• Fire Science and Engineering
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.16-22
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• 2001

Thermal properties of PP and LLDPE dusts from chemical plant and their risks of coexisting with oxidizer were investigated by a pressure vessel. The thermal decomposition of PP and LLDPE dusts with temperature using DSC and the weight loss with temperature using TGA were also investigated to find the thermal hazard of PP and LLDPE dusts. Using the pressure vessel which can estimate ignition and explosion of PP and LLDPE dusts coexisting with oxidizer, a series of bursting of a rupture disc, experiments has been conducted by varying the orifice diameters the weight ratio of the sample coexisting with oxidizers and the species of oxidizer. And fire gases was measured by gas analyser ($ECOM-A^+$). According to the results of the thermal analysis of PP and LLDPE dusts, the decomposition temperature range of PP and LLDPE dusts was 200 to 350 and 300 to $500^{\circ}c$, respectively. The risk of PP and LLDPE dusts coexisting with oxidizer was increased as the orifice diameter was decreased. On the other hand, it was increased as the weight ratio of the sample to the oxidizer were increased. In addition, the risk of PP and LLDPE dusts coexisting with oxidizer was affected by the decomposition temperature of the sample and oxidizer. It is found that the risk of fire becomes high when the decomposition temperature of the sample is about same as that of oxidizer. Also, the fire gases was occurred carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide. The amount of carbon monoxide generated was found to be much higher in PP decomposition than in LLDPE due to incomplete combustion of PP which has high content of carbon in chemical compound.