Study of the dimensioning of ATEX formed in the case of leakage of H2-N2 mixtures from pressurized ducts

Etude de dimensionnement des ATEX formées en cas de fuite de mélanges H2-N2 issus de canalisations sous pression

Jacques Chaineaux (1) , Sébastien Evanno (1) , Bernard Gautier (2)

1 INERIS - Institut National de l'Environnement Industriel et des Risques
2 EDF Direction Technique - Direction Technique

The methods implemented by EDF-SEPTEN (Electricité de France - Department of Thermic and Nuclear Studies and Project) of Basic Nuclear Installations (BNI) in Nuclear Electricity Power Stations (NEPS) requires the implementation of pressurized hydrogen. Within the scope of a study on safety, hypothetical leaks are investigated, leading to the formation of explosive atmosphere (ATEX); the intention here is to evaluate their dangerousness. The present publication deals with the establishment of a simplified model in order to determine the XLEL [distance on the axis of the leak jet, where a concentration is reached equal to the Lower Explosive Limit (LEL)] and VATEX (volume of the locus of the spatial points where the concentration is greater than or equal to LEL) parameters for typical H2-N2 mixture leaks.

Keywords: ATEX; EXPLOJET SOFTWARE; EXPLOSION; H2; LEL; PHAST SOFWARE; VATEX; XLEL

Domains: Engineering Sciences [physics]

Jacques Chaineaux, Sébastien Evanno, Bernard Gautier. Study of the dimensioning of ATEX formed in the case of leakage of H2-N2 mixtures from pressurized ducts. AIChE Spring Meeting 2010 & 6. Global Congress on Process Safety (GCPS), Mar 2010, San Antonio, United States. ⟨ineris-00976220⟩