1. IntroductionIgnition hazards of

1. Introduction
Ignition hazards of flammable gases, vapours, powders and hybrid mixtures due to
charge build-up and subsequent discharges are well known in the process industry. Comprehensive research work, accident reports and guidelines demonstrate that static electricity has to be taken seriously, when handling and processing these substances. Nevertheless, again and again fires and explosions occur, in practice caused by static electricity as an ignition source. This is due to different reasons. They can be grouped into several categories as outlined in the following chapter.
Though, besides the observation and the characterisation of cone discharges, no New critical phenomena have been identified in the industrial practice during the last decade, new continuative results have been obtained with respect to the incendivity of discharges from plastic surfaces and coatings to the characterisation of the incendivity of discharges by charge transfer, occurrence of propagating brush discharges during industrial operations and test procedures for assessing the ignition
hazards associated with packaging containers for liquids(RIBC) and solids(FIBC). These results and findings, including citations of practical examples, are reviewed in the subsequent chapter.
Finally, in the last chapter the impact of European Standards and Directives on the assessment of electrostatics as an ignition hazard is shortly reviewed.