Resumen del autor, extraído del trabajo. Consequence analysis is one of the main steps in a risk assessment of large petrochemical plants and provides essential information for the assessment of potential hazards posed by the installation itself. This discipline studies the evolution of accidental releases of dangerous substances that can cause damage to the people, property and environment. It goes from the characterization of the type/source of emission, energy associated, up to the quantification of the severity and consequences of fires, explosions and toxic dispersions. Appropriate mathematical models are required to simulate the phenomena involved. The models shall be suitable for evaluating the source term parameters, the resulting effects (thermal radiation, blast overpressure, fragment projection, toxic concentration) and their damage. This paper presents an overview of the use of current calculation methods and gives an outline on new developments, such as computational fluid dynamic (CFD) simulation for specific applications. Guidelines for identifying the uncertainties inherent in the assumptions made and their influence on the results obtained are briefly described. A graphical example of a typical release scenario describing the analysis required at each step of the calculation process is proposed. This approach allows to group many of possible situations encountered during the evaluation of consequences and to perform a linked sequential analysis. The output of the linked analysis provides extension of damage areas, affected equipment and people. These findings permit a direct identification of improvements (i.e. preventive and protective measures) to reduce the potential losses (financial, human and environmental) and to assess modifications at an early stage of the plant design. In addition, the results of consequence analysis will be used to determine the level of risk and support management decision making for the emergency response planning.