Explosion Protection Vents

Industrial process equipment, such as dust collectors or process vessels, handle combustible dust. The most cost-effective solution to protect the process equipment is explosion vents. Explosion vents are used to relieve the pressure of an explosion, minimize equipment damage, and protect personnel when there is a deflagration. The explosion vent will rupture during an explosion allowing for the flame front, heat, expanding gases, and pressure all to be relieved through the designed opening. Due to how explosion vents operate, there must be enough safe areas for the explosion to travel. If a safe distance can’t be met due to a sidewalk or parking lot, alternative vents like a flameless explosion vent might be applied. Like the explosion vent, a flameless vent allows for the heat, pressure, and expanding gases to be released, but there is an internal flame arrestor that eliminates the passing flame front. This allows flameless vents to be used indoors or in areas where you can’t safely use an explosion vent.

• combustible dust characteristics (K_st and P_max) 
• dirty air volume
• P_red (resulting in or reduced pressure when a combustible deflagration event inside a vessel is either vented or suppressed) of the vessel

The resultant determines the size of the vent and how many vents are required.