Abstract
Many industrial processes involving the presence of dust and combustible dust, suspended or accumulated in the form of deposits, have the potential to lead to a fire, explosion or decomposition in the presence of oxygen. As the damage caused by an explosion of dust is generally greater than that caused by explosions of flammable gases and vapours, a special attention must be paid to measures and means of protection and prevention of explosions of dust. A dust explosion can only occur if there is mainly a potentially explosive atmosphere generated by the air / dust mixture and a source of ignition. The level of safety is given by the operational efficiency of the employees and technical equipment involved in the production process to ensure that at least one of the above conditions is eliminated. The probability of a dust explosion is related to the physicochemical properties of the processed materials, together with the nature of the operations performed and the equipment used. This paper highlights the principles and factors that must be taken into account when conducting an explosion risk assessment in installations with combustible dust atmospheres in order to establish prevention and protection measures, with the aim of ensuring a tolerable level of risk.
Highlights
Many industrial processes involving the presence of dust and combustible dust, which are in suspension or which are deposited in layers or dust deposits, have the potential to lead to a fire, explosion or decomposition in the presence of oxygen
An explosion occurs when combustible dusts are present in suspension in admixture with air in the explosive range of those dusts, i.e. between their lower explosive limit (LEL) and upper explosive limit (UEL), at the same time an ignition source whose starting energy is high enough to ignite the air / dust mixture formed
The ignition and explosion risk assessment, in the case the use of technical equipment and protective systems in environments where combustible dusts are present which may cause fires and explosions, is of particular importance with regard to ensuring the health and safety of workers involved in the production process
Summary
Many industrial processes involving the presence of dust and combustible dust, which are in suspension or which are deposited in layers or dust deposits, have the potential to lead to a fire, explosion or decomposition in the presence of oxygen. An explosion occurs when combustible dusts are present in suspension in admixture with air in the explosive range of those dusts, i.e. between their lower explosive limit (LEL) and upper explosive limit (UEL), at the same time an ignition source whose starting energy is high enough to ignite the air / dust mixture formed. If systematic cleaning is not carried out in accordance with a cleaning plan, suspended dust particles are deposited on floors, walls or equipment, leading in time to the formation of layers or deposits of dust of different thicknesses. These layers or deposits of dust, in the event of an explosion, can be swirled, providing the fuel needed for other secondary explosions
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