Experimental investigation on explosion flame propagation of wood dust in a semi-closed tube

In order to explore flame propagation characteristics during wood dust explosions in a semi-closed tube, a high-speed camera, a thermal infrared imaging device and a pressure sensor were used in the study. Poplar dusts with different particle size distributions (0–50, 50–96 and 96–180 μm) were respectively placed in a Hartmann tube to mimic dust cloud explosions, and flame propagation behaviors such as flame propagation velocity, flame temperature and explosion pressure were detected and analyzed. According to the changes of flame shapes, flame propagations in wood dust explosions were divided into three stages including ignition, vertical propagation and free diffusion. Flame propagations for the two smaller particles were dominated by homogeneous combustion, while flame propagation for the largest particles was controlled by heterogeneous combustion, which had been confirmed by individual Damköhler number. All flame propagation velocities for different groups of wood particles in dust explosions were increased at first and then decreased with the augmentation of mass concentration. Flame temperatures and explosion pressures were almost similarly changed. Dust explosions in 50–96 μm wood particles were more intense than in the other two particles, of which the most severe explosion appeared at a mass concentration of 750 g/m³. Meanwhile, flame propagation velocity, flame propagation temperature and explosion pressure reached to the maximum values of 10.45 m/s, 1373 °C and 0.41 MPa. In addition, sensitive concentrations corresponding to the three groups of particles from small to large were 500, 750 and 1000 g/m³, separately, indicating that sensitive concentration in dust explosions of wood particles was elevated with the increase of particle size. Taken together, the finding demonstrated that particle size and mass concentration of wood dusts affected the occurrence and severity of dust explosions, which could provide guidance and reference for the identification, assessment and industrial safety management of wood dust explosions.     

Flame propagation behaviors of nano- and micro-scale PMMA dust explosions

Flame propagation behaviors of nano- and micro-polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) dust explosions were experimentally studied in the open-space dust explosion apparatus. High-speed photography with normal and microscopic lenses were used to record the particle combustion behaviors and flame microstructures. Simple physical models were developed to explore the flame propagation mechanisms. High-speed photographs showed two distinct flame propagation behaviors of nano- and micro-PMMA dust explosions. For nano-particles, flame was characterized by a regular spherical shape and spatially continuous combustion structure combined with a number of luminous spot flames. The flame propagation mechanism was similar to that of a premixed gas flame coupled with solid surface combustion of the agglomerates. In comparison, for micro-particles, flame was characterized by clusters of flames and the irregular flame front, which was inferred to be composed of the diffusion flame accompanying the local premixed flame. It was indicated that smaller particles maintained the leading part of the propagating flame and governed the combustion process of PMMA dust clouds. Increasing the mass densities from 105 g/m³ to 217 g/m³ for 100 nm PMMA particles, and from 72 g/m³ to 170 g/m³ for 30 μm PMMA particles, the flame luminous intensity, scale and the average propagation velocity were enhanced. Besides, the flame front became more irregular for 30 μm PMMA dust clouds.     

Flame behaviors and pressure characteristics of vented dust explosions at elevated static activation overpressures

Dust explosion venting experiments were performed using a 20-L spherical chamber at elevated static activation overpressures larger than 1 bar. Lycopodium dust samples with mean diameter of 70 μm and electric igniters with 0.5 KJ ignition energy were used in the experiments. Explosion overpressures in the chamber and flame appearances near the vent were recorded simultaneously. The results indicated that the flame appeared as the under-expanded free jet with shock diamonds, when the overpressure in the chamber was larger than the critical pressure during the venting process. The flame appeared as the normal constant-pressure combustion when the pressure venting process finished. Three types of venting processes were concluded in the experiments: no secondary flame and no secondary explosion, secondary flame, secondary explosion. The occurrence of the secondary explosions near the vent was related to the vent diameter and the static activation overpressure. Larger diameters and lower static activation overpressures were beneficial to the occurrence of the secondary explosions. In current experiments, the secondary explosions only occurred at the following combinations of the vent diameter and the static activation overpressure: 40 mm and 1.2 bar, 60 mm and 1.2 bar, 60 mm and 1.8 bar.     

