Technology & Services

Explosion Safety Prevention and Protection

TNO

Within the chemical industry a large number of explosive and flammable substances are used. Knowledge about the dangers of explosions decreases the safety risks for the direct environment, the workers and the companies. The gas explosion risk in a given situation depends on a combination of probability and effects of the explosion, directly related to explosion sensitivity and explosion severity, respectively. In process optimisation and quality increase, safety plays an important role. When performing risk assessments for chemical processes, the probability and consequences of explosions should be known. This is also important in determining the best countermeasures in explosion prevention and protection.
Explosions

unambiguously distinguish between a clearly defined reaction zone, a zone of reaction products and a zone of non-reacted substances. In other words, the entire mass explodes simultaneously. The most common type of chemical explosion is the heterogeneous explosion. In heterogeneous explosions a propagating reactive front clearly separates the non-reacted materials from the reaction products. The reaction front, usually called the reaction zone or flame (front), moves through the explosive mixture as the explosion occurs. In this zone the strongly exothermic reactions occur. Heterogeneous explosions are divided into two types deflagrations and detonations. In deflagrations, the reaction zone travels through the explosive mass at subsonic speed, while the propagation mechanism is heat transfer (by conduction, radiation and convection). Reaction zone propagation velocities (flame speeds) of deflagrations may vary over a wide range as do the corresponding explosion pressures. In some instances accelerating deflagrations show a transition into devastating detonations (DDT deflagrationto-detonation transition). The major characteristic of a detonation is its extremely high speed the explosion zone moves at a supersonic speed. While for deflagrations the flame speeds are low (typically one to several hundreds of metres per second), detonation flame speeds in air can easily reach 12km per second. The propagation mechanism of a detonation is an extremely rapid and sharp compression occurring in a shock wave. In contrast to a reversible adiabatic compression, shock compression is irreversible (non-isotropic), due to the extreme rapidity with which it occurs.
Explosion Risk

An explosion is a rapid and abrupt energy release that produces a pressure wave and/or shock wave. A pressure wave has a certain pressure rise time, whereas a shock wave has zero pressure rise time. Because of the pressure and/or shock wave, an explosion is always audible. Explosions can be classified into a number of types, as depicted in Figure 1.
Physical Explosions

The most common physical explosion is a bursting vessel of which a boiling liquid expanding vapour explosion (BLEVE) is an example. Because of the higher density of liquids, BLEVEs are much more destructive compared with an explosion of a container filled with a flammable (liquefied) gas phase under the same temperature and pressure.
Chemical Explosions

In the chemical industry, most explosions are chemical in nature. Chemical explosions are always highly exothermic chemical reactions, usually oxidation reactions, and can be divided into homogeneous and heterogeneous explosion types. For homogeneous explosions it is not possible to

The concept of explosion risk consists of two elements: firstly, the probability that an explosion will occur (explosion sensitivity); and secondly, the adverse effects resulting from the occurrence of an explosion (explosion severity).

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Technology & Services

Figure 1: Types of Explosions

characterising explosion sensitivity of liquids. The lower FP is the temperature at which the vapour pressure of the liquid is high enough to reach the lower explosion limit. The upper FP is the temperature at which the vapour pressure is high enough to reach the upper explosion limit. FPs are obviously related to volatility and chemical reactivity. Maximum experimental safe gap MESG relates to the quenching of an explosion occurring in a closed vessel by causing the hot explosion gases to flow through narrow parallel plates or surfaces. The MESG is related to the maximum allowable gap between parallel surfaces that will prevent a flame from propagating through the parallel plates. In practice, the MESG is important in designing, constructing and operating electrical equipment to be used in areas in which explosive gas mixtures exist.
Explosion Severity

Explosion Sensitivity

Given the presence of a combustible or explosive mixture in a certain space, the probability relates to the ease of ignition. The following parameters, which all relate to ignition, represent the explosion sensitivity. Explosion limits the lower explosion limit (LEL) is the lowest concentration of a gas or vapour in an oxidising medium (air, for instance) that can explode, whereas the upper explosion limit (UEL) is the highest concentration of a gas or vapour that can explode. The range between the LEL and UEL is called the explosive range. Limiting oxygen concentration the limiting oxygen concentration (LOC) is the lowest concentration of oxygen at which an explosion can occur. The LOC is of practical importance in inertisation, i.e. reducing the oxygen concentration below the LOC by introducing an inert gas, usually nitrogen, into air. This way gas/air mixtures can be turned into nonexplosive mixtures. Minimum ignition energy the minimum ignition energy (MIE) is the smallest amount of energy, usually in the form of an electric spark, that can ignite a gas/air mixture. Minimum or auto-ignition temperature the minimum ignition temperature (MIT), usually called auto-ignition temperature (AIT) for gases, is the lowest temperature, present in the form of a hot surface, which leads to self-ignition of the flammable mixture. Flash point (FP) the FP is related to the explosion limits, and is of major importance in

