Saturday, September 5, 2009

Relate LFL to MOC

Minimum oxygen concentration (MOC) is minimum quantity of oxygen required present in

hydrocarbon mixture so that a fire can be initiated and propagated. Below this limit, a fire will
not form. More discussion in "Minimum Oxygen Concentration (MOC) for Flare Purge". A
mixture is combustible / flammable if and only if the hydrocarbon composition is within mixture
LFL/LEL and UFL/UEL as discussed in "Estimate Mixture Flammability & Explosivity At
Reference P & T One shall remember, as the operating pressure (P) and temperature (T) change
(from reference P & T, the mixture LFL/LEL and UFL/UEL at P & T will change accordingly.
This post will discuss the relationship between MOC with LFL/LEL.

LFL Relate to MOC

LFL is minimum hydrocarbon (HC) concentration in air which a mixture will burn when an
ignition source is present. LFL can be written as follow

MOC is minimum oxygen present in hydrcarbon mixture which a mixture will burn. MOC can
be written as follow

Combining [1] & [2],

Combustion of Hydrocarbon
Above equation may be used to estimate MOC if you know the LFL of hydrocarbon.

Example
1) A Ethane (C2) having LFL of 3.0 vol% (Refer to "Estimate Mixture Flammability &
Explosivity At Reference P & T". Estimate MOC of Ethane.

Combustion of C2H6,

C2H6 + d.O2 ==> 2CO2 + 3H2O

a=2
b=6
c=0
d = 2 + 6 /4 - 0/2 = 3.5

MOC = 3.5 x 3.0 = 10.5 Vol%, close to 11.2 vol% in literature.

2) A n-butane (nC4) having LFL of 1.86 vol% (Refer to "Estimate Mixture Flammability &
Explosivity At Reference P & T". Estimate MOC of n-butane.

Combustion of C4H10,

C4H10 + d.O2 ==> 4CO2 + 5H2O

a=4
b = 10
c=0
d = 4 + 10 /4 - 0/2 = 6.5

MOC = 6.5 x 1.86 = 12.1 Vol%. Close to 12.3 vol% in literature.

Parameters for Characterizing Fuel-Air Mixture

Various parameters are used to describe the flammability characteristics of various fuels,
including gases and vapors, liquids and solids. Some of these are briefly discussed below.

Ignition Temperature

The ignition temperature or auto-ignition temperature is the minimum temperature of a

flammable mixture that is required to initiate or cause self-sustained combustion without ignition
from an external source of energy such as a spark or flame (ASTM D2155).

Flammability Limits

The lower flammable limit (LFL) or lower explosive limit (LEL) is the minimum concentration
of vapor in air below which a flame is not propagated when an ignition source is present. Below
this concentration, the mixture is considered too lean to burn.

The upper flammable limit (UFL) or upper explosive limit (UEL) is the maximum vapor
concentration in air at which a flame can propagate. Above this concentration, the mixture is too
rich to burn, i.e. the oxygen is consumed in the combustion of one particle and there is
insufficient oxygen to burn the adjacent particle of fuel. Products of combustion surrounding the
first particle tend to quench the flame.

The flammable range or explosive range (EL) consists of all concentrations between the lower
flammable limit and the upper flammable limit. Flammable limits usually refer to flowing
materials; explosive limits usually refer to confined or stagnant mixtures. Values for LFL and
LEL, or UFL and UEL, are identical.

The stoichiometric concentration is that mixture of fuel and oxidant, usually air, that produces
fully oxidized combustion products, chiefly water and carbon dioxide, following ignition. Such
mixtures typically are the most easily ignited and produce the highest temperature and pressure
at the greatest rates.

The Flammability Limits is related to the Minimum Oxygen Concentration and the Minimum
Ignition Energy. Click here for more information.

Minimum Oxygen Concentration (MOC)

The oxygen content in atmospheric air is 21% by volume. Oxygen is the key ingredient in the
fire triangle and there is a minimum oxygen concentration required to propagate a flame. This is
also known as the limiting oxygen concentration. It is the concentration below which
combustion, usually in air diluted with an inert gas such as nitrogen or carbon dioxide, does not
propagate in a mixture of gases or vapors.

This is an especially useful result, because explosions and fires are preventable by reducing the
oxygen concentration regardless of the concentration of the fuel. This is the basis of the
prevention technique of inerting (see later).

