[TheForge] Spontanious Combustion

[Bob Ehrenberger]

Dann,

After reading the reports from the DOE, that Mike S. posted links to, I see
that it really is a problem when there is a large quantity of coal (tens to
hundreds of tons).  I usually get my coal 2 tons at a time and hadn't given
it a second thought until now.  The DOE recomendation was to keep it dry and
not pile more than three feet high with out spreading it out into thin
layers.  I store my coal in an old grain wagon outside and it is usually
about three feet thick when filled.  I try to keep it dry,  not because of
the fire risk, but to prevent it from fracturing when it freezes.  The first
load I got was reduced to coal dust during a cold wet winter, it was a real
pain to burn when there were as much fines as chunks.  It may have been
mostly fines when I got it but I suspect that the freezing and thawing
didn't do it any good.

Robert Ehrenberger
Shelbyville, Mo.
eforge at centurytel.net


----- Original Message ----- 
From: <dann at wctatel.net>
To: "Bob Ehrenberger" <eforge at centurytel.net>; "Sponsored by ABANA"
<theforge at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Friday, September 08, 2006 7:24 AM
Subject: Re: [TheForge] Spontanious Combustion



Bob,

Sounds fishy to me.  Wet coal, or dry coal, it is takes both heat and air
to get it to burn.  That is the most frustrating part of working a coal
forge.   My hats off to those who usually get the forge fire started with
a single sheet of crumpled newspaper.  More than once, I resorted to a
handful of match light brick-ets nested in forge  when I needed the coal
forge working without a big loss of time or embarassment.

Wet hay can spontaneously combust because it gets a mold kind of reaction
going that eventually heats the and dries the core enough to ignite.  I
wouldn't be surprised to learn that the mold decomp process might even
produce some combustable gasses.

With coal,  the cellulose -  to - carbon change occured millions of years
ago.

Dann

> There was a fire yesterday at a local factory in it's coal bin.  The
> report
> said that they clamed it was spontanious combustion.  As I recall this
> subject came up earlier this year when one of the guys was looking at
> storing coal in his shop.  And it seemed to be the consensus of the group
> that coal would not spontaniously combust.  Is my memory wrong or are they
> trying to blow smoke up our a** to cover up the real cause of the fire.\?
>
> Robert Ehrenberger
> Shelbyville, Mo.
> eforge at centurytel.net
>
>
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