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Pyrophoric Carbon Fires

NCJ Number
167438
Journal
Fire and Arson Investigator Volume: 47 Issue: 2 Dated: (December 1996) Pages: 7-9
Author(s)
B A Schwartz
Date Published
1996
Length
3 pages
Annotation
Fire investigators who are considering assigning a fire cause to pyrophoric carbon should determine whether the specific criteria have been met and consider an alternative explanation if they are not.
Abstract
The term "pryrophoric carbon" is relatively new, but reports of fires related to this phenomenon go back at least to the 1911 report of 50 fires or near-fires caused by steam pipes in close contact with combustible material. A theory arose under which the low temperature of the steam pipe turns wood into charcoal, which then ignites spontaneously. These early data did not give the temperature of the pipe, the cases all involved heat applied to the inside of the wood, and steam pipes were often insulated with wood or surrounded with sawdust in 1900. Pryorphoric carbon can be considered a type of smoldering combustion, but scientific research specific to pyrophoric carbon is almost nonexistent. Nevertheless, this cause is increasingly cited in fire investigations. Investigators need to be aware that wood does not have a set ignition temperature; ignition is a combination of heat and time. The investigator should consider temperature, time, thickness of the specimen, and heat flux on the wood. 14 references and author photograph