Effect of flame propagation regime on pressure evolution of nano and micron PMMA dust explosions

Experiments using an open space dust explosion apparatus and a standard 20 L explosion apparatus on nano and micron polymethyl methacrylate dust explosions were conducted to reveal the differences in flame and pressure evolutions. Then the effect of combustion and flame propagation regimes on the explosion overpressure characteristics was discussed. The results showed that the flame propagation behavior, flame temperature distribution and ion current distribution all demonstrated the different flame structures for nano and micron dust explosions. The combustion and flame propagation of 100 nm and 30 μm PMMA dust clouds were mainly controlled by the heat transfer efficiency between the particles and external heat sources. Compared with the cluster diffusion dominant combustion of 30 μm dust flame, the premixed-gas dominant combustion of 100 nm dust flame determined a quicker pyrolysis and combustion reaction rate, a faster flame propagation velocity, a stronger combustion reaction intensity, a quicker heat release rate and a higher amount of released reaction heat, which resulted in an earlier pressure rise, a larger maximum overpressure and a higher explosion hazard class. The complex combustion and propagation regime of agglomerated particles strongly influenced the nano flame propagation and explosion pressure evolution characteristics, and limited the maximum overpressure.     

Effect of scale on freely propagating flames in aluminum dust clouds

The majority of experimental tests done on combustible dusts are performed in constant volume vessels that have limited or no optical access. Over the years, McGill University has been developing alternative experimental techniques based on direct observation of dust flames, yielding reliable fundamental parameters such as flame burning velocity, temperature and structure. The present work describes two new experimental set-ups allowing direct observation of isobaric and freely propagating dust flames at two sufficiently different scales to test the influence of scale on dust flame phenomena. In the laboratory-scale experiments, a few grams of aluminum powder are dispersed in transparent, 30 cm diameter latex balloons that allow for full visualization of the spherical flame propagation. In the field experiments, about 1 kg of aluminum powder is dispersed by a short pulse of air, forming a conical dust cloud with a total volume of about 5 m³. High-speed digital imaging is used to record the particle dispersal and flame propagation in both configurations. In the small-scale laboratory tests, the measured flame speed is found to be about 2.0 ± 0.2 m/s in fuel-rich aluminium clouds. The burning velocity, calculated by dividing the measured flame speed by the expansion factor deduced from thermodynamic equilibrium calculations, correlates well with the previously measured burning velocity of about 22–24 cm/s from Bunsen dust flames. Flame speeds observed in field experiments with large-scale clouds, however, are found to be much higher, in the range of 12 ± 2 m/s. Estimations are presented that show that the presumably greater role of radiative heat transfer in larger-scale aluminium flames is insufficient to explain the six-fold increase in flame speed. The role of residual large-eddy turbulence, as well as the frozen-turbulence effect leading to large-scale dust concentration fluctuations that cause flame folding, are discussed as two possible sources for the greater flame speed.     

多分支管道油气爆炸特性大涡模拟

为了研究油库常见的分支结构空间内发生油气爆炸时火焰和压力的传播特性,建立了基于WALE湍流模型及Zimont预混火焰模型的油气爆炸模型;模拟了6种不同分支管道结构空间内汽油/空气混合物爆炸发生发展过程;研究了分支管道数量及相对设置位置对爆炸超压的影响规律,以及分支管道对火焰传播形态和速度的影响规律;模拟结果与前人相关实验规律进行对比。研究结果表明:分支管道对汽油/空气混合气预混爆炸具有明显的强化激励作用;火焰锋面传播经过分支管道时,经历规则—褶皱—规则的变化过程;主管道内火焰传播速度,在分支管道对流场的突扩作用和湍流作用的共同影响下呈震荡变化的规律。     

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.     

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.     

Propane-air mixture deflagration hazard with different ignition positions and restraints in large-scale venting chamber

In order to better assess the hazards of explosion accidents, propane-air mixture deflagrations were conducted in a large-scale straight rectangular chamber (with a cross-section of 1.5 m × 1.5 m, length of 10 m, and total volume of 22.5 m³). The effect of initial volume, ignition position, and initial restraints on the explosion characteristics of the propane-air mixtures was investigated. The explosion overpressure, flame propagation, and flame speed were obtained and the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software was used to simulate the flame-propagation process and field flow for auxiliary analysis. The hazards of large-scale propagation explosion under weak and strong constraints were evaluated and the different phases of flame propagation under weak and strong constraints were discriminated. Results indicate that the hazards caused by propane deflagration under weak constraint are mainly caused by flame spread. And the maximum overpressure under strong constraint appeared at the front part of the chamber under the large-scale condition, which is consistent with the previous small-scale test. Moreover, the simulations of flame structures under weak and strong constraint are in good agreement with experimental results, which furthers the understanding of large-scale propane deflagration under different initial conditions in large-scale spaces and provides basic data for three-dimensional CFD model improvement.     

