Suppression Mechanisms of Ferrocene on Methane–Hydrogen Explosion Propagation in Pipe: An Integrated Study of Experiments and Chemical Reaction Kinetics

This study investigates the performance and mechanism
of ferrocene
in suppressing the propagation of methane–hydrogen explosions
through experiments and chemical kinetic simulations. The experimental
results demonstrate that ferrocene can decrease the flame speed and
attenuate the explosion pressure by inhibiting the mutual excitation
between the flame and the premixed zone. Specifically, the addition
of ferrocene at concentrations of 0.1 g·L–1, 0.2 g·L–1, and 0.3 g·L–1 increased the flame propagation time by 93.02%, 323.26%, and 597.67%,
respectively, and decreased the maximum explosion pressure by 68.03%,
81.56%, and 95.49%. Kinetic modeling reveals that the decomposition
products of ferrocene, FeC5H5, Fe, and FeO can
consume key radicals, such as H, O, and OH in the explosion chain
reactions, leading to a significant reduction in the concentrations
of the active component and the effective combination. Moreover, the
catalytic cyclic reactions of Fe-containing species continuously consume
H and O, which diminish the promotional effect of various radical
reactions on the temperature and flame speed of the explosion system.
The findings provide theoretical support for protecting and suppressing
methane–hydrogen explosions at the microscopic level.