Influence of liquid fill level on the blast created by a water BLEVE in a tubular geometry

Abstract : In this work, a series of water BLEVE experiments was carried out in order to measure the internal pressure change and the aerial overpressure close to the vessel. Water was superheated at 290°C and was contained in a tubular pipe with a rupture disk. The rupture disk allowed triggering BLEVE by sudden pressure drop. The discharge orifice was perfectly known and negligible mechanical energy was lost to rupture the disk. The liquid height was varied to investigate the influence of the ratio vapor / liquid on the aerial overpressure in the near field. Results showed several pressure peaks, the first one is the most intense and is independent from the liquid fill level. The impulse of this peak is however related to the liquid level. This is in contradiction with energy equivalence models and supports authors that consider the first pressure peak as resulting only from the vapor phase burst pressure. This conclusion is valid in near field with no total destruction of the vessel.