Hoerbiger News_February 02nd, 2023

New solution for passive explosion protection

Source: Christopher Burns

More safety at lower cost
Many industrial plants process combustible dusts and gases, which in the worst case can lead to an explosion. To minimise the effects of such an explosion, IEP Technologies, a company of the HOERBIGER Business Unit Safety, has added a new explosion protection solution to its portfolio for process vessels located inside a building or in another area: The flameless explosion vent with innovative rupture disc technology IV8 (Indoor Vent 8) can be used where standard explosion venting is no longer sufficient. The DIN EN 16009 certified protection system was developed to make flameless explosion venting more economical. Compared to common solutions, the IV8 offers greater effectiveness with a plus in safety at lower cost.

The risk of explosion and the danger to people and equipment increase when explosive dusts and an effective ignition source come together in production processes. Explosion venting systems serve to minimise the effects of an explosion inside a process vessel by safely discharging both the explosion pressure and the flame to the outside. However, if flame discharge is structurally impossible, flameless pressure relief is used: this approach smothers the flame front and allows the pressure of the dust explosion to escape.

Explosion venting redefined
The IV8 consists of an explosion rupture disc as a relief device and a special stainless steel mesh in a robust steel frame. When an explosion occurs, the relief device opens and diverts the explosion pressure and flame through a flame extinguishing element. Hot gases are cooled and the flame is extinguished. The integrated burst sensor connected to the process control system detects the relief process. This imme­diately stops the production process and thus, among other things, switches off fans and conveyor systems.

The special features of the protection system are the innovative bursting disc technology and the optimised design of the flame extinguishing element: the novel opening principle of the bursting disc and the elliptical design of the IV8 ensure smooth perfor­mance and high effectiveness. In this way, the system makes it possible to effectively protect equipment inside buildings that are at risk of dust explosions.

"The IV8 flameless pressure relief system demonstrates that reliable, high-quality protection for employees and equipment is possible under economically attractive conditions," explains Markus Häseli, Managing Director Germany and Director of Sales Europe at IEP Technologies.

Details of the product can be found here.

IEP_Product_IV8_1
IV8 Testing
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