Study of the influence of melamine polyphosphate and aluminum hydroxide on the flame propagation and explosion overpressure of aluminum magnesium alloy dust

When aluminum magnesium alloy dust floats in the air, a certain ignition energy can easily cause an accidental explosion. To prevent and control the occurrence of accidental explosions and reduce the severity of accidents, it is necessary to carry out research on the explosion suppression of aluminum magnesium alloy dust. This paper uses a vertical glass tube experimental device and a 20 L spherical explosive experimental device to carry out experimental studies on the suppression of the flame propagation and explosion overpressure of aluminum magnesium alloy dust with melamine polyphosphate (MPP) and Al(OH)₃. With increasing MPP and Al(OH)₃ concentrations, the flame brightness darkened, the flame velocity and propagation distance gradually decreased, and P_max and (dp/dt)_max decreased significantly. When the amount of MPP added reached 60%, the flame propagation distance decreased to 188 mm, which is a decrease of 68%, and the explosion overpressure decreased to 0.014 MPa, effectively suppressing the explosion of aluminum magnesium alloy dust. The experimental results showed that MPP was more effective than Al(OH)₃ in inhibiting the flame propagation and explosion overpressure of the aluminum magnesium alloy dust. Finally, the inhibitory mechanisms of the MPP and Al(OH)₃ were further investigated. The MPP and Al(OH)₃ endothermic decomposition produced an inert gas, diluted the oxygen concentration and trapped active radicals to terminate the combustion chain reaction.     

An investigation on the dust explosion of micron and nano scale aluminium particles

A series of dust explosion were conducted to compare the flame structure between nano and micron aluminium dusts. Two-color pyrometer technique is applied to have qualitative observation of flame development. Measurement of temperature indicates that explosion in micron aluminium dust clouds start in a single spot at 3000 K, in contrast, explosion in nano aluminium dust clouds start when hot powder accumulated to a certain amount at lower temperature of 2600 K. For micron aluminium dust clouds, flame at leading edge has the highest temperature and propagates in all directions. On the other hand, flame in nano aluminium dust clouds propagate only upward with the hottest part left behind at the downside. As flame propagates, the temperature at top edge gradually decreases from 2600 K to finally 2000 K, but temperature at bottom edge maintains in 3000 K with no significant displacement. The unevenness of flame structure is considered as the consequence of different particle densities, which suggests that the reaction of nano aluminium particles stays in molten state, meanwhile, the high surface area also leads to unignorable heat loss.     

Inerting characteristics of ultrafine Mg(OH)2 on starch dust explosion flame propagation

Experiments on the flame propagation of starch dust explosion with the participation of ultrafine Mg(OH)₂ in a vertical duct were conducted to reveal the inerting evolution of explosion processes. Combining the dynamic behaviors of flame propagation, the formation law of gaseous combustion products, and the heat dissipation features of solid inert particles, the inerting mechanism of explosion flame propagation is discussed. Results indicate that the ultrafine of Mg(OH)₂ powders can cause the agglomeration of suspended dust clouds, which makes the flame combustion reaction zone fragmented and forms multiple small flame regions. The flame reaction zone presents non-homogeneous insufficient combustion, which leads to the obstruction of the explosion flame propagation process and the obvious pulsation propagation phenomenon. As the proportion of ultrafine Mg(OH)₂ increases, flame speed, flame luminescence intensity, flame temperature and deflagration pressure all show different degrees of inerting behavior. The addition of ultrafine Mg(OH)₂ not only causes partial inerting on the explosion flame, but also the heat dissipation of solid inert particles affects the acceleration of its propagation. The explosion flame propagation is inhibited by the synergistic effect of inert gas-solid phase, which attenuates the risk of starch explosion. The gas-solid synergistic inerting mechanism of starch explosion flame propagation by ultrafine Mg(OH)₂ is further revealed.     

Enhancement effects of methane/air explosion caused by water spraying in a sealed vessel

Experiments about the influence of ultrafine water mist on the methane/air explosion were carried out in a fully sealed visual vessel with methane concentrations of 8%, 9.5%, 11% and 12.5%. Water mists were generated by two nozzles and the droplets' Sauter Mean Diameters (SMD) were 28.2 μm and 43.3 μm respectively which were measured by Phase Doppler Particle Anemometer (PDPA). A high speed camera was used to record the flame propagation processes. The results show that the maximum explosion overpressure, pressure rising rate and flame propagation velocity of methane explosions in various concentrations increased significantly after spraying. Furthermore, the brightness of explosion flame got much higher after spraying. Besides, the mist with a larger diameter had a stronger turbulent effect and could lead to a more violent explosion reaction.     

