A modified Hartmann tube apparatus was used to study the explosivity properties of dusts from torrefied biomass pellets. The sensitivity of the dusts to explode was assessed by determining the minimum ignition energies (MIE) and the minimum explosible concentrations (MEC). The severity of the explosion was evaluated by flame front velocity (FFV) measurements via a method developed by ECN. A comparison was made with reference materials like white wood and coal dusts. Dust from torrefied biomass pellets presented MIE and MEC values in the same range as the white wood pellets dust, but depending on the material sometimes even higher values were obtained. The severity of an explosion of torrefied biomass dust tends to be lower when compared with white wood dust explosions, especially when comparing the impact effects of moisture, particle size and temperature, as in a real case scenario. However, torrefied biomass materials still present higher explosion reactivity than coals.
