Simultaneous Boiling and Spreading of Liquefied Petroleum Gas on Water. Final Report, December 12, 1978-March 31, 1981

摘要

An experimental and theoretical investigation was carried out to study the boiling and spreading of liquid nitrogen, liquid methane and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) on water in a one-dimensional configuration. Primary emphasis was placed on the LPG studies. Experimental work involved the design and construction of a spill/spread/boil apparatus which permitted the measurement of spreading and local boil-off rates. With the equations of continuity and momentum transfer, a mathematical model was developed to describe the boiling-spreading phenomena of cryogens spilled on water. The model accounted for a decrease in the density of the cryogenic liquid due to bubble formation. The boiling and spreading rates of LPG were found to be the same as those of pure propane. An LPG spill was characterized by the very rapid and violent boiling initially and highly irregular ice formation on the water surface. The measured local boil-off rates of LPG agreed reasonably well with theoretical predictions from a moving boundary heat transfer model. The spreading velocity of an LPG spill was found to be constant and determined by the size of the distributor opening. The maximum spreading distance was found to be unaffected by the spilling rate. These observations can be explained by assuming that the ice formation on the water surface controls the spreading of LPG spills. While the mathematical model did not predict the spreading front adequately, it predicted the maximum spreading distance reasonably well. (ERA citation 06:016498)