ALOHA Code

Central Registry Toolbox Code Version(s): V5.2.3

Code Owner: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

Description: The Arial Locations of Hazardous Atmospheres (ALOHA) is atmospheric dispersion model maintained by the Hazardous Materials Division of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). ALOHA is one of three separate, integrated software applications in the Computer-Aided Management of Emergency Operations (CAMEO) suite. While the other two software applications: Cameo is primarily a database application and Marplot is the mapping application.

ALOHA is used primarily for the evaluations of the consequences of atmospheric releases of chemical species. In addition to safety analysis applications in the Department of Energy (DOE) Complex, ALOHA is applied for emergency response situations and for training. ALOHA allows the user to estimate the downwind dispersion of a chemical cloud based on the toxicological/physical characteristics of the released chemical, atmospheric conditions, and specific circumstances of the release. Graphical outputs include a "cloud footprint" that can be plotted on maps with MARPLOT to display the location of other facilities storing hazardous materials and vulnerable locations.

Mark W Miller, Mark.W.Miller@noaa.gov and Bill Lehr, Bill.Lehr@noaa.gov at NOAA are the primary contacts for ALHOA. The most recent release of ALHOA may be directly downloaded at http://www.epa.gov/emergencies/content/cameo/aloha.htm. ALHOA V5.2.3 and other previous releases can be obtained by contacting Mark W Miller, Mark.W.Miller@noaa.gov.

In May 2004, the DOE performed an evaluation of ALOHA against DOE's safety software quality assurance criteria. A gap analysis report was generated that identifies the strengths and weaknesses based upon ASME NQA-1 criteria. Upon completion of this evaluation, ALOHA V5.2.3 was included in DOE's safety software Central Registry as a safety analysis toolbox code. Inclusion into DOE's safety software Central Registry provides to DOE sites knowledge of the pedigree of the safety software quality assurance (SSQA) level for ALOHA V5.2.3. If another version of ALOHA is used, DOE sites must assume the responsibility to determine that the quality assurance level meets DOE SSQA requirements. DOE published guidance for the use of ALOHA V5.2.3. This guidance is recommended for all DOE applications of ALOHA V5.2.3.

The latest version of ALOHA (V5.4) released in February 2006 added the ability to model the hazards associated with fires and explosions. With this major update, users can now estimate the hazards associated with jet fires (flares), pool fires, vapor cloud explosions (VCE), BLEVEs (Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapor Explosions), and flammable regions (flash fires) as well as toxic threats. The User manual was completely updated to include extensive material associated with fires and explosions.

Reports and publications related to ALOHA:
Note: Non-DOE issued reports and publications are not endorsed for technical content by DOE. These reports are provided on this web site for courtesy to our DOE community.

DOE-EH-4.2.1.3-ALOHA-Gap Analysis, Software Quality Assurance Improvement Plan: ALOHA Gap Analysis, May 2004.

DOE-EH-4.2.1.4-ALOHA-Code Guidance, ALOHA Computer Code Application Guidance for Documented Safety Analysis, June 2004.

Thoman, D. C.; O'Kula, K. R.; Laul, J. C.; Davis, M. W.; and Knecht, K. D.; Comparison of ALOHA and EPIcode for Safety Analysis Applications, Journal of Chemical Health & Safety, Volume 13, Number 6, November/December 2006.