Fire fighters have oxygen on their backs right? How does it not explode when they go into a burning building?
In: Chemistry
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It’s not oxygen in the tank. It’s compressed air, the extract same that you and I breath. SCUBA divers are the same – it’s generally just regular atmosphere air that’s crammed into a tank.
It’s not an oxygen tank, it’s compressed air. This obviously contains oxygen, but as much as any old air has. Air doesn’t burn on its own, it needs fuel. And fuel doesn’t burn on it’s own, it needs air, or specifically oxygen. Inside the tank isn’t going to ignite as there is no fuel, and if the air escaped it’s no different than air in the first place.
Now, any compressed gas tank can explode. Even helium which is completely inert, ie won’t burn. However, that requires heating it a lot. If the tank was exposed to enough heat to explode, the firefighter would long be dead.
The air inside the tank is sealed in. It is carefully metered out directly to the fire fighter’s face. If the tank got hot enough to blow up the fire fighter would be long dead.
Fire needs oxygen, fuel, and heat. Inside the canister there is only compressed air with no fuel, and if the canister was hot enough to burn inside then the guy wearing it has already melted off his skin. There is a risk of it getting hot enough that the pressure increases and it bursts, but they have safety features which will let the air out before the whole can breaks.
The oxygen Tank they’re using at heavily insulated to prevent them from blowing up due to the heat.
It doesnt get hot enough. While protective gear does allow firefighters to go places they normally wouldn’t, it is still not enough protection to actually be in fire. Often, firefighters will ventilate a room just to make it cool enough to move through it.
The least protected part is your neck / ears covered by a relatively thin nomex hood. The nomex is amazing but there will be times where you can’t even stand up due to just the heat of the air and smoke.
If you are fighting a particularly hot / close fire, it’s not unheard of to come out with a melted radio or flashlight. However, it is an indication that you got too close and too hot. If you managed to burn or melt an SCBA you would not only be in trouble but your coworkers would never let you forget it.
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