Effects of vent layout and vent area on dynamic characteristics of premixed methane-air explosion in a tube with two side-vented ducts

To further elucidate the influence mechanism of side vents on the dynamic characteristics of gas explosions in tubes is helpful to design more reasonable vent layouts. In this paper, 9.5% methane-air explosion experiments were conducted in a tube with two side-vented ducts, and the effects of vent layouts and vent areas on the dynamic characteristics of explosion overpressure and flame propagation speed were investigated. The results demonstrate that under the same condition with a single vent area of 100 mm × 100 mm, when only the end vent is open, the maximum explosion overpressure and the maximum flame propagation speed are the highest among the five vent layouts. When the side vents 1 and 2 and the end vent are open, the maximum explosion overpressure is the lowest, and an unusual discovery is that the flame front changes into a hemispherical shape, finger shape, quasi-plane shape, tulip shape and wrinkled structure. When only side vent 1 is open, a unique Helmholtz oscillation occurs, and a new discovery is that there is a consistent oscillation relationship among the overpressure, flame propagation speed and flame structure. Helmholtz oscillation occurs only when a single vent area is 100 mm × 100 mm–60 mm × 60 mm, and the oscillation degree decreases with decreasing vent area. During the vent failure stage, the maximum explosion overpressure is generated, the flame front begins to appear irregular shape, and the flame propagation speed shows a prominent characteristic peak. After the vent failure stage, the driving effect of the end vent on the flame is higher than that of the side vent on the flame. Furthermore, the correlation equations of the mathematical relationships among the maximum explosion overpressure P_red, the static activation pressure P_stat and the vent coefficient K_v under four vent layouts are established, respectively.     

Characteristics of dust explosion venting pressure and flame under high activation pressure

A 20 L spherical explosive device with a venting diameter of 110 mm was used to study the vented pressure and flame propagation characteristics of corn dust explosion with an activation pressure of 0.78–2.1 bar and a dust concentration of 400∼900 g/m³. And the formation and prevention of secondary vented flame are analyzed and discussed. The results show that the maximum reduced explosion overpressure increases with the activation pressure, and the vented flame length and propagation speed increase first and then decrease with time. The pressure and flame venting process models are established, and the region where the secondary flame occurs is predicted. Whether there is pressure accompanying or not in the venting process, the flame venting process is divided into two stages: overpressure venting and normal pressure venting. In the overpressure venting stage, the flame shape gradually changes from under-expanded jet flame to turbulent jet flame. In the normal pressure venting stage, the flame form is a turbulent combustion flame, and a secondary flame occurs under certain conditions. The bleed flames within the test range are divided into three regions and four types according to the shape of the flame and whether there is a secondary flame. The analysis found that when the activation pressure is 0.78 bar and the dust concentration is less than 500 g/m³, there will be no secondary flame. Therefore, to prevent secondary flames, it is necessary to reduce the activation pressure and dust concentration. When the dust concentration is greater than 600 g/m³, the critical dust concentration of the secondary flame gradually increases with the increase of the activation pressure. Therefore, when the dust concentration is not controllable, a higher activation pressure can be selected based on comprehensive consideration of the activation pressure and destruction pressure of the device to prevent the occurrence of the secondary flame.     

Detailed analysis of flame propagation during dust explosions by UV band observations

It is important to sufficiently understand the phenomena during the dust explosions in order to take appropriate measures preventing dust explosion accidents. However, at present basic knowledge on flame propagation mechanisms during dust explosions is not enough. In this study, therefore, the flame propagation mechanisms during dust explosions are examined by detailed analyses using a special observation at UV band. Small scale experiments were performed to analyze flame propagating processes in detail. In the experiments, the stearic acid was used as the combustible particle, suspended particles were ignited by an electric spark, and flame propagation through the combustible dust was observed by using a special observation system at UV band. The leading combustion zone is observed to consist of discrete burning blue spot flames by the observation using ordinary photograph system. It is questionable how the leading flame of such discrete structure propagates. In this study, high-speed video images at UV band through a band-pass filter were taken to detect OH emission from combustion reaction zone. Using this method, the propagating flame could be detected clearly and the flame propagation mechanism could be examined in detail. In the conditions performed in this study, discrete flame propagation was not observed and the leading flame was observed to propagate continuously. This result is of importance for understanding the flame propagation phenomena during dust explosion.     

