Modeling Offshore Fire Impact Induced by Subsea Hydrogen Releases

Abstract Offshore hydrogen production has developed rapidly in recent years. Accidental hydrogen releases in offshore environments threaten the safety of hydrogen supply chain. A mathematical model of sea-surface fire induced by subsea hydrogen release is developed using computational fluid dynamics. The effects of gas release rate, ambient wind speed, and hydrogen release location on the flame morphology, temperature distribution, and thermal radiation characteristics were systematically investigated. It is observed that the thermal radiation flux first increases and then decreases with increasing release rate due to extremely low density and strong buoyancy of hydrogen. Wind speed affects the flame inclination angle and propagation path, while hydrogen release location affects the flame coverage over the platform and distribution of high-temperature regions. In most scenarios, the sea-surface thermal radiation flux exceeds the thresholds for personnel injury and structure damage, leading to fatalities among personnel as well as platform structure fracture or collapse.