Why is using cell phones dangerous at gas stations?
In: Technology
Answer: it isn’t.
This started out as a misunderstanding of the nature of low-power electronics mixed with a bit of “better safe than sorry”.
The fact is that there’s just no way for a phone to generate a static arc sufficient to ignite fuel vapors. Voltage is what dictates how big a static arc can be generated. The zap you get from shuffling your feet on carpet and then touching something grounded is in the range of 10’s of thousands of volts. The battery in your phone is in the 3v – 5v range. Maybe 12v for the earliest cell phones.
You’re far more likely to generate a static arc by climbing into and then back out of your car and then grounding on the nozzle when you go to remove it. That has been documented to happen on innumerable occasions.
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