The adverse effects of explosions relate to the amount of energy released and the time required to release this amount of energy (power), as well as to its volume density (energy/volume) and the maximum explosion temperature reached. The corresponding parameters therefore represent the explosion severity. The following show examples of typical explosion severity parameters. Maximum explosion pressure the maximum explosion (over) pressure (Pmax) is the maximum pressure occurring during the explosion of a flammable mixture of optimal concentration in a closed vessel under specified test conditions. Maximum rate of pressure rise the maximum rate of pressure rise ((dP/dt)max) is the maximum value of the pressure rise per unit of time in a closed vessel occurring during the explosion of a flammable mixture of optimal concentration under specified test conditions. In other words, this pressure rise is the maximum speed at which the maximum explosion pressure is reached during the explosion. K-value the K-value (Kg for gases) is a volumenormalised rate of pressure rise and is expressed by the cubic law:

It relates the maximum rate of pressure rise to the volume of the vessel in which the explosion occurs.

BUSINESS BRIEFING: EXPLORATION & PRODUCTION: THE OIL & GAS REVIEW 2004

Explosion Safety: Prevention and Protection

In principle, the evaluation of gas explosion risk is based on a combined consideration of the explosion indices of a certain mixture and the process or operational conditions, including potential upset conditions or environmental factors. In the process of evaluation, much attention should be given to the effect of temperature, pressure and turbulence levels on the explosion indices, because the indices available in literature are determined at standard conditions. For example, gas flow conditions, compared with stagnant conditions, lead to a smaller explosion region and a reduced ignitability. The effect of flow conditions on the overall explosion risk is complicated, as an increase of turbulence also increases the explosion effects. Hence, upon an initial reduction with increased turbulence or flow, the overall explosion risk might increase again above a certain value. Despite the fact that explosion indices strongly depend on turbulence, temperature and pressure, most types of experimental equipment only enable the systematic variation of the latter two parameters. In order to overcome this limitation, a unique gas flow explosion pilot plant has been developed. The facility not only enables experimental studies on explosion control but also on process optimisation. The facility consists of a gas circulation system with variable test tubes. The tubes are equipped with an ignition/explosion section (see Figure 2). The conditions in the tube with respect to temperature, pressure and flowrate can be set similar to those in a real plant. The standard operational conditions of the flow explosion facility are: temperature range of 25300C; pressures of up to 1.5MPa; gas flow velocities in a range of 0.2524m/s; and tube diameters of 21, 50 and 100mm

Explosion Safety

In performing risk assessments, all of the previously mentioned explosion characteristics play an important role. If necessary, the unknown characteristics can be retrieved from fundamental research, which in most cases include experimental work. Next to the material characteristics, the plant and/or environment layout determine the effect of an explosion too. Confinement of vapour clouds due to buildings or process units leads to turbulence, which has a strong effect on the explosion effects. Therefore, a structural impact analysis should be included in process optimisation. Knowledge of the explosion characteristics and structural impact on buildings is necessary to determine the appropriate counter-measures for internal safety (inside process plants) and external safety (outside the process plant premises).
Explosion Prevention

Characterisation of the effect of process conditions on explosion indices not only leads to a solid evaluation of explosion risks, but provides opportunities for process optimisation. The facility can also be used for more complex and fundamental studies, like the effect of flow instabilities and precompression on deflagration characteristics and DDT phenomena, for example. Techniques like laser doppler interferometry are available to characterise turbulence levels.

The first step in taking appropriate counter-measures is preventing an explosion from happening. This can be done by excluding at least one of the three elements of the fire triangle flammable substance, oxidiser (usually oxygen) and ignition source. This can happen in various ways, e.g. by replacing flammable substances with non-flammable ones, by insertion with nitrogen or by removing ignition sources. In particular, the atmosphere explosive (ATEX) Directives 1999/92/EC and 94/9/EC deal with risk analyses and taking appropriate measures in order to protect the health and safety of workers potentially at risk from explosive atmospheres. In order to determine the best measures for explosion prevention, use will be made of explosion sensitivity parameters.
Explosion Protection

If every precaution has been taken to prevent an explosion from occurring and there is still a residual risk of explosions, one could take measures in the

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Figure 3: Example of Testing an Explosion Panel

field of explosion protection using explosion-proof equipment, explosion relief valves and panels (see Figure 3) and explosion suppression equipment. Explosion severity parameters will help in determining the best means of protection. Important in the design of protection measures is the requirement that their functioning should not have a dangerous effect on people, the environment or any other parts of the process. This is explicitly dealt with in the previously mentioned ATEX Directives. Explosion prevention and protection form an important part of a risk analysis. Several techniques can be used to address the safety issues and in most cases these same techniques can be used in solving them. For further information about TNO, please e-mail: [email protected]
References

Some of the contents of this document have been deduced from:

BUSINESS BRIEFING: EXPLORATION & PRODUCTION: THE OIL & GAS REVIEW 2004