Experimental study on explosion characteristics of ethanol-gasoline blended fuels

In the present work, a series of experiments have been performed to analyze the explosion characteristics of ethanol-gasoline with various blended ratios (0%, 5%, 10%, 15%, 30%, 50%, 70%, 80%, and 100%). A vented rectangular vessel with a cross-section of 100 mm × 100 mm, 600 mm long and a 40 mm diameter vent on the top is used to carry out the experiments. The flame propagation is recorded by a phantom high-speed camera with 5000 fps, while the histories of the explosion overpressure are measured by two PCB pressure sensors and the explosion sound pressure level is obtained by a CRY sound sensor. The results indicate that the maximum overpressure and flame propagation speed increases linearly as the blended ratio increases when the initial volume of blended fuel is 1.0 mL; While the change of explosion overpressure and flame propagation speed shows a trend of decreasing at first and then increasing as the concentration increases to 1.8 mL. It is also found that the peak of the sound pressure level exceeds 100 dB under all tests, which would damage the human's hearing. What's more, relationships between explosion overpressure and sound pressure level are examined, and the change of the maximum overpressure can be reflected to some extent by the measurement of the maximum sound pressure level. The study is significant to reveal the essential characteristic of the explosion venting process of ethanol-gasoline under different initial blended ratios, and the results would help deepen the understanding of ethanol-gasoline blended fuels explosion and the assessment of the explosion hazardous.     

Fast and tiny: A model for the flame propagation of nanopowders

To avoid the influence of external parameters, such as the vessel volume or the initial turbulence, the explosion severity should be determined from intrinsic properties of the fuel-air mixture. Therefore, the flame propagation of gaseous mixtures is often studied in order to estimate their laminar burning velocity, which is both independent of external factors and a useful input for CFD simulation. Experimentally, this parameter is difficult to evaluate when it comes to dust explosion, due to the inherent turbulence during the dispersion of the cloud. However, the low inertia of nanoparticles allows performing tests at very low turbulence without sedimentation. Knowledge on flame propagation concerning nanoparticles may then be modelled and, under certain conditions, extrapolated to microparticles, for which an experimental measurement is a delicate task. This work focuses on a nanocellulose with primary fiber dimensions of 3 nm width and 70 nm length. A one-dimensional model was developed to estimate the flame velocity of a nanocellulose explosion, based on an existing model already validated for hybrid mixtures of gas and carbonaceous nanopowders similar to soot. Assuming the fast devolatilization of organic nanopowders, the chemical reactions considered are limited to the combustion of the pyrolysis gases. The finite volume method was used to solve the mass and energy balances equations and mass reactions rates constituting the numerical system. Finally, the radiative heat transfer was also considered, highlighting the influence of the total surface area of the particles on the thermal radiation. Flame velocities of nanocellulose from 17.5 to 20.8 cm/s were obtained numerically depending on the radiative heat transfer, which proves a good agreement with the values around 21 cm/s measured experimentally by flame visualization and allows the validation of the model for nanoparticles.     

Flame propagation mechanisms in dust explosions

To reveal the effects of particle characteristics, including particle thermal characteristics and size distributions, on flame propagation mechanisms during dust explosions clearly, the flame structures of dust clouds formed by different materials and particle size distributions were recorded using an approach combining high-speed photography and a band-pass filter. Two obviously different flame propagation mechanisms were observed in the experiments: kinetics-controlled regime and devolatilization-controlled regime. Kinetics-controlled regime was characterized by a regular shape and spatially continuous combustion zone structure, which was similar to the premixed gas explosions. On the contrary, devolatilization-controlled regime was characterized by a complicated structure that exhibited heterogeneous combustion characteristics, discrete blue luminous spots appeared surrounding the yellow luminous zone. It was also demonstrated experimentally that the flame propagation mechanisms transited from kinetics-controlled to devolatilization-controlled while decreasing the volatility of the materials or increasing the size of the particles. Damköhler number was defined as the ratio of the heating and devolatilization characteristic time to the combustion reaction characteristic time, to reflect the transition of flame propagation mechanisms in dust explosions. It was found that the kinetics-controlled regime and devolatilization-controlled regime can be categorized by whether Damköhler number was less than 1 or larger than 1.     

