Prevention of Hazards Induced by a Radiation Fireball through Computational Geometry and Parametric Design

Abstract

Radiation fireballs are singular phenomena which involve severe thermal radiation and, consequently, they need to be duly assessed and prevented. Although the radiative heat transfer produced by a sphere is relatively well known, the shadowing measures implemented to control the fireball’s devastating effects have frequently posed a difficult analytical instance, mainly due to its specific configuration. The objective of this article is to develop a parametric algorithm that provides the exact radiative configuration factors for the most general case in which the fireball is located at any distance and height above the ground, partially hidden by a protective wall over an affected area at different positions with respect to the said fireball. To this aim we use methods based on Computational Geometry and Algorithm-Aided Design; tools that, departing from the projected solid-angle principle, provide exact configuration factors, in all cases, even if they do not present a definite analytical solution. This implies dealing with spatially curved radiative sources which had not been addressed formerly in the literature due to their mathematical difficulties. Adequate application of this method may improve the safety of a significant number of facilities and reduce the number casualties among persons exposed to such risks. As a similar radiative problem appears in volcanic explosions; we hope that further extensions of the method can be adapted to the issue with advantage.

Innovative Tool to Determine Radiative Heat Transfer Inside Spherical Segments

“…From Figure 3, it can be expressed algebraically as a simple ratio which gives the maximum probability of energy attainment in this configuration (Equation ( 6)) [27]:…”

A New Principle for Building Simulation of Radiative Heat Transfer in the Presence of Spherical Surfaces

“…Therefore, this extremely complex factor, if we had to calculate it with conventional methods, equals the area of surface A3 divided by the total area of the sphere, A3/Asphere [13], as in Figure 1. The first Cabeza-Lainez principle is compact and deft in the sense that it avoids the resolution of the difficult canonical expression described in Equation ( 2) in differential form, regardless of the shape of the spherical fragment [21], while to find the surface area of the said fragment is almost immediate (Figure 2).…”

“…The first Cabeza-Lainez principle is compact and deft in the sense that it avoids the resolution of the difficult canonical expression described in Equation (2) in differential form, regardless of the shape of the spherical fragment [21], while to find the surface area of the said fragment is almost immediate (Figure 2).…”

A New Principle to Determine the Radiative Heat Transfer in Sphere-related Surfaces

“…MDPI and/or the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to people or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions, or products referred to in the content. The first Cabeza-Lainez principle is compact and deft in the sense that it would be very difficult to solve the canonical expression described in Eq.2 in differential form regardless of the shape of the spherical fragment, [4] while it is almost immediate to find the surface area of the same fragment.…”