Experimental and numerical investigation of constant volume dust and gas explosions in a 3.6-m flame acceleration tube

This paper describes an experimental investigation of turbulent flame propagation in propane-air mixtures, and in mechanical suspensions of maize starch dispersed in air, in a closed vessel of length 3.6 m and internal cross-section 0.27 m × 0.27 m. The primary motivation for the work is to gain improved understanding of turbulent flame propagation in dust clouds, with a view to develop improved models and methods for assessing explosion risks in the process and mining industries. The study includes computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations with FLACS and DESC, for gas and dust explosions respectively. For initially quiescent propane-air mixtures, FLACS over-predicts the rate of combustion for fuel-lean mixtures, and under-predicts for fuel-rich mixtures. The simulations tend to be in better agreement with the experimental results for initially turbulent gaseous mixtures. The experimental results for maize starch vary significantly between repeated tests, but the subset of tests that yields the highest explosion pressures are in reasonable agreement with CFD simulations with DESC.     

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.     

Gas flame acceleration in long ducts

In many practical situations, a flame may propagate along a pipe, accelerate and perhaps transform into a devastating detonation. This phenomenology has been known, more or less qualitatively, for a long time and mitigation techniques were proposed to try and avoid this occurrence (flame arresters, vents,...). A number of parameters need to be known and in particular the “distance to detonation” and more generally the flame acceleration characteristic scales. Very often, the ratio between the detonation run-up distance and the pipe diameter is used without any strong justification other that using a non-dimensional parameter (L/D). In this paper, novel experimental evidence is presented on the basis of relatively large scale experiments using 10 cm and 25 cm inner diameter duct with a length between 7 and 40 m. Homogeneous C₂H₄-air, CH₄-air, C₃H₈-air and H₂-air mixtures were used and different ignition sources. The interpretation suggests that the self-acceleration mechanism of the flame may be much better represented by flame instabilities than by turbulence build-up. One consequence would be that the maximum flame velocity and, following, the maximum explosion overpressure, would be rather linked with the run-up distance than with the L/D ratio.     

The role of turbulence in the validity of the cubic relationship

The effect of turbulence on unsteady premixed flame propagation and associated pressure rise during explosion of stoichiometric CH₄/air in closed spherical vessels of different size was investigated by means of CFD simulation. Computations were run by varying the vessel volume from 20 l to 200 l and to 1 m³.Numerical results have shown that, at fixed initial conditions, the turbulence kinetic energy induced by the propagating flame increases with increasing vessel volume. It has been demonstrated that the cubic relationship does not apply. Under the conditions investigated, a correction to the cubic relationship has been proposed to take into account the effect of the vessel volume on turbulence.     

Investigations of flame front propagation between interconnected process vessels. Development of a new flame front propagation time prediction model

For the case where a dust or gas explosion can occur in a connected process vessel, it would be useful, for the purpose of designing protection measures and also for assessing the existing protection measures such as the correct placement, to have a tool to estimate the time for flame front propagation along the connecting pipe. Measurements of data from large-scale explosion tests in industrially relevant process vessels are reported. To determine the flame front propagation time, either a 1 m³ or a 4.25 m³ primary process vessel was connected via a pipe to a mechanically or pneumatically fed 9.4 m³ secondary silo. The explosion propagation started after ignition of a maize starch/air mixture in the primary vessel. No additional dust was present along the connecting pipe. Systematic investigations of the explosion data have shown a relationship between the flame front propagating time and the reduced explosion over-pressure of the primary explosion vessel for both vessel volumes. Furthermore, it was possible to validate this theory by using explosion data from previous investigations. Using the data, a flame front propagation time prediction model was developed which is applicable for:

• •gas and dust explosions up to a K value of 100 and 200 bar m s⁻¹, respectively, and a maximum reduced explosion over-pressure of up to 7 bar;
• •explosion vessel volumes of 0.5, 1, 4.25 and 9.4 m³, independent of whether they are closed or vented;
• •connecting pipes of pneumatic systems with diameters of 100–200 mm and an air velocity up to 30 m s⁻¹;
• •open ended pipes and pipes of interconnected vessels with a diameter equal to or greater than 100 mm;
• •lengths of connecting pipe of at least 2.5–7 m.

