Never Use an I-phone at a Petrol Station

A few thoughts on this thread from the environmental chemist/haz waste nerd:

The cell phone thing has been properly investigated and debunked in my opinion. It still comes up regularly.

I agree static is the biggest danger because the spark can occur where your hand is holding the nozzle, right where the vapors come out of the tank.

I always ground myself if I've re-entered the car, and even the first time I get out in the winter. I use the back of my hand to reduce the pain, either on the car or the pump.

I have no doubt the tip of a burning cigarette is hot enough to ignite gasoline vapors.

Yes, gasoline vapors are heavier than air so they 'should' drop to the ground, but if you've ever smelled gasoline while fueling - like, every time, right? - you'd have to be an idiot to stand there with an ignition source sticking out of your face.

I am not sure what the hydrocarbon range of JP4 is exactly, but jet fuels straddle the gasoline and diesel ranges. They do (generally) overlap the top half of the gasoline range, but they don't have the lighter more volatile end of gasoline. JP8 is specifically a higher flash point product than JP4.
 
Now if you were sniffin the Fumes and trying to smoke in between! Who knows?
 
A couple of kids from around town, when we were kids I guess, once tried to set a cup of fresh out the pump gasoline on fire with a lit cigarette. They couldn't do it. They hardly used the scientific method or hammered out all of the variables but still.

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I might have to try it then. Oh wait, I don't have any smokes.

There is a range of concentration where combustion can occur, but if there is not enough vapor or too much vapor (not enough air) it will not light up. One would think that as you moved a combustion source toward that cup, somewhere around it things would be juuust right. :scratch2:
 
That gets back to fuel:air ratios and HTA vapor. There are the "lighter ends" we smell within gasoline that have higher vapor pressure, but that doesn't necessarily create the proper fuel:air ratio. The extent of the electrical hazardous area classification is shown here. A below grade sump with the Div ll area is a Div l area and much more hazardous.
 
Ever run into any old timers over there who used t stoff, c stoff and such?

It took a bit to remember what t-stoff and c-stoff are, propellent and oxidizer for the Me-163 I believe? No, so far I haven't met anyone who fought in the war that wants to talk about it. The Deutsche Museum here has a Me-163, I was surprised at how darn small they actually are.

Cheers,
James
 
Maybe not the car stereo, but I'd think that turning the ignition switch in your car would generate a much bigger spark somewhere, either within the switch or at the starter/solenoid, than any cell phone could ever produce. I guess we should all stop using anything electric in our cars while at a filling station, huh?

bs
 
I was at my local fuel station a couple of years ago and I watch this fellow walk in from the street on his way to buy something from the store. He passed next to a person who was refuelling his car. He put a cigarette in his mouth and pulled out a box of matches and was about to strike the match when I yelled at him really loud and made him stop. He said "What's the matter?". I said "Are you ****ing stupid?" He said "What do you mean?". I said "The guy on the other side of that car is pumping petrol(you Yanks call it 'Gas') and you are about to light a match". He says "What of it?". I said "You'll cause an explosion." I then pointed to the notices all around saying Do not expose any naked flame and No smoking. I said "These notices are here for a reason. Any combustion will ignite the fuel vapor in the air." The idiot with the match got upset, but that's the way with idiots when you point out their idiocy.
 
The explosion was caused by static electricity, not the cellphone...

The fact that he climbed up on top of the truck and opened the hatch, shows that he was incredibly stupid. Having such a low level of brain activity, his head was negatively charged and ready to absorb any positive current. What you don't see in the video is the ladybug (who's brain activity far exceeded the moron's) that landed on the truck and transferred a positive charge to the moron and created a spark, thus igniting the fuel.
 
Welp, apparently, around the interwebz, there is some evidence that cigarettes are not a slam dunk here. One source said a cigarette is about 50 degrees F below the ignition range for gas fumes. That wouldn't be enough for me. Why take a chance. But you can find examples such as on Mythbusters where it did not ignite, if you really want to believe it never will. :D
 
Never fill a gas can in your truck bed. Always put the can on the ground. That's what I tell my chauffer...:smoke:
 
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Welp, apparently, around the interwebz, there is some evidence that cigarettes are not a slam dunk here. One source said a cigarette is about 50 degrees F below the ignition range for gas fumes. That wouldn't be enough for me. Why take a chance. But you can find examples such as on Mythbusters where it did not ignite, if you really want to believe it never will. :D
I know that this says "lit a cigarette" but I agree with what you said:

https://nypost.com/2017/06/25/overturned-oil-tanker-causes-fatal-explosion-in-pakistan/
 
IT IS NOT A DANGER - there is NO OPEN SPARK

Now I will give a dumbo smoking near the pumps a complete piece of my mind ...


I watched a commercial on TV today and they showed a guy pumping gas while talking on his cell phone.
I will not hesitate to tell someone at the pump if they are talking on the cell phone how dangerous it is.
Most of the time I will leave without gas......
 
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