Effect of Al2O3 particle size reduction on aluminium dust explosion

To investigate the effect of Al₂O₃ particle size on an aluminum explosion, the overpressure and flame velocity in a vertical duct were evaluated. The results show that the inhibitory effect of submicron Al₂O₃ is best, while the inhibitory effect increases with increasing inerting ratio. However, the inhibitory effect of micron Al₂O₃ does not increase significantly after the inerting ratio exceeds 40%. For high-concentration aluminum powder, 0.8 μm Al₂O₃ with an inerting ratio less than 20% promotes aluminum explosion. As the inerting ratio increases beyond 20%, however, the overpressure decreases. Furthermore, Al₂O₃ inhibits the formation of the intermediate product AlO and decreases the flame brightness. As the inerting ratio of 0.8 μm Al₂O₃ reaches 50%, the white patches in the flame image disappear. The results of scanning electron microscopy showed that the explosion products agglomerate and some dot-like protrusions appear on the surface of the unburned aluminum particles. The inhibition mechanism was qualitatively investigated. Physical heat absorption is proven to play a limited role. Thermal radiation and chemical inhibition play a key role. The chemical effect mainly influences the surface reaction energy source.     

Large-scale dust explosions in vessel-pipe systems

This study investigates dust explosions in vessel-pipe systems to develop a better understanding of dust flame propagation between interconnected vessels and implications for the proper application of explosion isolation systems. Cornstarch dust explosions were conducted in a large-scale setup consisting of a vented 8-m³ vessel and an attached pipe with a diameter of 0.4 m and a length of 9.8 m. The ignition location and effective dust reactivity were varied between experiments. The experimental results are compared against previous experiments with initially quiescent propane-air mixtures, demonstrating a significantly higher reactivity of the dust explosions due to elevated initial turbulence, leading to higher peak pressures and faster flame propagation. In addition, a physics-based model developed previously to predict gas explosion dynamics in vessel-pipe systems was extended for dust combustion. The model successfully predicts the pressure transients and flame progress recorded in the experiments and captures the effects of ignition location and effective dust reactivity.     

Insight into vented explosion mechanism and premixed flame dynamics in linked vessels: Influence of membrane thickness and blocking rate

To effectively prevent and mitigate explosion hazards and casualties, relief venting of flammable gas explosions has been applied in production processes in a broad variety of industries. This work conducted fully vented experiments to investigate the influence of venting membrane thickness, and partially vented experiments to investigate the influence of baffle blocking rate on the explosion characteristics of 9.5 vol% methane-air mixtures in linked vessels with a 0.5 m long vented duct. Results indicate that the membrane thickness and blocking rate for the two types of vented explosions significantly affected the explosion overpressure. The smaller the membrane thickness and blocking rate, the lower the explosion overpressure. Secondary explosions were observed in the vented duct through experiments and a weaker explosion flame appeared at a small blocking rate of 20%. With the further increase in the blocking rate, the flame became extremely weak, and no secondary explosions occurred. The overpressure evolution process at different positions in the explosion duct and secondary explosion phenomenon in the vented duct were investigated. This work could probably serve as an important reference for the selection of technical parameters of explosion venting in the practical industrial processes.     

Determination of heterogeneous reaction mechanisms: A key milestone in dust explosion modelling

Reaction kinetics is fundamental for modelling the thermal oxidation of a solid phase, in processes such as dust explosions, combustion or gasification. The methodology followed in this study consists in i) the experimental identification of the reaction mechanisms involved in the explosion of organic powders, ii) the proposal of simplified mechanisms of pyrolysis and oxidation, iii) the implementation of the model to assess the explosion severity of organic dusts. Flash pyrolysis and combustion experiments were carried out on starch (22 μm) and cellulose (53 μm) at temperatures ranging from 973 K to 1173 K. The gases generated were collected and analyzed by gas chromatography. In this paper, a semi-global pyrolysis model was developed for reactive systems with low Damköhler number. It is in good agreement with the experimental data and shows that both carbon monoxide and hydrogen are mainly generated during the pyrolysis of the solid, the generation of the latter compound being greatly promoted at high temperature. A simplified combustion model was also proposed by adding two oxidation reactions of the pyrolysis products. In parallel, flame propagation tests were performed in a semi open tube in order to assess the burning velocity of such compounds. The laminar burning velocity of cellulose was determined to be 21 cm s⁻¹. Finally, this model will be integrated to a predictive model of dust explosions and its validation will be based on experimental data obtained using the 20 L explosion sphere. The explosion severity of cellulose was determined and will be used to develop and adjust the predictive model.     

