[Jewelry making - Article 00051] - Re: [Orchid] Exploding bottles.

[jesse brennan]

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    You have described an atypical version of a typical  acetylene
    -oxygen cylinder in a fire incident.  Thatched roofs  are atypical
    here in the US.  Generaly the incidents start from a fire  around
    the cylinders  but not originating at a cylinder.  A leak in the
    Acetylene system  may become involved but  the reaction you describe
    can develop without any preexisting leak. Cylinders are equipped with
    safety  devices  to prevent  bursting due to overpressure caused by
    overfilling or slow heating  by exposure to the sun, etc.  Acetylene
    cylinders  have fusible ( woods metal melting at about 212 F) device
    protection only.   Actetylyne cylinders  can burst  or explode even
    if the fusible links have released due to decomposition followed by
    a fireball.   Fuse plugs releasing  at the bottom of the cylinder 
    will tend to throw the cylinder a considerable distance as a rocket
    even without the cylinder bursting. When directly  involved in an
    impinging fire fire  steel of a high pressure cylinder often weakens
    with the cylinder splitting open. This happens before the pressure
    rises enough to rupture the frangible safety over pressure device.
    The bursting high pressure cylinder tends to throw things about
    quite a bit. 

    I was directly involved to  one degree or  another in this business
    area in the US for 35 years  with 10 following years in a consulting
    capacity to a major  semiconductor manufacturer involving design and
    safety issues with a number of even more hazardous gases.  I
    investigated  "accident"  incidents  over this period . Incidents
    were very limited at users  sites generally  in non cylinder
    originated fires. 

    US cylinders are not in the same pool as EEC cylinders-- there are
    different standards.  I am not very familiar with these. At one time
    it was a common US practice for some companies to ship old used poor
    quality cylinders to South America . I believe this practice was
    pretty well stopped by 1970 but????  I don't know what the European
    companies based companies practices were or are relative to third
    world subsidiary companies.  ???? 

    Check for leaks , Shut off unused cylinders, don't accept very old
    or poor looking cylinders, Tie cylinders securely, and  DON"T build
    a fire around them. 

Jesse

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