Review article
GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF SELF-HEATING AND SELF-COMBUSTION OF SUBSTANCES (PART I)
DAMIR KULIŠIĆ
Abstract
The paper presents the results of a systematic analysis of the types, characteristics and common factors of very complex and interdependent physical, biological and/or chemical and thermodynamic mechanisms responsible for the initiation of self-heating and self-combustion of a multitude of substances. The results reflect a careful analysis and comparison of a wide range of available recent studies that deal theoretically and/or practically with all or with certain aspects of these phenomena. The paper reflects the traditional and recent experience and knowledge gained from the international and Croatian production, storage, transport, distribution and inspection practises of damage and loss prevention which is due to deterioration in product quality or to fire and explosion incidents. The analysis is particularly supported by the experiences of the Croatian and international criminal, forensic, insurance, internal industrial and other investigations into numerous incidents of fire and explosion caused by these phenomena. The paper also presents some applications and merits and shortcomings of theoretical and semi-empirical analyses of key self-heating parameters founded originally in the Frank-Kamenetski theoretical model and the somewhat more recent crossing point method. A substance list assists in the preliminary rapid identification of groups and types of substances (materials) known for their proneness to self-heat and self-combust. The paper also gives a list of major misguided behaviours that generally and/or specifically favour such processes.
Keywords
fire; self-heating; self-ignition; spontaneous heating of goods in stock; spontaneous ignition; spontaneous combustion; reactive material hazards; pyrophoricity; generation of pyrophoric material; self-heating (self-ignition) hazardous processes
Hrčak ID:
7816
URI
Publication date:
1.7.2006.
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