Effect of Co3O4 powder on the explosion characteristics and CO products of methane-air mixture

Abstract

Rapid removing toxic CO for methane-air mixture explosions is essential in reducing casualties, but relevant research is rare. This paper proposed a novel approach for efficient CO removal and explosion suppression for methane-air mixture explosions using Co3O4 powder. The effect of Co3O4 powder on the explosion characteristics and basic parameters to quantify the CO removal performance have been studied, mainly including maximum explosion pressure (Pm), combustion time (tc), flame propagation velocity, and average CO removal rate (Rave.). Results indicated that explosion intensity and CO concentration decreased significantly with Co3O4 powder, due to increased heat absorption capacity and the active site of CO catalytic oxidation. However, the average CO removal rate decreased as the Co3O4 powder usage and CH4 partial pressure increased, which could reduce the dispersion degree of the Co3O4 dust cloud. The CO removal was achieved through the CH4 catalytic combustion and CO catalytic oxidation, which could reduce the CO generation and oxidize the generated CO to harmless CO2, respectively. This work provides a novel routine to lessen the explosion hazards and has promising applications in emergency rescue.