Formation and Evolution of a Dust Cloud as a Result of TNT Detonation in a Borehole: Numerical Simulation

Abstract

Here, we present a numerical model for simulating the formation and evolution of the gas and dust cloud that forms after the detonation of high explosive charges in boreholes. This model provides a possible method for converting a substance ejected from an explosion funnel into discrete particles (smaller particles and stones) and calculating the movement of these condensed particles and their interaction with the air–gas flow; this method uses the framework of equations for multiphase media motion. For modeling of borehole explosion, we focused on the parameters of commercial blasting that are carried out at the Lebedinsky open pit. The results of simulating the initial stage of a borehole explosion with a mass of 1000 kg are presented in this paper. These results demonstrate the evolution of a gas and dust cloud, the change in the mass of particles of different sizes in the air over time, and their spatial distribution.