Biomass dust explosions: CFD simulations and venting experiments in a 1 m3 silo
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Published version
Author(s)
Islas, Alain
Fernández, Andrés Rodríguez
Betegón, Covadonga
Martínez-Pañeda, Emilio
Pandal, Adrián
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
This study presents CFD simulations of biomass dust explosions in a newly developed experimental 1 m3 silo apparatus with variable venting, designed and fabricated to operate similarly to the explosivity test standards. The aim of the study is to validate a CFD model under development and investigate its capability to capture the transient effects of a vented explosion. The model is based on OpenFOAM and solves the multiphase (gas-particle) flow using an Eulerian-Lagrangian approach in a two-way regime. It considers the detailed thermochemical conversion of biomass, including moisture evaporation, devolatilization, and char oxidation, along with the homogeneous combustion of gases, turbulence, and radiative heat transfer. The explosion is analyzed in all stages, i.e., dust cloud dispersion, ignition, closed explosion, and vented explosion. The results indicate excellent agreement between the CFD model and experimental tests throughout the sequence. Our findings highlight the critical role of particle size in dust cloud distribution and pre-ignition turbulence, which significantly influences flame dynamics and the explosion itself. This model shows great promise and encourages its application for future investigations of biomass dust explosions in larger-scale geometries, especially in venting situations that fall out of the scope of the NFPA 68 or EN 14491 standards, and to help design effective safety measures to prevent such incidents.
Date Issued
2023-08
Date Acceptance
2023-06-26
Citation
Process Safety and Environmental Protection, 2023, 176, pp.1048-1062
ISSN
0957-5820
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Start Page
1048
End Page
1062
Journal / Book Title
Process Safety and Environmental Protection
Volume
176
Copyright Statement
© 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of Institution of Chemical Engineers. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND
license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
Identifier
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.psep.2023.06.074
Publication Status
Published
Date Publish Online
2023-06-29