A fan-equipped reactor for dust explosion tests

A Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model was developed with the aim at simulating the turbulent flow field and associated dust dispersion in an agitated spherical explosion vessel. Simulations were performed in the presence of two counter-rotating fans and also after having switched-off the fans. Numerical results have shown that the dust mainly accumulates at the center of the sphere in the space left by the four vortices formed. After the switch-off of the fans, the dust particles start filling the empty volumes inside the sphere, reaching a quite uniform distribution (with concentration equal to the nominal value) and simultaneously ensuring a controlled value of turbulent kinetic energy. (c) 2015 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 61: 1572-1580, 2015