Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapour Explosion (BLEVE) – Definition and Pronunciation
What is BLEVE?
BLEVE is the sudden release of the content of a vessel containing a pressurized flammable liquid followed by a fireball. A Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapour Explosion is an explosion caused by the rupture of a tank containing a pressurised liquid above its boiling point (It does not have to be a flammable liquid). A fireball would result (most probably) if the liquid was flammable.
Examples of BLEVE
Below the liquid level, the boiling liquid kept the metal cool. Incidents such as this, in which a vessel explodes because the metal gets too hot, are known as Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapour Explosions or BLEVEs.
From “Accidents Involving LNG and LPG Storage Tanks”.
The earth cover protects them from being engulfed by flames or from the heat of an adjacent fire so that the BLEVE form of catastrophic failure is impossible.
From “Shore Natural Gas Storage Tanks”.
In the most common example of a BLEVE, a fire increases the internal tank pressure and flame impingement reduces the mechanical strength of the tank, particularly at the part of the vessel not cooled by internal liquid.
From “Basics of Safety on Gas Carriers”.
Pronunciation of BLEVE
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