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Iron Burning

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Stub Mandrel04/07/2011 20:44:25
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I know that iron can burn. In my mis-spent youth a 9v battery and a bit of wire wool was a good way of making an igniter. I also know that oxygen down an iron pipe can be used to make a thermic lance, the most powerful cutter this side of Thunderbirds.
 
But I've just seen iron filings burn, without any aluminium or accelerant. I've been uding a rotary hand tool to trim the broken end off a used alternator. At one point I was sure I saw a red front burn quickly across a line of fine iron filings magneticaly stuck to one of the sharp edges of the work. It happened three more times, once lasting about a second and a half as the red-hot fronts wove across a patch of loosely packed filings about a quarter of an inch square. Ive never seen this before, but the filings were much more finely divided than normal grinding dust, it was a high-carbon steel (from the leafy, branching sparks) and the magnetism was keeping them in an open structure that air could penetrate easily. I imagine the metal they were stuck too was fairly hot as well, say over 100 degrees.
 
Not something I've seen before, quite striking and a remider how finely divided metal dust can be a major fire hazard.
 
Neil
 
 
John Stevenson04/07/2011 20:51:44
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Probably because it's been a hot day today ?
 
Earlier I saw two lamp posts fighting over a dog.
 
John S.
Andrew Johnston04/07/2011 22:25:16
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An interesting experience!
 
If iron is hot enough it will burn just with oxygen. When using a oxy-acetylene cutter, once the process is going the flame can be turned off and the process will continue just with a stream of oxygen, since it is strongly exothermic.
 
Many finely divided powders will burn or explode, not just metal powders. Flour mills are reknowned for explosions. Some years ago I worked on a coal mill used to crush coal to a fine powder for use in cement making. The fine powder was blown into the furnace using a fan driven by a 3MW DC electric motor (that's not a typing error - the motor was bigger than a family car). We were trying to cancel out some of the noise created by the fan. Apparently there are two ways to make a coal mill explosion proof. One, do everything in an inert atmosphere, or two, build it like a brick built **** house, so when it goes bang it survives. The coal mill we worked on was designed for option two. Sadly, when it did go bang, the design proved to be wanting, and it cost a lot of money to put right. Didn't do our noise cancelling loudspeakers much good either!
 
Regards,
 
Andrew
Nicholas Farr04/07/2011 23:30:18
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Hi Andrew, you talk about finely divided powders exploding, well I remember watching a programme on TV back in the late 70's about exploding custard powder. In the programme they said that a surprising amount of everyday things that can produce large amounts of dust inside buildings ect. are potentially explosive. I knew a guy who was killed when he was blown of a grain silo when welding on it. due to an explosion, by the dust floating around inside it.
 
Regards Nick.
Gordon W05/07/2011 09:40:07
2011 forum posts
Don't forget steel wool, many a loft fire started with that stuff, when an inattentive plumber caught it with his torch. Yes I have. One of the worst industrial fires started in an icing sugar plant, by a flash thru' the building.
Stub Mandrel05/07/2011 18:40:06
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As a boy I did a school visit to Rank's Mill, Barry Dock. the chap showing us around was proud of two 'facts'. 1 - the flour mill was the biggest explosion hazard in the town (not the nearby DOW chemical plant) and 2 - if it blew up it would rupture their chlorine tanks (for bleaching the flour) and gas the entire town.
 
Worryingly I don't think he was joking!
 
Neil
Speedy Builder505/07/2011 20:40:17
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Have you ever seen fireworks - lots of different metal powders used for specific colours. iron included.
Steve Withnell05/07/2011 22:30:29
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finely divided aluminium and iron oxide mixed is a fun compound. Silly buggers thought it was a neat trick to paint the Hindenburg with it as a conductive paint to ensure electrostatic discharges could be safely conducted away.
 
Others know it as Thermite, which once it gets started, the local fire brigade couldn't put it out...which is what they discovered with the Hindenburg. It generates it's own heat and oxygen so a bit of a bugger to put out.
 
Steve
Keith06/07/2011 07:16:30
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When I taught science one of my party tricks was to explode custard powder.
 
Keith
Clive Hartland06/07/2011 07:43:07
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I was told by an engineering friend of a fire in the swarf of a CNC lathe, it was cutting dry and the mass of fine turnings ignited.
I did later see the machine and all the paint around the housing was scorched!
 
Clive

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