The MOC has units of % oxygen in air plus fuel. Below the MOC, the reaction cannot generate
enough energy to heat the entire mixture of gases (including the inerts) to the extent required for
the self-propagation of the flame. The MOC for several chemicals are shown in the Table.
Typically, when the oxygen concentration within most fuel mixtures fall below about 10 volume
% no combustion can occur. As this is only an indicative value, when reliable inerting is required
the exact value of the MOC has to be determined. This is measured for an optimum fuel
concentration using a very strong ignition source which supplies spark discharge energies in the
range of 2 - 10 kJ, depending on the volume of the test apparatus.

The MOC is related to the Flammability Limits and the Minimum Ignition Energy. Click here for
more information.

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Minimum Ignition Temperature (MIT)

The minimum ignition temperature is the lowest temperature of a hot surface at which a fuel-air
mixture of the most easily ignitable composition can just be stimulated to burn with a visible
flame. There is no linear relationship between the concentration ratio (or mole fraction) of the
fuels and the ignition temperature for the mixture. The ignition temperature values for fuel
mixtures must therefore be determined for every individual case.

Also, the ignition temperature for a given fuel in oxidizing media other than air may sometimes
be quite low. This is especially so for pure oxygen and chlorine, for example: toluene-air (535
oC) vs. toluene-chlorine (175 oC).

Minimum Ignition Energy (MIE)

The minimum ignition energy is the minimum energy input required to initiate combustion. It is
the smallest amount of energy stored in a capacitor, that is just sufficient, when discharged
across a spark gap, to ignite the most ignitable explosive mixture. All flammables (including
dusts) have MIEs. The MIE depends on the specific chemical or mixture, the concentration,
pressure, and temperature. A few MIEs are given in the Table.

As can be seen from the Table, many hydrocarbons have MIEs of about 0.25 mJ. This is low
when compared to sources of ignition. For example, a static discharge of 22 mJ is initiated by
walking across a rug, and an ordinary spark plug has a discharge energy of 25 mJ. Electrostatic
discharges, as a result of fluid flow, also have energy levels exceeding the MIEs of flammables
and can provide a ignition source, and thus possibly contributing to plant explosions.

The MIE is related to the Flammability Limits and the Minimum Oxygen Concentration. Click
here for more information.

Minimum Ignition Current

This parameter is used as a measure of the ignitability of electrical (inductive) sparks. It is the
smallest current flowing in a circuit of a certain inductance, such that the spark produced when
the current flow is interrupted (in an explosive mixture of optimal ignitability) just ignites the
mixture.

If the minimum ignition current is known, electrical circuits can be designed so that no igniting
sparks are created by switching, or on failures such as short-circuit. This design approach is
employed in explosion-resistant electrical equipment rated "instrinsically-safe".

Maximum Experimental Safe Gap (MESG)

The propagation of an explosion from a part of the plant featuring explosion-resistant design into
upstream or downstream sections that are not so designed, or that are not vented, must be
effectively prevented. A parameter that measures of the ability of exploding gas mixtures to
propagate through a narrow gap is the maximum experimental safe gap.

On the basis of the MESG, fuels are classified into various explosion groups. The MESG is used
in the design of flame arresters or explosion-resistant electrical equipment with "flame-proof"
enclosure.

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MIE, Flammability Limits and MOC

For an ignition to occur the concentration of the combustible material (gas, vapour, or powder) in
the mixture must lie between an upper and a lower flammability limit. A plot of the ignition
energy against the fuel concentration in a fuel-air mixture is typically a U-shaped curve on which
the lowest point denotes the MIE of the mixture. This is shown in the Figure.

For gases (and vapors) the concentration is measured in terms of the volume % of gas in the gas-
air mixture. For powders it is the mass of the powder per unit volume of the powder-air mixture.
When determining MIE, oxygen concentration is fixed. On the other hand, the MIE is fixed
when determining the MOC.
Problems with MIE determination:

The definition takes no account of the spatial and temporal distribution of energy: i.e. effect of
space and time - energy released in large volume vs. small volume, over a long or short period of
time.

Not all energy released by the capacitor in a spark is converted into thermal energy. Energy is
lost as:

- heat in the discharge circuit wiring

- heat loss through electrodes across which the spark passes
- heat loss in the form of light and electromagnetic radiation
- pressure exerted by the spark

Small residual charge left on capacitor, i.e. incomplete discharge