Improving Freight Fire Safety: Modifying Droplet Behavior to Minimize Ignition

Hydrocarbon drops impacting on a flat solid surface were computationally studied to identify the key issues in the dynamics of drop spreading. The experimental data available for diesel, methanol, and glycerin were used, and a general empirical expression (in terms of the Ohnesorge number) was constructed that accurately described the spreading regime. For the simulation part, the drop spreading process was studied numerically with a volume-of-fluid (VOF) approach. Based on these investigations, a new combined static contact angle-dynamic contact angle (SCA-DCA) model was proposed and applied to compute the hydrocarbon drop spreading process. The predicted time-dependent drop shapes agree well, within 5% of both previously published results and the experimental data presented here, while previous models showed at least a 10% deviation from the experiments. This proposed model also avoids the requirement for experimental measurement with specific fluids and only requires the general fluid properties. In addition to the numerical investigations, a droplet combustion experiment was also carried out. In this experiment, the ignition and combustion of the suspended fuel droplet were recorded using a high speed camera. Image processing techniques were then utilized to measure fuel combustion characteristics such as burning rate and ignition delay.

• Record URL:
  • http://matc.unl.edu/assets/documents/matcfinal/Ratner_ImprovingFreightFireSafetyModifyingDropletBehaviortoMinimizeIgnition.pdf
• 
• Summary URL:
  • http://matc.unl.edu/research/research_projects.php?researchID=395
• Supplemental Notes:
  • This document was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Transportation, University Transportation Centers Program.
• Corporate Authors:

  University of Iowa, Iowa City

  Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Seamans Center
  Iowa City, IA  United States  52242

  Mid-America Transportation Center

  University of Nebraska-Lincoln
  2200 Vine Street, PO Box 830851
  Lincoln, NE  United States  68583-0851

  Research and Innovative Technology Administration

  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Authors:
  • Ratner, Albert
  • Ghamari, Mohsen
• Publication Date: 2014-3

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Edition: Final Report
• Features: Figures; Photos; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 30p

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Burning rate; Chemical spills; Combustion; Fire; Fuel additives; Hydrocarbons; Ignition; Simulation; Traffic crashes
• Subject Areas: Energy; Freight Transportation; Highways; Safety and Human Factors; I80: Accident Studies; I91: Vehicle Design and Safety;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01544585
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: 25-1121-0003-121, MATC-UI: 121
• Files: UTC, TRIS, RITA, ATRI, USDOT
• Created Date: Nov 24 2014 3:28PM