• Journal of the Korean Institute of Gas
• /
• v.12 no.2
• /
• pp.1-6
• /
• 2008

For the safety design and operation of many gas process, it is necessary to know certain explosion limit, flash point, autoignition temperature (AIT) and minimum oxygen concentration of handling substances. Also it is necessary to know explosion limit at high temperature and pressure. In this study for the safe handling of hydrogen, explosion limit and AIT of combustion properties for hydrogen were investigated. By using the literatures data, the lower and upper explosion limits of hydrogen recommended 4.0 vol% and 77.0 vol%. Also the AIT of hydrogen with ignition sources recommended $400^{\circ}C$ at the electrically heated crucible furnace (the whole surface heating) and recommended $640^{\circ}C$ at the local hot surface. The new equations for predicting the temperature and the pressure dependence of the explosion limits of hydrogen are proposed. The values calculated by the proposed equations were a good agreement with the literature data.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
• /
• v.19 no.4 s.68
• /
• pp.150-154
• /
• 2004

Gas explosion characteristics of hydrogen and liquefied petroleum gas(LPG) were measured in 6L cylindrical vessel, and experiment for explosion to fire transition phenomena of the gases were carried out using the 270L vessel. Explosion characteristics were measured using the stain type pressure transducer and explosion to fire transition phenomena was analyzed with the hish-speed camera. Base on the experiment, it was found that explosion pressure was most high slightly above the stoichiometric concentration, and explosion pressure rise rate and flame propagation velocity were proportional to the combustion velocity. And we find that those kind of explosion characteristics affect the explosion-to-fire transition, in addition, explosion flame temperature, flame residence time, are important parameters in explosion-to-fire transition.

• Explosives and Blasting
• /
• v.40 no.3
• /
• pp.1-18
• /
• 2022

Due to the advent of the hydrogen economy era, various studies are being conducted to transport and store hydrogen, and the risk of hydrogen explosion is emerging. In order to figure out the new technology related to hydrogen energy, it is necessary to figure out the overall research trends related to various hydrogen energy at home and abroad. In this study, a bibliometric analysis using VOSViewer for the papers published in the international journal was conducted. From the analysis in different time period using the keywords including hydrogen explosion, hydrogen pipeline, and hydrogen storage, it was found that there were frequent paper publications using numerical analysis simulation. It is also found that more and more researches on safety and hydrogen explosion in hydrogen storage and hydrogen pipeline transportation have been conducted in 2011-2022 compared to those in 2000-2010.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
• /
• v.23 no.6
• /
• pp.517-534
• /
• 2021

Hydrogen fuel is emerging as an new energy source to replace fossil fuels in that it can solve environmental pollution problems and reduce energy imbalance and cost. Since hydrogen is eco-friendly but highly explosive, there is a high concern about fire and explosion accidents of hydrogen fueled vehicles. In particular, in semi-enclosed spaces such as tunnels, the risk is predicted to increase. Therefore, this study was conducted on the applicability of the equivalent TNT model and the numerical analysis method to evaluate the hydrogen explosion pressure in the tunnel. In comparison and review of the explosion pressure of 6 equivalent TNT models and Weyandt's experimental results, the Henrych equation was found to be the closest with a deviation of 13.6%. As a result of examining the effect of hydrogen tank capacity (52, 72, 156 L) and tunnel cross-section (40.5, 54, 72, 95 m²) on the explosion pressure using numerical analysis, the explosion pressure wave in the tunnel initially it propagates in a hemispherical shape as in open space. Furthermore, when it passes the certain distance it is transformed a plane wave and propagates at a very gradual decay rate. The Henrych equation agrees well with the numerical analysis results in the section where the explosion pressure is rapidly decreasing, but it is significantly underestimated after the explosion pressure wave is transformed into a plane wave. In case of same hydrogen tank capacity, an explosion pressure decreases as the tunnel cross-sectional area increases, and in case of the same cross-sectional area, the explosion pressure increases by about 2.5 times if the hydrogen tank capacity increases from 52 L to 156 L. As a result of the evaluation of the limiting distance affecting the human body, when a 52 L hydrogen tank explodes, the limiting distance to death was estimated to be about 3 m, and the limiting distance to serious injury was estimated to be 28.5~35.8 m.

• Journal of Energy Engineering
• /
• v.23 no.4
• /
• pp.223-229
• /
• 2014

This study investigated the explosion characteristics of HCNG fuel using a simulation tool. The damage caused by the storage container explosion and vapor cloud explosion in a gas station was predicted. In case of an vapor cloud explosion in the HCNG station, 50~200kPa explosion pressure was predicted inside the station. When the cylinder explosion was occurred, in case of hydrogen, the measured influential distance of overpressure was 59m and radiant heat was 75m. In case of CNG, influential distance of overpressure was 89m and radiant heat was 144m would be estimated. In case of 30% HCNG that was blended with hydrogen and CNG, influential distance of overpressure was 81m and radiant heat was 130m were measured. The damage distance that explosive overpressure and radiant heat influenced CNG was seen as the highest. HCNG that was placed between CNG and hydrogen tended to be seen as more similar with CNG.

