Modeling of Geometric Change Influence on Blast-Wave Propagation in Underground Airways Using a 2D-Transient Euler Scheme

The impact of methane explosions on mining operations can never be over-emphasized. The safety of miners could be threatened and local ventilation facilities are likely to be damaged by the flame and overpressure induced by a methane explosion event, making it essential to understand the destructiveness and influence range of a specific explosion. In this paper, the attenuation effect of geometric changes, most commonly bends, obstacles, and branches, present in the way of blast-wave propagation and the capability of the selected numerical model were studied. Although some relevant experimental research has been provided, quantitative analysis is insufficient. This paper investigates the attenuation factors of seven bends, three obstacles, and two T-branch scenarios to ascertain a better insight of this potentially devastating event quantitatively. The results suggest that (1) the numerical model used is capable of predicting four of the seven validated scenarios with a relative error less than 12%; (2) the maximum peak overpressure is obtained when the angle equals 50° for bend cases; and (3) the selected numerical scheme would overestimate the obstacle cases by around 15%