     

Effects of moisture and particle size distribution on flame propagation of L-lysine sulfate powder

Lysine is an essential amino acid for human body, and lysine sulfates are at risk of fire and explosion during the production and processing. However, there is no public report on the lysine sulfate powder explosion hazard research. In this paper, the effects of moisture, mass concentration and particle size on the flame propagation behaviors of L-lysine sulfate powder were studied in a vertical pipe. The results showed that the flame propagation could be divided into 3 stages: free propagation, acceleration and attenuation, in which the acceleration was owed to the positive feedback of combustion reaction, gas expansion and turbulence. Moisture content could promote the flame propagation of L-lysine sulfate powder to a certain extent, but it had a strong inhibitory effect on the explosion when the moisture content was too large. The flame propagation velocity increased with the decrease of the average particle size of powder,.With the increase of the particle concentration, the flame propagation velocity of powder explosion increased first and then decreased, that was, there was an optimal concentration of powder explosion, and the powder was more sensitive to the change of concentration in the range of low concentration.     

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.     

The effect of vent size and concentration in vented gasoline-air explosions

Experimental data from vented explosion tests using gasoline-air mixtures with concentrations from 0.88 to 2.41% vol. are presented. A 2L vessel was used for the tests with vent sizes of 25 cm², 50 cm² and 100 cm². The tests were focused on the effect of gasoline vapor concentration and vent size on the pressure development and the flame behavior inside and outside the vessel. It was found that the inner flame propagation speed was mainly dependent on the initial concentration, while the maximum flame spreading distance was mainly influenced by the vent size. The external flame speed and duration could be influenced by the combination of the two properties. The internal pressure increases gradually with the flame propagated inside the vessel and decreased sharply when the vent failed. High-pressure durations containing pressure peaks were recorded by transducers in front of the vent and oscillations could be observed besides the vent. At any measure point, the maximum external pressures for A = 25 cm² or 50 cm² were significantly larger than those for A = 100 cm².     

The acceleration of flames in tube explosions with two obstacles as a function of the obstacle separation distance

The separation distance (or pitch) between two successive obstacles or rows of obstacles is an important parameter in the acceleration of flame propagation and increase in explosion severity. Whilst this is generally recognised, it has received little specific attention by investigators. In this work a vented cylindrical vessel 162 mm in diameter 4.5 m long was used to study the effect of separation distance of two low blockage (30%) obstacles. The set up was demonstrated to produce overpressure through the fast flame speeds generated (i.e. in a similar mechanism to vapour cloud explosions). A worst case separation distance was found to be 1.75 m which produced close to 3 bar overpressure and a flame speed of about 500 m/s. These values were of the order of twice the overpressure and flame speed with a double obstacle separated 2.75 m (83 characteristic obstacle length scales) apart. The profile of effects with separation distance was shown to agree with the cold flow turbulence profile determined in cold flows by other researchers. However, the present results showed that the maximum effect in explosions is experienced further downstream than the position of maximum turbulence determined in the cold flow studies. It is suggested that this may be due to the convection of the turbulence profile by the propagating flame. The present results would suggest that in many previous studies of repeated obstacles the separation distance investigated might not have included the worst case set up, and therefore existing explosion protection guidelines may not be derived from worst case scenarios.     

The influence of the charge-to-mass ratio of the charged water mist on a methane explosion

To study the influence of the charge-to-mass ratio of a charged water mist on a methane explosion, the induction charging method was used to induce charge on a normal water mist; a mesh target method was employed to test the charge-to-mass ratio of its droplets. The propagation images, propagation average velocities, and overpressures of a methane explosion suppressed by charged water mist were analysed. The influence of the charge-to-mass ratio of the suppressant water mist on a methane explosion was studied. Results show that the explosion temperature, propagation average velocity, and peak overpressure deceased more obviously with charged water mist than ordinary water mist. With increasing charge-to-mass ratio, the suppression effect of the charged water mist underwent a significant increase. Under experimental conditions, compared with ordinary water mist, when the charge-to-mass ratio was 0.445 mC/kg and the mist flux was 4 L, the minimum flame propagation average velocity was 3.456 m/s, with a drop of 2.37 m/s (40.68%), and the peak overpressure of the methane explosion was 10.892 kPa, with a drop of 10.798 kPa (49.78%). The suppression effect is considered from the changes of the physico-chemical properties of the water mist as affected by the applied charge-to-mass ratio.     

