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EXPLOSIONS
FUNDAMENTALS and DESIGN
CONSIDERATIONS
Fuels:
plastics, wood
dust, fibers,
metal particles IGNITION
FU
EL
Solids
YG
EN
gasoline,
acetone, ether,
pentane
(OX
Liquids
Liquids
Gases
AIR
Oxidizers
SOURCE
Oxygen, fluorine,
chlorine
hydrogen peroxide,
nitric acid,
perchloric acid
Solids
Metal peroxides,
ammonium nitrate
Gases
acetylene,
Ignition sources
propane, carbon
Sparks, flames, static
monoxide,
electricity, heat
hydrogen
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Flash Point
Lowest temperature at which a flammable
liquid gives off enough vapor to form an
ignitable mixture with air
SAME
SAME
Flammability Relationships
RE
RP
MIST
RE
S
SU
AUTO
IGNITION
FLAMMABLE REGION
REGION
FLAMMABLE
VA
PO
CONCENTRATION OF FUEL
IT
UPPER LIM
LOW ER LIM
IT
FLASH POINT
TEMPERATURE
AIT
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Flammability
Diagram
LOC
1 Atmosphere
25C
FLAMMABLE
MIXTURES
Limiting O2
Concentration:
Vol. % O2 below
which combustion
cant occur
HEL
LEL
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Flammability
Diagram
LOC
1 Atmosphere
25C
Limiting O2
Concentration:
Vol. % O2 below
which combustion
cant occur
HEL
FLAMMABLE
MIXTURES
LEL
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Effect of Temperature on
Lower Limits of Flammability
L
E
L,
%
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Effect of Pressure of
Flammability
HEL
Natural Gas In Air at 28oC
LEL
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of combustible in combustant
Type of compound
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Autoignition Temperature
Function of:
Concentration of the vapor
Material in contact
Size of the containment
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Flammability Relationships
RE
SU
RE
S
RP
MIST
FLAMMABLE REGION
REGION
FLAMMABLE
AUTO
IGNITION
VA
PO
CONCENTRATION OF FUEL
IT
UPPER LIM
LOW ER LIM
IT
FLASH POINT
TEMPERATURE
AIT
AIT
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Autoignition Temperature
Material
Pentane in air
Benzene
Carbon disulfide
Variation
Autoignition
Temperature
1.50%
3.75%
7.65%
1018 F
936 F
889 F
Iron flask
Quartz flask
1252 F
1060 F
200 ml flask
1000 ml flask
10000 ml flask
248 F
230 F
205 F
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Autoignition Temperature
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Auto-Oxidation
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Adiabatic Compression
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Percent of Accidents
Electrical
23
Smoking
18
Friction
10
Overheated Materials
Hot Surfaces
Burner Flames
Static Sparks
All Other
20
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More Definitions
Fire
A slow form of deflagration
Deflagration
Propagating reactions in which the energy transfer
from the reaction zone to the unreacted zone is
accomplished thru ordinary transport processes
such as heat and mass transfer.
Detonation / Explosion
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Classification of Explosions
Rapid Equilibration of High Pressure
Gas via Shock Wave
EXPLOSION =
Physical Explosions
Uniform Reactions
Thermal
Explosions
Chemical Explosions
Propagating Reactions
Detonations
(Shock Wave)
Deflagrations
(Normal
Transport)
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Potential Energy
Stored Volumes of Ideal Gas at 20 C
PRESSURE, psig
10
100
1000
10000
0.001
0.02
1.42
6.53
Deflagration
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Detonation
Pressure vs Time
Characteristics
OVERPRESSURE
DETONATION
TIME
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CONSEQUENCES
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Bayway, NJ
H-Oil Incident 1970
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N
C
O
N
F
I
N
E
D
A
P
O
R
L
O
U
D
X
P
L
O
S
I
O
N
S
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Confinement
Higher probability of
finding ignition source;
more likely to generate
overpressure
Cloud composition
Unsaturated molecules
all ethylene clouds
explode; low ignition
energies; high flame
speeds
Prevents escape,
increases turbulence
Good weather
Source
Stable atmospheres,
low wind speeds
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Effects
Knock personnel down
Rupture eardrums
Damage lungs
Threshold fatalities
50% fatalities
99% fatalities
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2-to-3
3-to-4
5
7
7-8
Typical Damage
Glass windows break
Common siding types fail:
- corrugated asbestos shatters
- corrugated steel panel joints fail
- wood siding blows in
Unreinforced concrete, cinder block walls fail
Self-framed steel panel buildings collapse
Oil storage tanks rupture
Utility poles snap
Loaded rail cars overturn
Unreinforced brick walls fail
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Multi-Energy Models
O
I
L
I
N
G
I
Q
U
I
D
X
P
A
N
D
I
N
G
A
P
O
R
X
P
L
O
S
I
O
N
S
BLEVE
FUEL
SOURCE
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Distance Comparison
INVENTORY
(tons)
1
2
5
10
20
50
100
200
500
1000
18
36
60
90
130
200
280
400
600
820
Distance
in Meters
20
30
36
50
60
100
130
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Typical Control
Fire or Flames
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Hot Surfaces
Electrical
Typical Control
Spacing
Procedures
Typical Control
Area Classification
Sparks from Switches
Static Sparks jkfdkd fjkdjd kdjfdkd Grounding, Inerting,
Relaxation
Lightning
Geometry, Snuffing
Handheld Electrical Equipment
Procedures
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PLwhere
PL is vacuum level
j
y yo( )
j
PH PH is inert pressure
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nLwhere
nL is atmospheric moles
j
y yo(n )
j
H nH is pressure moles
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Sweep-Through Purging
In one end, and out the other
For equipment not rated for pressure, vacuum
Requires large quantities of inert gas
Siphon Purging
Fill vessel with a compatible liquid
Use Sweep-Through on small vapor space
Add inert purge gas as vessel is drained
Very efficient for large storage vessels
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Using the
Flammability
Diagram
1 Atmos.
25C
FLAMMABLE
MIXTURES
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Static Electricity
0.1 mJ
20 mJ
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Double-Layer Charging
Streaming Current
The flow of electricity produced by transferring
electrons from one surface to another by a
flowing fluid or solid
The larger the pipe / the faster the flow, the
larger the current
Relaxation Time
The time for a charge to dissipate by leakage
The lower the conductivity / the higher the
dielectric constant, the longer the time
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Controlling
Static Electricity
Controlling
Static Electricity
GROUNDING
BONDING
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Area Classification
National
Electrical
Code (NEC)
defines area
classifications
as a function
of the nature
and degree of
process
hazards
present
Class I
Class II
Class III
Group A
Acetylene
Group B
Hydrogen, ethylene
Group C
CO, H2S
Group D
Butane, ethane
Division 1
Division 2
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VENTILATION
Open-Air Plants
Average wind velocities are often high enough to
safely dilute volatile chemical leaks
Purge boxes
Elephant trunks
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Summary
Though they can often be reduced in
magnitude or even sometimes
designed out, many of the hazards
that can lead to fires/explosions are
unavoidable
Eliminating at least one side of the
Fire Triangle represents the best
chance for avoiding fires and
explosions
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END of PRESENTATION
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