Computational Simulation of Methane Ignition in Enclosed Spaces

Abstract

In the research on gas explosions, the emphasis has been and continues to be primarily on physical experiments conducted on various scaled-down models. Building models at actual size is often a resource-intensive task in terms of materials, time, and human resources. The rapid advancement of computational techniques has allowed, among other things, the transfer of gas explosion research into the virtual environment. For validating computerized simulations of this kind, physical experiments and specialized literature are still considered fundamental. However, one of the challenges posed by the virtualization process is the limitation of conducting simulations in fully or partially enclosed spaces, under initially imposed conditions, without the possibility of dynamically modifying these conditions based on the development of overpressures generated by the virtual explosion. This paper details a computerized experiment where the boundary conditions were successfully transformed into predefined pressure threshold surfaces, transitioning from rigid surfaces to surfaces capable of releasing the overpressures developed in fully or partially enclosed spaces. This approach aligns the results of these simulations with the real dynamic effects of gas explosion events.