Investigation of the explosion-related parameters and their influence on the severity of an explosion involving aluminum dust

Aluminum dust is a serious explosion hazard in the process industry. Therefore, any risk assessment requires knowledge of the data relating to the explosion hazard of the dust. We report on some experimental results that explain the influence of the particle size and the distribution, the specific surface area and the combustible components of various aluminum dusts on their sensitivity and the severity of an aluminum-dust explosion. Three samples of aluminum powder with different particle sizes were analyzed. The results reveal an extremely high maximum pressure rise for one of the samples, which can be assigned to a hybrid explosion caused by the presence of combustible additives in the dust. The results were compared with available literature data for similar dusts, which show that one of the analyzed powders has to be given a higher classification due to its larger K-st value, which also means a greater risk of explosion. The presence of a combustible additives in the dust reduces the sensitivity of the aluminum powder, but simultaneously substantially increases the severity of a dust explosion. It can be concluded that two of three investigated cases show a significant difference compared to the literature data, but for different reasons. (c) 2019 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Process Saf Prog: e12047 2019