Blast from explosive evaporation of carbon dioxide: experiment, modeling and physics

Abstract

Explosive evaporation of a superheated liquid is a relevant hazard in the process industry. A vessel rupture during storage, transport or handling may lead to devastating blast effects. In order to assess the risk associated with this hazard or to design protective measures, an accurate prediction model for the blast generated after vessel rupture is needed. For this reason a fundamental understanding of the effects of a boiling liquid expanding vapor explosion (BLEVE) is essential. In this paper, we report on a number of well-defined BLEVE experiments with 40-l liquid CO 2 bottles. The existing inertia-limited BLEVE model has been validated by its application to these experiments. Good qualitative agreement between model and experiment was found, while quantitatively the results provide a safe estimate. Possible model improvements taking into account the finite rate of evaporation are described. These comprise phenomena such as bubble nucleation and growth rate, and the two-phase flow regime. Suggestions for improved experiments are given as well.

Study of fire and explosion hazards of alternative fuel vehicles in tunnels

“…Verification of modelling Three tests were used for verification of modelling of the explosion sub model. These tests include the CO2 BLEVE tests by van der Voort et al [56], the tunnel tests with hydrogen cloud explosion by , and the tunnel tests with methane cloud explosion by TNO.…”

“…The TNO tests with a liquefied CO2 tank in a test bunker with an internal volume of 6 m × 12 m × 4 m [56] was simulated for verification. The tank had a diameter of 0.23 m and a height of 1.37 m. It was placed vertically on the floor in the center of the room.…”

“…Pressure transducers were installed at 0.7 m above floor and 1m, 2 m and 3 m away from the tank. The flash fraction is estimated to be 0.4 [56]. In the tests, two tests, i.e.…”

Numerical study of the effect of heat transfer on solid phase formation during decompression of CO2 in pipelines

“…Despite the fact that carbon dioxide (CO2) at low concentrations is commonly considered as a safe substance, accidental failure of facilities transporting large quantities of CO2 at high pressures for carbon capture and storage or utilization [1,2] may cause significant harm to personnel and local populations as a result of explosion overpressure and the asphyxiate nature of the CO2 in the ensuing dispersion cloud [3,4].…”

An experimental investigation of rapid boiling of $$\hbox {CO}_{2}$$ CO 2

“…Zein et al [8] used the same numerical model to reproduce the results of Simoes-Moreira and Shepherd with better accuracy. In recent years, there have also been several attempts to model BLEVE-type scenarios [9][10][11]. The knowledge of detailed thermodynamics and kinetics is important in the validation of such models.…”