Vacuum chamber suppression of gas-explosion propagation in a tunnel

Abstract

To control and reduce the harm of a gas explosion, a new method is proposed for suppressing gas-explosion propagation in a tunnel by using a vacuum chamber. We studied the suppression effect on gas explosions by placing a vacuum chamber at different positions along the tunnel. The results indicate that: 1) the vacuum chamber can absorb the explosion wave and explosion energy as much as possible at the beginning of the gas explosion, and; 2) when the vacuum chamber is used the closer it is to the ignition source the more significant the suppression effect. In addition, by using the vacuum chamber: 1) the flame propagation velocity decreases from ultrasonic to subsonic; 2) the flame propagation distance is remarkably shortened; 3) the maximum peak value of overpressure (pm) decreases from 0.34 to 0.17 MPa or less, and; 4) the impulse of the blast wave (I decreases from 20 to 8 kPa·s or less.