Synergistic suppression of ethylene explosion by a potassium bicarbonate-ferrocene-diatomite composite material

The cracking of ethane to produce ethylene serves as the primary source of industrial by-product hydrogen, making ethylene production vital for hydrogen energy security. However, ethylene leakage poses a severe explosion risk that threatens industrial supply chains. Traditional suppression materials are often limited by a single mechanism of action and inadequate synergy. To address this, a novel ternary composite of potassium bicarbonate, ferrocene, and diatomite was prepared via recrystallization. Explosion experiments demonstrated that the material exhibited effective synergistic suppression performance for ethylene explosions. Key performance indicators, such as the maximum rate of pressure rise and the time to reach peak pressure, were significantly superior to those of corresponding binary systems. Mechanism studies revealed that this superior performance stems from a multi-level synergistic effect involving endothermic decomposition, porous quenching, and radical scavenging. This research provides novel material design insights and experimental evidence for the development of highly efficient synergistic composite explosion suppression technologies.