Liquid cargo of the month – Urea/Ammonium Nitrate Solution

Aqueous solution of Urea and Ammonium Nitrate mixture. 

Trade name/synonym name: 

UAN 28; UAN 30; UAN 32; Carbamide; Carbonyldiamine. 

Main Properties: 

Non-flammable clear liquid with slight ammonia odour. Considered as non-hazardous. 

Main chemical and physical properties: 

Flash point N/A 

Boiling Points Around 100 deg. C as for water 

Viscosity @ 20°C < 50 mPa.s 

Vapour pressure @ 20°C < 5 kPa 

Density depends on composition of the solution in the range of 1270 kg/m3 - 1340 kg/m3 @ 20 deg. C Obtain actual specification from shipper. 

IBC carriage requirements: 

IBC chapter 17 

Ship Type 3 

Tank Type 2G 

Relevant additional IBC req. 15.19.6 High-level alarm. 

MARPOL requirements:     

Annex II 

Pollution Y 

Special information to be added to Shipping Document Standard information. 

Stowage: 

Heat adjacent No 

Stow adjacent to fuel oil tanks Yes. 

Carriage requirements: 

Heating during voyage No 

Heating during unloading No 

Tanks inerted or padded Not required by IBC code 

 Prewash required - Prewash not required. 

 Tank cleaning: 

Urea/Ammonium nitrate solution is fully soluble in water 

Ambient temperature water wash 

Warm temperature water wash 

Ambient temperature freshwater rinse. 

Emergency response: 

Fire: This cargo is not flammable 

Spillage: Collect small spills with absorbent material. Larger spills: Try to collect and transfer to spill tank or wash away with water. When in port, - inform Port Authority. 

First aid: Remove victim to fresh air. Follow first aid instructions in MSDS. Consider obtaining advice from Radio Medical. 

Hazards (Occupational safety etc) This cargo is considered as non-hazardous TLV for ammonia is 20 ppm. 

IBC code does not require instruments or detector tubes for detection of toxic vapours from Urea/Ammonia nitrate solution. 

(The IBC code has an entry for "Urea/Ammonium nitrate solution (containing less than 1% free ammonia)". This substance will require instruments or detector tubes for detection of toxic vapours). 

Precautions: 

As Urea/Ammonium nitrate solution often will have a "blanket" of oil on top when stored in shore tanks, oil will sometimes enter the ship's cargo tanks during loading of UAN. This will make tank cleaning more complicated. 

Due to the high density of this cargo, please calculate maximum filling level in cargo tanks in order not to exceed the permissible load on the tank top. This is important for vessels' cargo tanks constructed to carry full load of cargo having maximum density equal to the density of sea water (1025 kg/m3). Such tanks can only be filled 76% - 82%, depending on cargo's density. 

Remarks

Use: Production of fertilizers. 

The BIMCO Liquid Cargo Database (member login required) contains information for more than 360 cargoes, all updated to the IBC Code 2021 amended requirements, but to ensure that the BIMCO Liquid Cargo Database information is kept updated, we highly welcome any feedback in the form of comments, response, information or data regarding a specific cargo.