• Journal of the Korean Geosynthetics Society
• /
• v.21 no.3
• /
• pp.21-27
• /
• 2022

For carbon neutrality, interest in R&D and infrastructure construction for hydrogen energy, an eco-friendly energy source, is growing worldwide. In particular, for hydrogen stations installed in downtown areas, underground hydrogen infrastructure are being considered to increase a safety distance from hydrogen tank explosions to adjacent structures. In order to design an appropriate location and depth of the underground hydrogen infrastructure, it is necessary to evaluate the impact of the explosion of the underground hydrogen infrastructure on adjacent structures. In this paper, a numerical model was developed to analyze the effect of the underground hydrogen infrastructure explosion on adjacent structures, and the over pressure of the hydrogen tank was evaluated using the equivalent TNT (Trinitrotoluene) model. In addition, parametric analysis was performed to estimate the stability of adjacent structures according to the construction conditions of the underground hydrogen infrastructure.

• Journal of the Korean Professional Engineers Association
• /
• v.45 no.6
• /
• pp.20-27
• /
• 2012

World has become interested in the development of new dean energy because of oil prices rise and global warming due to carbon dioxide emissions. This study evaluated the safety of the refueling infrastructure for hydrogen, CNG and HCNG(hydrogen blended natural gas) which recently take center stage as a clean fuel. The risk of fuel was evaluated by 3D computational fluid dynamics program for gas dispersion and explosion. Hydrogen is higher than the CNG explosion overpressure and shows rapid spread. On the other hand, CNG and 30% HCNG showed quite similar characteristics. HCNG slightly rises in risk than the CNG, but HCNG is safe compared to hydrogen.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Gas
• /
• v.27 no.4
• /
• pp.102-109
• /
• 2023

In realizing a hydrogen society, it is important to secure the safety of the hydrogen refueling station, which is the facility where consumers can easily meet hydrogen. The hydrogen refueling station consists of compressed gas facilities that store high-pressure hydrogen, and there is a risk that the high-pressure compressed gas facility will rupture due to a fire explosion due to hydrogen leakage in the facility or the influence of surrounding fires. Accordingly, the Korea Gas Safety Corporation is making every effort to find out risk factors from the installation stage, reflect them in the design, and secure safety through legal inspection. In this study, a TNT explosion demonstration test using a protection wall was conducted to confirm the safety effect of the protection wall installed at the hydrogen refueling station, and the empirical test results were compared and verified using FLACS-CFD, a CFD program. As a result of the empirical test and CFD analysis, it was confirmed that the effect of reducing the explosion over-pressure at the rear end of the protection wall decreased from 50% to up to 90% depending on the location, but the effect decreased when it exceeded a certain distance. The results of the empirical test and computer analysis for verifying the safety of the protection wall will be used in proposals for optimizing the protection wall standards in the future.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
• /
• v.23 no.6
• /
• pp.605-612
• /
• 2021

Amid growing global damage due to abnormal weather caused by global warming, the introduction of eco-friendly cars is accelerating to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from internal combustion engines. Accordingly, many studies are being conducted in each country to prepare for the explosion of hydrogen fuel in semi-closed spaces such as tunnels and underground parking lots to ensure the safety of hydrogen-electric vehicles. As a result of predicting the explosion pressure of the hydrogen tank using the equivalent TNT model, it was found to be about 1.12 times and 2.30 times higher at a height of 1.5 meters, respectively, based on the case of 52 liters of hydrogen capacity. A review of the impact on the human body and buildings by converting the predicted maximum explosive pressure into the amount of impact predicted that all predicted values would result in lung damage or severe partial destruction. The predicted degree of damage was applied only by converting the amount of impact caused by the explosion, and considering the additional damage caused by the explosion, it is believed that the actual damage will increase further and safety and disaster prevention measures should be taken.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
• /
• v.38 no.6
• /
• pp.9-15
• /
• 2023

Hydrogen is gaining attention as a sustainable and renewable energy source, potentially replacing fossil fuels. Its high diffusivity, wide flammable range, and low ignition energy make it prone to ignition even with minimal friction, potentially leading to fire and explosion risks. Workplaces manage ignition risks by classifying areas with explosive atmospheres. However, the effective installation of a blast wall can significantly limit the spread of hydrogen, thereby enhancing workplace safety. To optimize the wall installation of this barrier, we employed the response surface methodology (RSM), considering variables such as wall distance, height, and width. We performed 17 simulations using the Box-Behnken design, conducted using FLACS software. This process yielded two objective functions: explosion likelihood near the barrier and explosion overpressure affecting the blast wall. We successfully achieved the optimal solution using multi-objective optimization for these two functions. We validated the optimal solution through verification simulations to ensure reliability, maintaining a margin of error of 5%. We anticipated that this method would efficiently determine the most effective installation of a blast wall while enhancing workplace safety.