Shock-wave dynamics during oil-filled transformer explosions

Abstract

This paper presents a numerical and experimental study of the shock-wave processes evolving inside a closed vessel filled with mineral oil. Obtained experimental Hugoniot data for oil are compared with the corresponding data for water. It is found that compression of mineral oil and water can be described by approximately the same Hugoniot over a wide pressure range. Such similarity allows the use of water instead of mineral oil in the transformer explosion experiments and to describe the compression processes in both liquids using similar equations of state. The Kuznetsov equation of state for water is adopted for a numerical study of mineral oil compression. The features of the evolution of shock waves within mineral oil are analyzed using two-dimensional numerical simulations. Numerical results show that different energy sources may cause different scenarios of loading on the shell. The principal point is the phase transition taking place at relatively high temperatures for the case of high-power energy sources. In this case, a vapor-gaseous bubble emerges that qualitatively changes the dynamics of compression waves and the pattern of loads induced on the shell. Taking into account the features of the process together with the concept of water–oil similarity, the present work presents a new approach for experimental modeling of transformer shell destruction using an explosion with given characteristics in a water-filled shell.