Fire Hazard of Fiber Dust Layers With Different Widths and Inclination Angles Exposed to Simulated Hotspots

Abstract

Fiber dust's flocculent structure often leads to underestimation of its potential for fire and explosion. In order to compare the fire hazards of fiber dust layers with different widths and inclination angles exposed to simulated hotspots with traditional powdered dust layers. The current research systematically studied the flame spread characteristics of flax, paper scraps, and wood dust with widths of 20, 30, 40, 50, and 60 mm at inclination angles of 0°, −10°, −20°, −30° and −40°. Studies have found that at different widths and inclination angles, flax dust has a higher flame spread velocity than wood powder, and even metal powder. Under the coupling effect of the width and inclination angle of the countercurrent flame, the inclination angle has a significant impact on the flame spread velocity of the countercurrent flame. Flax fiber dust has a significantly higher fire hazard than conventional dust. These findings should be taken into account in the industrial processes of handling flax fiber dust.