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.     

Risk assessment of the ignitability and explosivity of aluminum nanopowders

Previously, an extensive study has been carried out in order to assess the ignition sensitivity and explosivity of aluminum nanopowders. It showed notably that, as the particle size decreases, minimum ignition temperature and minimum ignition energy decrease, indicating higher potential inflammation. However, the explosion severity decreases for diameters lower than 1 μm. As a consequence, this study leads to the conclusions that the ignition sensitivity and explosion severity of aluminum nanopowders may be affected by various phenomena, as pre-ignition, agglomeration/aggregation degree and the intrinsic alumina content. The presence of wall-quenching effects and the predominance of radiation compared to conduction in the flame propagation process have to be discussed to ensure the validity of the 20 L sphere and of the results extrapolation. Based on the peculiar behaviours that had been previously highlighted, a specific risk analysis has been developed in order to assess the fire and explosion risks of such materials. It has been applied to an industrial plant of aluminum nanopowders production. The hazard identification and the consequence modelling steps, especially the quantification of the likelihood and consequences, have been designed specifically. The application of this method has led to the definition of the most adequate safety barriers.     

Experimental study on the inhibition of methane/air explosion by modified attapulgite powder

In order to explore the influence of attapulgite powder on the methane explosion, a small-size semi-closed visual explosion experiment platform was built, and experiments were carried out. The effect of spraying powder on the whole process of methane explosion was studied when methane concentration was 7%, 8%, 9.5%, 11% and 12%, respectively. When the methane concentration was 11%, the maximum explosion overpressure dropped by modified spraying attapulgite powder was as high as 33.26%, and at the same time, the reduction rate of flame propagation velocity reached the maximum value of 36.65%. Furthermore, when the methane concentration was 9.5%, the experimental results when the powder spraying amount of modified attapulgite was 120 mg, 160 mg, 200 mg, 240 mg and 280 mg showed that when the powder spraying was 240 mg, the maximum explosive overpressure decreased by 33.14%, and the reduction rate of the peak flame propagation velocity reached the maximum value of 33.73%. Through the video images recorded by the high-speed camera, the flame structure, shape, color, etc. Were analyzed. The characterization analysis illustrated that the modified attapulgite powder has a small particle size, relatively large porosity and specific surface area. Also, it has a high weight loss rate. Combined with the results of characterization analysis, the explosion suppression mechanism of modified attapulgite powder was discussed. It was found that the modified attapulgite powder could effectively absorb the active free radicals generated in the explosion, and the modified new chemical components have a better thermal decomposition and endothermic effect and a better suppression of methane explosions.     

Laminar burning velocities of hydrogen–air mixtures from closed vessel gas explosions

The laminar burning velocity of hydrogen–air mixtures was determined from pressure variations in a windowless explosion vessel. Initially, quiescent hydrogen–air mixtures of an equivalence ratio of 0.5–3.0 were ignited to deflagration in a 169 ml cylindrical vessel at initial conditions of 1 bar and 293 K. The behavior of the pressure was measured as a function of time and this information was subsequently exploited by fitting an integral balance model to it. The resulting laminar burning velocities are seen to fall within the band of experimental data reported by previous researchers and to be close to values computed with a detailed kinetics model. With mixtures of an equivalence ratio larger than 0.75, it was observed that more advanced methods that take flame stretch effects into account have no significant advantage over the methodology followed in the present work. At an equivalence ratio of less than 0.75, the laminar burning velocity obtained by the latter was found to be higher than that produced by the former, but at the same time close enough to the unstretched laminar burning velocity to be considered as an acceptable conservative estimate for purposes related to fire and explosion safety. It was furthermore observed that the experimental pressure–time curves of deflagrating hydrogen–air mixtures contained pressure oscillations of a magnitude in the order of 0.25 bar. This phenomenon is explained by considering the velocity of the burnt mixture induced by the expansion of combusting fluid layers adjacent to the wall.