Experimental study of hydrogen explosion in repeated pipe congestion - Part 2: Effects of increase in hydrogen concentration in hydrogen-methane-air mixture

摘要

Hydrogen is seen as an important energy carrier for the future which offers carbon free emissions. At present it is mainly used in refueling hydrogen fuel cell cars. However, it can also be used together with natural gas in existing gas fired equipment with the benefit of lower carbon emissions. This can be achieved by introducing hydrogen into existing natural gas pipelines. These pipelines are designed, constructed and operated to safely transport natural gas, which is mostly methane. Because hydrogen has significantly different physical and chemical properties than natural gas, any addition of hydrogen my adversely affect the integrity of the pipeline network, increasing the likelihood and consequences of an accidental leak. Since it increases the likelihood and consequences of an accidental leak, it increases the risk of explosion. In order to address various safety issues related to addition of hydrogen in to a natural gas pipeline a EU project NATURALHY was introduced. A major objective of the NATURALHY project was to identify how much hydrogen could be introduced into the natural gas pipeline network. Such that it does not adversely impact the safety of the pipeline network and significantly increase the risk to the public. This paper reports experimental work conducted to measure the explosion overpressure generated by ignition of hydrogen-methane-air mixture in a highly congested region consisting of interconnected pipes. The composition of the methane/hydrogen mixture used was varied from 0% hydrogen (100% methane) to 100% hydrogen (0% methane) to understand its effect on generated explosion overpressure. It was observed that the maximum overpressures generated by methane-hydrogen mixtures with 25% (by volume) or less hydrogen content are not likely to be significantly greater than those generated by methane alone. Therefore, it can be concluded that the addition of less than 25% by volume of hydrogen into pipeline networks would not significantly increase the risk of explosion. (C) 2018 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.