Fire Protection for Hazardous Materials Pressure Vessels

最近在梅甘蒂克湖、魁北克和北美其他地方发生的事件震惊了加拿大和世界。原油怎么可能爆炸？这些爆炸被称为沸腾液体膨胀蒸汽爆炸（BLEVE），并且已经知道了几十年。这种爆炸每年都在世界各地发生。它们通常与液化气体如丙烷或LPG相关。然而，当易燃液体如轻质原油在封闭的压力容器中加热时，当容器失效时，结果可能是BLEVE或BLEVE样事件。** 易燃物品爆炸危险事件通常是巨大的火球、爆炸冲击波和抛射体。这些危险可以摧毁建筑物，并在数百米的距离内杀死人。 在过去的二十年里，由于少数学术、政府和工业研究人员的重点研究，我们对BLEVEs及其相关危害的理解有了很大的提高。然而，仍有许多东西需要学习。当前研究的一个主要主题是找到具有成本效益的方法，在发生事故时阻止或延迟BLEVE的发生。* 这是一项多学科的研究。它涉及结构力学、断裂力学、高温应力断裂、传导、对流、沸腾和辐射传热、热力学、流体动力学、两相流和流体结构相互作用。它需要复杂的实验研究和数值模拟。* 本申请中提出的研究旨在进一步提高我们对BLEVE事件的理解，并开发改进的预测和分析方法，以便我们能够更好地确定对公民的风险。我们计划研究详细的机制，以便我们能够确定减少与这些商品的储存和运输相关的危害和风险的方法。我们还将研究创新的缓解方法，如新的绝缘涂层，以找到最具成本效益的解决方案，这一日益严重的问题。我们需要这些详细的知识，以便我们可以执行必要的成本效益分析，以选择最具成本效益的解决方案。这是一个挑战，因为我们必须保护成千上万的船只，我们必须等待数年才能减少一次重大事故的风险。** 比尔克博士和他的学生将进行小规模实验，研究各种商品（包括丙烷和某些轻质原油）的BLEVE爆炸。我们将开发和验证数学模型，使我们能够预测BLEVE的近距离危险。我们还将进行小型和大型实验，研究创新的缓解方法，如减压装置和热保护。* 博士比尔克将培训1-2名博士生和2-4名硕士生沿着五名本科暑期研究生。这些人将继续为能源和化学公司、咨询公司、学术机构和政府监管机构工作。*** **

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. *** **