Influence of Perforated Metal Plate on Pressure Rise and Energy Flow due to Internal Arcing in a Container With a Pressure-Relief Opening

Internal arc tests and computational fluid dynamics´ calculations regarding the effect of a perforated metal plate (absorber) on pressure rise and propagation in a container with a pressure-relief opening are carried out. In the calculations, the perforated metal plate is simply considered as a medium of gas-flow resistance and a heat sink/conductor. The pressure development at different locations within the container, and the maximum pressure rise PMAX and the mean pressure value PMEAN are measured and calculated by changing the aperture ratio RAP of the perforated metal plate and the cross-sectional area AOP of the pressure-relief opening. In addition, the energy flow density EFOP and the total energy flow QOP at the opening depending on RAP and AOP are estimated. From the following investigations, it is necessary to consider the dependence of the ratio PMAX to PMEAN on the value of RAP, and the dependence of EFOP and QOP on the value of AOP, when designing electric power equipment.