Influence of the oxide content on the ignition energies of aluminium powders

Some results of determination of ignition energies for an aluminium powder with various oxide contents are presented. Common use of processes like high-speed cutting produce explosive dust clouds, so that we focused this study on hazard of metallic powders. An industrial aluminium powder has been used for this work. An original process, based on the principle of electrochemical anodisation, has been developed to increase, under control, the oxide coating of particles.

The sensitivity study to spark ignition was performed in an Hartmann explosion tube of 1.3L. The Langlie test method was applied to evaluate the energies leading to a probability of ignition of 50% (E₅₀) of the selected samples. The results confirm that the ignition energies increase with the oxide content of the powder.     

Combustion characteristics of asphalt and sodium compounds

Risk evaluation of mixtures of asphalt and inorganic salts such as sodium nitrate, sodium nitrite, sodium carbonate and sodium dihydrogenphosphate was conducted. The ignition and the combustion characteristics of mixtures of asphalt and oxidizing salts were obtained. Quasi-heat-accumulation experiments of asphalt–salt mixtures were conducted using about 1 kg samples. Six types of asphalt–salt mixtures were made and their ignition characteristics were examined in the quasi-heat-accumulation experiments. Then to clarify burning behavior of the asphalt–salt mixtures, experiments for understanding their combustion characteristics were conducted using a cone calorimeter.

The main results are as follows.

(1) In the quasi-heat-accumulation experiment, a region with high concentration of the salt mixture particles was made at the bottom of the sample vessel through the process of their sedimentation. An exothermic reaction started in this region. Just before the asphalt–salt mixture was ignited, a huge amount of white smoke was released. A kind of jet flame of a few meters in height was created.

(2) Based on the data of ignition temperature from the cone calorimeter experiments, ignition of asphalt was caused by a chemical reaction of asphalt with an oxidizing salt. The combustion of the asphalt–salt mixture contained the self-heating reaction.     

几种地板燃烧性能的实验研究

地板的燃烧性能对室内火灾的发展蔓延及火灾危害都有重要的影响,本文使用锥形量热仪对市场上常见几种地板(实木地板、竹制地板和复合地板)的燃烧性能进行试验研究。实验结果表明,地板的热释放速率具有两个峰,相同辐射功率下,竹地板和实木地板的比消光面积分别比复合地板高29．3％、42．5％,竹制地板点燃时间较小,复合地板火灾危险性要小于竹制地板和实木地板。     

基于锥形量热仪的几种防火布燃烧性能研究

生产企业常在电缆或者贵重高危机器处设置防火布来保护生产设备设施的消防安全,选取五种常用的防火布:石棉纤维防火布、陶瓷纤维防火布、硅胶防火布、涂胶防火布、碳素纤维防火布,通过锥形量热仪实验研究不同辐射强度对防火布燃烧性能的影响。结果表明:点燃时间的均方根倒数与辐射强度之间呈现线性关系;在35 kW/m~2辐射强度工况下,碳素纤维防火布的热释放速率最大,达到272.59 kW/m~2,有效燃烧热的峰值也最大,达到529.52 kJ/g;综合比较各样品的燃烧性能,防火能力强弱顺序为:硅胶防火布石棉纤维防火布陶瓷纤维防火布碳素纤维防火布涂胶防火布。     

常用聚氨酯硬泡外墙外保温系统的点燃特性研究

基于锥形量热仪实验,对常用的聚氨酯硬泡外墙外保温系统的点燃特性进行了实验研究。所研究的系统种类包括粘贴保温板薄抹灰外墙外保温系统,瓷砖饰面粘贴保温板外墙外保温系统,胶粉浆料复合保温板外墙外保温系统和保温装饰板外墙外保温系统。实验结果显示,聚氨酯硬泡保温板和聚氨酯硬泡外墙外保温系统都可由热厚型点燃描述。在防护层对点燃时间的抑制效果方面,胶粉聚苯颗粒复合保温板系统最好,瓷砖饰面系统稍差但明显好于5mm和3mm厚防护层的薄抹灰系统,铝板保温装饰板系统最差。     

静电喷漆作业的防火防爆

静电喷漆工艺应用普及很快,但其生产过程的火灾危险性属甲类。其火灾危险主要在于使用的漆料或有机溶剂,喷漆作业中存在电火花、静电火花、高温热表面、自然发热等引火源。为防止火灾爆炸发生,要注重防火防爆安全管理和强化必要的安全技术措施。     

Testing of dust clouds for the electrostatic-spark ignition hazard in industry. Need for a modified approach?

Current standard test methods for electric-spark minimum ignition energies (MIEs) of dust clouds in air require that a series inductance of at least 1–2 mH be included in the electric-spark discharge circuit. The reason is to prolong the spark discharge duration and thus minimize the spark energy required for ignition. However, when assessing the minimum electrostatic energy ½CU² for dust cloud ignition by accidental electrostatic-spark discharges, current testing standards require that the series inductance of at least 1–2 mH be removed from the spark discharge circuit. No other changes of apparatus and test procedure are required. The present paper questions whether this simple approach is always adequate. The reason is that in practice in industry accidental electrostatic-spark discharge circuits may contain large ohmic resistances due to corrosion, poor electrical grounding connections, poorly electrically conducting construction materials etc. The result is increased spark discharge durations and reduced mechanical disturbance of the dust cloud by the blast wave emitted by the spark. Therefore, testing for minimum ½CU² for ignition by accidental electrostatic spark discharges may not only require removal of the series inductance of 1–2 mH from the standard MIE spark discharge circuit. Additional tests may be needed with one or more quite large series resistances R_s inserted into the spark discharge circuit. The present paper proposes a modified standard test procedure for measurement of the minimum electrostatic-spark ignition energy of dust clouds that accounts for these effects.     