Consequence prediction for dust explosions involving interconnected vessels using computational fluid dynamics modeling

Combustible dust explosions continue to present a significant threat toward operating personnel and pneumatic conveyance equipment in a wide variety of processing industries. Following ignition of suspended fuel within a primary enclosure volume, propagation of flame and pressure fronts toward upstream or downstream interconnected enclosures can result in devastating secondary explosions if not impeded through an appropriate isolation mechanism. In such occurrences, an accelerated flame front may result in flame jet ignition within the secondary vessel, greatly increasing the overall explosion severity. Unlike an isolated deflagration event with quantifiable reduced pressures (vent sizing according to NFPA 68 guidance), oscillation of pressure between primary and secondary process vessels leads to uncertain overpressure effects. Dependent on details of the application such as relative enclosure volumes, relief area, fuel type, suspended concentration, duct size, and duct length, the maximum system pressure in both interconnected vessels can be unpredictable. This study proposes the use of FLame ACceleration Simulator (FLACS) computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling to provide reliable consequence predictions for specific case scenarios of dust deflagrations involving interconnected equipment. Required minimum supplement to the originally calculated relief area (A_v) was determined through iterative simulation, allowing for reduced explosion pressures (P_red) to be maintained below theoretical enclosure design strengths (P_es).     

The effect of orifice plates with different shapes on explosion propagation of premixed methane–air in a semi-confined pipeline

The effect of internal shape of obstacles on the deflagration of premixed methane–air (concentration of 10%) was experimentally investigated in a semi-confined steel pipeline (with a square cross section size of 80 mm × 80 mm and 4 m long). The obstacles used in this study were circular, square, triangular and gear-shaped (4-teeth, 6-teeth and 8-teeth) orifice plates with a blockage ratio of 75%, and the perimeter of the orifice was regarded as a criterion for determining the sharpness of the orifice plate. The overpressure history, flame intensity histories, flame front propagation speed, maximum flame intensity and peak explosion overpressure were analyzed. The explosion in the pipeline can be divided into two stages: initial explosion and secondary explosion. The secondary explosion is caused by recoiled flame. The perimeter is positively related to the intensity of the recoiled flame and the ability of orifice plate to suppress the explosion propagation. In addition, the increase in the perimeter will cause the acceleration of the flame passing through the orifice plate, while after the perimeter of the orifice reaches a certain value, the effect of the increase in perimeter on explosion excitation becomes no obvious. The overpressure (static pressure) downstream of the orifice plate is the result of the combined effect of explosion intensity and turbulence. The increase in perimeter leads to the increase in turbulence downstream of the orifice plate which in turn causes more explosion pressure to be converted into dynamic pressure.     

Experiments on the influence of pre-ignition turbulence on vented gas and dust explosions

Experiments were performed on the influence of pre-ignition turbulence on the course of vented gas and dust explosions. A vertical cylindrical explosion chamber of approximately 100 l volume and a length-to-diameter ratio (l/d) of 4.7 consisting of a steel bottom segment and three glass sections connected by steel flanges was used to perform the experiments. Sixteen small fans evenly distributed within the chamber produced turbulent fluctuations from 0 to 0.45 m/s. A Laser-Doppler-anemometer (LDA) was used to measure the flow and turbulence fields. During the experiments the pressure and in the case of dust explosions the dust concentration were measured. In addition, the flame propagation was observed by a high-speed video camera. A propane/nitrogen/oxygen mixture was used for the gas explosion experiments, while the dust explosions were produced by a cornstarch/air mixture.It turned out that the reduced explosion pressure increased with increasing turbulence intensity. This effect was most pronounced for small vents with low activation pressures, e.g. for bursting disks made from polyethylene foil. In this case, the overpressure at an initial turbulence of 0.45 m/s was twice that for zero initial turbulence.