Fire Protection for Hazardous Materials Pressure Vessels

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The recent events at Lac Megantic ,Quebec and others in North America shocked Canada and the world. How is it possible that crude oil could explode? These explosions are called boiling liquid expanding vapour explosions (BLEVE) and have been known for decades. These types of explosions happen every year around the world. They are typically associated with liquefied gases such as propane or LPG. However, when a flammable liquid like light crude oil is heated in a closed pressure vessel, the outcome can be a BLEVE or BLEVE-like event when that container fails. ******BLEVEs of flammable commodities usually involve huge fireballs, explosion blast waves and projectiles. These hazards can destroy buildings and kill people over distances of hundreds of meters.  Our understanding of BLEVEs and their associated hazards has improved greatly over the last two decades due to focused research by a small number of academic, government and industrial researchers. However, there is still much to be learned. A major theme of current research is to find cost effective ways of stopping or delaying BLEVEs from happening when there is an accident. ***This is multidisciplinary research. It involves structural mechanics, fracture mechanics, high temperature stress rupture, conduction, convection, boiling and radiation heat transfer, thermodynamics, fluid dynamics, two-phase flow, and fluid structure interaction. It requires sophisticated experimental research and numerical modelling. ****The research proposed in this application is intended to further improve our understanding of the BLEVE event and to develop improved methods of prediction and analysis so we can better define the risks to our citizens. We plan to study the detailed mechanisms so we can determine ways to reduce the hazards and risk associated with storage and transportation of these commodities. We will also study innovative mitigation methods such as new insulating coatings to find the most cost effective solutions to this growing problem. We need this detailed knowledge so we can perform the necessary cost-benefit analysis to select the most cost effective solutions. This is a challenge because we must protect many thousands of vessels, and we must wait years to reduce the risk of one major accident. ******Dr Birk and his students will conduct small scale experiments to study the BLEVE explosions from various commodities including propane and certain light crude oils. We will develop and validate mathematical models that allow us to predict the close-in hazards from BLEVEs. We will also conduct small and large scale experiments to study innovative mitigation methods such as pressure relief devices and thermal protection. ***Dr Birk will train 1-2 PhD students and 2-4 MSc students along with five undergraduate summer research students. These individuals will go on to work for energy and chemical companies, consulting firms, academic institutions and government regulators. *** **