Three-dimensional thermal field induced by gas pipeline explosion fireball based on predicted algorithm and experimental validation

Thermal radiation hazards of fireballs induced by gas pipeline leakage and explosion have increasingly contributed to the occurrence of accidental disasters. To reveal the mechanism of fireball's thermal hazards, the temperature characteristics and propagation behaviors were theoretically and experimentally studied in real scenario. This study proposed an optimization method based on optical computerized tomography (OCT) and reconstruction algorithm. The results of the new OCT algorithm were simulated by using MATLAB, which can realize the visualization of $3\rm D$ temperature field of the fireball. Moreover, a full-scale gas pipeline leakage and explosion experiment was undertaken, and a series of testing data from the explosion fireball's thermal radiation were collected by using infrared thermography technique. The simulated accuracy of $3\rm D$ temperature field by the optimized OCT algorithm was verified by comparing with experimental data, it found that the relative error between the two results ranged from $10.54$ to $14.67\%$, while the average error was less than $11\%$. This comparative investigation can provide a new practical application of $3\rm D$ analytical method for thermal radiation damage of fireballs under gas explosion in both steady and dynamic states.