be removed.

Mr. Metcalfe: Agreed. Liaison required between Town Planning Officer and Petroleum Officer, who may not be the same person.

(d) How are derelict or disused tanks dealt with and rendered safe from explosion?

Mr. Gee: Have them steamed out and checked before removing. They may, however, be filled with concrete Even with this type of filling, a pooket of explosive gas has been found after a number of years.

Mr. Metcalfe: Remove unsound tanks after steaming. I agree that slurry does not completely prevent vapour voids. sand is, in my opinion, better than slurry.

(11) Mr. E. H. Frost (Staffordshire County Council). What happens when a tank is drained and removed? Is there r standard procedure for breaking up tanks?

Mr. Gee: Have them steamed out and checked with an explosimeter. If safe, the steaming should be re-started and the two ends cut away. Too often tanks are allowed to be removed without a check on their d.estination, it being a case of .: out of sight out of mind". If it is not possible or advisable to cut the tank up on site, the destination of the tank should be ascertained,

tand if this is in another author;.ty's area, the licensing authority should be notified imrnedia t ly, so that they may keep an eye on the tank.

If the tank is to remain in situ, it should b e ed wi th concrete slurry. Where it is known that the area will be developed, the tank may be filled with water for a limited p eriod.

Mr. Metcalfe: In urban areas undergoing extensive development, leaving a derelict tank in the ground, particularly when it has been ostensibly filled with concrete slurry, can be an embarrassing legacy for posterity. The tank should be removed. There is demand for tanks still in good condition for the storage of T.V.O., etc.

The following also made valuable contributions to the Messrs. Beer, Bloor, Trim, Harvey, Roden, Hodges and Vl oold::'idge.

A vote of thanks to the Panel was proposad by Mr. T. 11. • Sharpless (National Bnnzole Co. Ltd.) who stated that this was the first opportunity he had had of attending R Group I Meeting. He was sure that all present had benefited greatly by the discussion.

C'IHER BUSINESS

The Chairman extended a welcome to delegates from Coventr,y, who were attending a meeting for the first time. He congratulated Mr. C. o. Innes Jones, at present Borough SurveY0r, Leamington Spa, who had been appointed to the office of Engineer-Manager, South Warwickshire Water Board.

Mr. Dean also referred to the impending retirement of Mr. B. J. P. Slack (Esso Petroleum Co.) an AssocMember, and wished him a long and happy retirement. Mr. &lack's successor, Mr. K. Sherwood, who was also present, was welcomed.

Refreshments,kindly provided by Councillor B. J. Earle, j J .P., rOUl.ded off a most instructive and enjoyable day. Mr. J. Beer proposed a vote of thanks to Councillor Earle and the Meriden Rural Dj strict Council for the hospitality and facilities afforded, and also to Mr. B. Ll. Stephenson and Mr. A. R. Crossley for their efforts in arranging a most highly successful meeting.