Incendiary characteristics of electrostatic discharge for dust and gas explosion

Paying attention to the ignition potentiality of static electricity, the relation between the discharge characteristics and the ignition of a dust cloud and the gas produced was studied, applying an electrical power supply of which the electrical circuit is adjustable. The effect of ignition characteristics on dust and gas explosions was investigated. The results of the study indicate that the probability of an explosion is influenced by the minimum ignition energy, spark duration time, feeding rate of ignition energy, circuit capacitance, ignition voltage, etc.     

Hot surfaces generated by sliding metal contacts and their effectiveness as an ignition source

Frictional processes caused by malfunctions may lead to hot surfaces and mechanical sparks. Whenever mechanical sparks occur due to friction, there are also hot surfaces. The time until the ignition source becomes effective is largely dependent on the thermal conductivity of the friction partners. Based on this, it was examined whether classification into the explosion groups and temperature classes of IEC 60079-0 is possible and useful. This research therefore focuses on the development of hot surfaces and their effectiveness. To assess the formation of hot surfaces, tests for temperature development according to the applied power density and the different materials were performed in a friction apparatus. The experimental setup is realised via a friction pin which is pressed onto a rotating friction disc. The variation of the power density was carried out by changing the velocity and load per area. The temperature distribution was detected by thermocouples, two pyrometers and an infrared camera. For the investigation of the incendivity of hot surfaces, the ignition curves were determined by characteristic reference gases and vapours of the IEC explosion groups and temperature classes. Tests have been carried out with hydrogen, ethylene, diethyl ether, propane and pentane. The experiments have shown that a larger thermal conductivity of the steel used can lead to slow down heating of the pin material. With an increasing wear rate the maximum temperature decreases. It was possible to determine the maximum temperatures at specific power inputs. The ignition tests show that ignitions are possible even at low velocities. The effective ignition source was thereby always the hot surface. The result was a graduation of the explosion limits analogous to the order of Maximum experimental safe gap (MESG) values. In contrast, no significant relationship between the ignition limits and the temperature class of the respective substances was revealed.     

Measurement of minimum ignition energies (MIEs) of dust clouds – History,present, future

Nearly 130 years ago Holtzwart and von Meyer (1891) demonstrated by experiments that explosible dust clouds could be ignited by inductive electric sparks. Then more than half a century passed before the publication of the important quantitative research of Boyle and Llewellyn (1950) and Line et al. (1959). They worked with capacitive electric sparks and found that the minimum capacitor energies ½CU² required for ignition of various dust clouds in air decreased substantially when a large series resistance, in the range 10⁴–10⁷ Ω, was introduced in the discharge circuit. When considering that the net energies of the sparks themselves were only of the order of 10% of the ½CU² discharged, the minimum net spark energies required for ignition with a large series resistance were only a few per cent of the net energies required without such a resistance.Line et al. observed that the essential effect of increasing the series resistance, and hence increasing the discharge time of the sparks, was to reduce the disturbance of the dust cloud by the blast wave from the spark. This phenomenon was explored further by Eckhoff (1970, 2017), and subsequently by some simple experiments by Eckhoff and Enstad (1976). Franke (1974, 1977) and Laar (1980) confirmed the additional finding of Line et al. (1959) that the minimum ½CU² for ignition is also substantially reduced by including a series inductance in the discharge circuit, rather than a series resistance. The basic reason is the same as with a large series resistance, viz. increased spark discharge time and hence decreased disturbance of the dust cloud by blast wave from the spark. For this reason inclusion of an appreciable series inductance in the spark discharge circuit is an essential element in current standard MIE test methods.In experiments with spark ignition of transient dust clouds produced by a blast of air in a closed vessel, it is necessary to synchronize the occurrence of the spark with the formation of the dust cloud. The precision required from this type of synchronization is typically of the order of 10 ms, which can be obtained even by mechanical arrangements, such as rapid change of spark gap length, or of the distance between two capacitor plates. The present paper reviews some methods that have been/are being used for achieving adequate synchronization of dust cloud appearance and spark discharge. Some current standard experimental methods for determining MIEs of dust clouds experimentally have also been reviewed. The same applies to some theories of electric-spark ignition of dust clouds.At the end of paper some suggestions for possible future modifications of current standard methods for measuring MIEs of explosible dust clouds are presented. With regard to justifying significant modifications of existing standard methods, the “bottom line” is, as quite often in many connections, that any modifications should be based on realistic cost/benefit evaluations.     

Ignition of dust-air atmospheres by ultrasonic waves

This paper shows the results of our investigations on the ignition source ultrasound in dust-air atmospheres. Ultrasound is, on the one hand, considered to be an ignition source according to international safety standards (EN 1127–1 (2011)). On the other hand, though, ultrasound is used for various applications in gases and air, such as level and flow measurement, or in the process industry, but no explosion accidents have yet been reported. Our research now shows that it is indeed possible to ignite dust-air mixtures in ultrasound fields under certain conditions. We conducted our experiments in an ultrasound standing wave field and used maize starch, calcium stearate and sulfur dust. For ignitions, an absorbing target was needed to convert the acoustic energy into heat. From theoretical estimations and experiments critical conditions that provoke ultrasonically triggered explosions are identified.