Abstract
A STUDY of the inflammation of lubricating and similar oils recently made in the research laboratories of Messrs. Mather and Platt, Ltd., Park Works, Manchester, has elucidated the mode of combustion of these oils and led to the development of the ‘Mulsifyre’ system of extinguishing oil fires (Beama Journal of June). It was found that when lubricating oil was heated in a container to the temperature commonly employed with modern steam turbines, the oil does not take fire. The danger arises when there is a relatively thin film of the oil falling on, or flowing over, a steam pipe. As the oil flows over the hot surface, the complex molecules are ‘cracked’ and new substances are formed. The heavier fractions remain clinging to the metal surface, while the lighter fractions volatilize. Between these volatilized fractions and the oxygen of the atmosphere an exothermic reaction takes place causing a considerable increase of temperature, and new substances appear, aldehydes, acetic acid, bituminous matter and saponifiablo oil.
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Preventing Oil Fires in Power Stations. Nature 144, 147 (1939). https://doi.org/10.1038/144147a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/144147a0