Experimental and Numerical Study of the Impact of Initial Turbulence on the Explosion Behavior of Methane‐Air Mixtures

Abstract The experimental parameters that significantly affect the gas explosion process were determined, investigating the pressure, temperature, and velocity in the methane‐air explosion process under quiescent and turbulent conditions. Experiments and computational fluid dynamics simulations were integrated to optimize the experimental parameters and elucidate the impact of the initial turbulence on the explosion behavior of methane‐air mixtures. Good agreement was achieved between the computed results and experimental data. For a certain CH 4 concentration within the explosive limit range, an initial turbulence can increase the maximum explosion pressure and the maximum rate of the pressure rise, shorten the time to reach the maximum explosion pressure and enhance the explosion strength and destructive power of CH 4 ‐air mixtures. Turbulent flow can significantly broaden the explosive limits of CH 4 ‐air mixtures. The ignition delay time affects the distribution of the initial turbulence and thus the extent and severity of the explosions.