Influence of pressure, temperature and vessel volume on explosion characteristics of ethanol/air mixtures in closed spherical vessels

Ethanol is a biofuel that can be used as an alternative fuel or as a blending component for combustion engines. This requires more information and systematic investigation of the explosion parameters of ethanol in air under various conditions. The most frequently used pressure-related parameters for risk assessment-the maximum explosion pressures, the maximum rates of pressure rise, the severity factors and the maximum explosion delay time-are determined in two spherical vessels (volume: 0.005 m(3) and 0.020 m(3)) for various ethanol/air mixtures (3.5-20.0 vol%) at various initial pressures (10.1-101 kPa) and temperatures (298-373 K). (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.