Expert Details
Fire/Explosion Safety, Protection, Hazards, and Investigations
ID: 740133
Maryland, USA
With credentials as a Professional Engineer (PE) in fire protection and a Certified Safety Professional (CSP), Expert has a robust foundation in safety engineering, regulations, codes, and standards. He is a Principal Member (Special Expert) of the NFPA Technical Committees on Combustible Dusts and Aerosols, contributing significantly to industry standards.
Expert has served as an expert witness in high-profile legal cases involving major fire and explosion incidents, providing critical insights and expert opinions. His investigative work includes landmark cases such as the Imperial Sugar explosion, the Kleen Energy Natural Gas Explosion, and the West Pharmaceutical Services Dust Explosion.
In addition to his investigative work, Expert has provided consulting services to a diverse range of industries, including chemical, petroleum, pharmaceutical, food, and many others. His consulting expertise spans hazard and risk assessments, safety audits, code and standard analysis, and safety training.
Expert has also developed and delivered numerous safety training courses on topics such as electrostatic hazards, gas/liquid vapor fire and explosion hazards, and dust fire and explosion hazards. His research and testing management have included studies on the fire and explosion properties of various materials, as well as the development of test protocols for special conditions.
Expert holds a Ph.D. in Applied Physics/Process Safety Engineering from the University of Bergen, Norway, an M.S. in Process Safety Engineering from Northeastern University of Technology, China, and a B.S. in Metallurgical Engineering from the same institution. His professional certifications and active participation in technical committees and professional associations underscore his dedication and impact in the field of fire and explosion safety.
Education
| Year | Degree | Subject | Institution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year: 1996 | Degree: PhD | Subject: Applied Physics/Process Safety Engineering | Institution: University of Bergen, Norway |
| Year: 1986 | Degree: MS | Subject: Process Safety Engineering | Institution: Northeastern University of Technology, China |
| Year: 1983 | Degree: BS | Subject: Metallurgical Engineering | Institution: Northeastern University of Technology, China |
Work History
| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
|---|---|---|---|
| Years: 2008 to Present | Employer: Undisclosed | Title: President and Principal Engineer | Department: |
Responsibilities:Expert witness and senior consultant for hazard and risk assessments, investigations, training, supervising laboratory and onsite testing. Participating NFPA standards making activities as Principal Members in technical committees of NFPA 660, NFPA 652, NFPA 484, and NFPA 30B. |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 1996 to 2008 | Employer: Chilworth Technology, Inc. | Title: Manager, Fire & Explosion Hazards, and Senior Consulting Engineer | Department: |
Responsibilities:Expert witness and senior consultant for hazard and risk assessments, investigations, training, supervising laboratory and onsite testing. |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 1989 to 1996 | Employer: Christian Michelsen Research (now GexCon) | Title: Research Scientist | Department: Process Safety |
Responsibilities:Research in gas and dust explosions and spontaneous combustion of powders. |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 1986 to 1989 | Employer: Northeastern University, China | Title: Lecturer | Department: Metallurgical Engineering |
Responsibilities:Teaching chemical engineering and researching dust explosions at the Industrial Explosion Protection Institute. |
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International Experience
| Years | Country / Region | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| Years: 1989 to 1996 | Country / Region: Norway | Summary: |
Career Accomplishments
| Associations / Societies |
|---|
| Member, National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Principal Member, NFPA Technical Committee on Standard for Combustible Dusts (NFPA 660) Principal Member, NFPA Technical Committee on Standard on the Fundamentals of Combustible Dust (NFPA 652) Principal Member, NFPA Technical Committee on Combustible Metals and Metal Dusts (NFPA 484) Principal Member, NFPA Technical Committee on Aerosol Products (NFPA 30B) |
| Licenses / Certifications |
|---|
| Professional Fire Protection Engineer (PE) Certified Safety Professional (CSP), the Board of Certified Safety Professionals, USA. |
| Publications and Patents Summary |
|---|
| Peer Reviewer: • Process Safety Progress, American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) • International Journal of Energetic Materials and Chemical Propulsion, Begell House • 10th International Symposium on Hazard, Prevention and Mitigation of Industrial Explosions (X ISHPMIE), Norway, 2014 • 11th International Symposium on Hazards, Prevention, and Mitigation of Industrial Explosion (ISHPMIE), China, 2016 |
Additional Experience
| Expert Witness Experience |
|---|
| Expert has been retained as a fire and explosion expert and provided expert opinions and advice for legal cases involving multiple fatalities, injuries and extensive property damages. Expert has assisted diversified industrial clients to investigate many dust, liquid and gas fire and explosion incidents and convincingly identified the ignition sources and other causes. Services include participations in the very early onsite investigations of fire and explosion scenes, analyses of site inspections, development of hypotheses, laboratory analyses, and reviews of investigation reports and depositions. |
| Training / Seminars |
|---|
| Developed and presented the following process safety training courses to industrial safety and engineering professionals, loss prevention professionals from insurance companies, officials from OSHA and officers of the US Bureau of Tobacco, Alcohol and Firearms (ATF). These courses incorporated technical principles, compliance with regulations, practical solutions and hands-on experience in incidents/accidents investigations. • Electrostatic hazards, assessment, prevention and protection; • Electrical area classification associated with powder/dust and flammable/combustible liquids are handling operations; • Gas/liquid vapor fire and explosion hazards, assessment, prevention and protection; • Dust fire and explosion hazards, assessment, prevention and protection; • Chemical/thermal reaction hazards, assessment, prevention and mitigation. |
| Other Relevant Experience |
|---|
| Most of the consulting, testing and investigation work products have been documented in confidential reports. If requested, brief summaries of numerous confidential reports for various clients can be provided without compromising confidentiality agreements and trade secrets. |
Language Skills
| Language | Proficiency |
|---|---|
| Chinese | Native |
| Japanese | Fluent |
| Norwegian | Fluent |
| English | Advanced |
Fields of Expertise
combustion, aerosol explosion, dust explosion, chemical plant explosion, propane explosion, chemical explosion, explosion, explosion cause, explosion effect, explosion hazard, explosion investigation, explosion origin, explosion prevention, explosion protection, explosion safety and hazards analysis, explosion safety, explosion standard, gas explosion, grain dust explosion, oil explosion, wood explosion, battery explosion, boiler explosion, vent explosion, fire origin, fire cause, fire investigation, fire protection engineering, Expert consulting in fire cases., fire prevention, fire protection, fire safety, duct fire, chemical fire, fire safety code, electrostatic discharge, electrostatic discharge prevention, electrostatic discharge control, electrostatic discharge protection, electrostatic discharge training, electrostatic hazard, electrostatic discharge testing, process safety management, chemical process safety engineering, National Fire Protection Association code, aerosol can