Review of the DESC project

Dust Explosion Simulation Code (DESC) was a project supported by the European Commission under the Fifth Framework Programme. The main purpose of the project was to develop a simulation tool based on computational fluid dynamics (CFD) that could predict the potential consequences of industrial dust explosions in complex geometries. Partners in the DESC consortium performed experimental work on a wide range of topics related to dust explosions, including dust lifting by flow or shock waves, flame propagation in vertical pipes, dispersion-induced turbulence and flame propagation in closed vessels, dust explosions in closed and vented interconnected vessel systems, and measurements in real process plants. The new CFD code DESC is based on the existing CFD code FLame ACceleration Simulator (FLACS) for gas explosions. The modelling approach adopted in the first version entails the extraction of combustion parameters from pressure–time histories measured in standardized 20-l explosion vessels. The present paper summarizes the main experimental results obtained during the DESC project, with a view to their relevance regarding dust explosion modelling, and describes the modelling of flow and combustion in the first version of the DESC code. Capabilities and limitations of the code are discussed, both in light of its ability to reproduce experimental results, and as a practical tool in the field of dust explosion safety.