Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

morphballganon t1_jducg4c wrote

What does a chocolate factory need that is explosive enough to kill 7 people?

46

5xad0w t1_jdudnrt wrote

Literally anything that creates fine dust when stored or processed such as flour, sugar, cocoa, etc.

360

Heiferoni t1_jdukuig wrote

Yeah it's a common classroom physics demonstration to harmlessly combust a small amount of flour in a can. Great way to help in understanding silo explosions.

133

Sioul_the_resilient t1_jdvk0ap wrote

Well not literally anything, but yes many things create combustible dusts that must be treated as hazardous. Dusts are actually tested for their ease of combustibility and the pressure created from combustion to rate the level of hazard and safety measures needed.

Source - have designed industrial dust collection systems and have done process safety evaluations with dust systems for work.

20

bkconn t1_jdvmira wrote

You just reminded me of this incredibly satisfying dust collection system I saw yesterday. The stone debris being drilled from a giant tunnel through a mountain bust be completely de-dusted in order to keep the tunnel air breathable for all the workers inside.

https://youtu.be/Bie00h3lxKI?t=200

11

asdaaaaaaaa t1_jdugbv0 wrote

Anything that gets turned into fine enough powder and gets dispersed will explode. Sugar, flower, sawdust, dust itself, etc. Most factories have stuff like that in them. Most oils and fats used in food production can be quite flammable as well. Really, heavy production just isn't the safest thing, but it's a great way for you to get chocolate bars or whatever else at an actually affordable price.

59

spachi1281 t1_jdx09jh wrote

Yes even creamer that folks use in their coffee. I think someone can pull up the relevant Mythbusters clip of them testing this.

4

TechnicalSymbiote t1_jduchwl wrote

Natural gas

31

BlademasterFlash t1_jdutpqr wrote

Yeah a lot of people are talking about dust explosions (which is a possibility) but I’m thinking it’s more likely a boiler or something like that

12

iksbob t1_jduwlv8 wrote

The weather-cam footage looked a bit flamey. I don't think it was steam.

1

memberzs t1_jdux7i0 wrote

how do you think the water is heated for boilers?

8

iksbob t1_jduyam5 wrote

Yeah, but that's just a gas explosion. Boilers are heavy pressure vessels. The burner could blow out and cause an explosion destroying the building, leaving the boiler tank sitting on its stand (less some insulation). Boiler explosions are a whole different thing - a (typically structurally-compromised) tank explodes due to reaching its pressure limit.

6

BabySnarkalaTurkey t1_jduog6y wrote

There is also a debate about the possibility of a gas leak from what I read earlier. The next building over in the factory complex had people who reported smelling gas all day, but the gas company claims that no report was made. The gas company did respond early in the resulting fire from the explosion to help shut off gas to the area to prevent further explosions. Time will tell what the cause was.

21

TheLaGrangianMethod t1_jduhd5f wrote

Flour explodes very easily and violently. Plenty of other stuff too. That's just ignoring something like natural gas or propane.

19

shewy92 t1_jdv2xp4 wrote

You know that sugar can be explosive, right? And chocolate has sugar in it.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_Georgia_sugar_refinery_explosion

>On 7 February 2008, fourteen people were killed and forty injured during a dust explosion at an Imperial Sugar owned refinery in Port Wentworth, Georgia, United States. Dust explosions had been an issue of concern among U.S. authorities since three fatal accidents in 2003, with efforts made to improve safety and reduce the risk of reoccurrence.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dust_explosion

>A dust explosion is the rapid combustion of fine particles suspended in the air within an enclosed location. Dust explosions can occur where any dispersed powdered combustible material is present in high-enough concentrations in the atmosphere or other oxidizing gaseous medium, such as pure oxygen. In cases when fuel plays the role of a combustible material, the explosion is known as a fuel-air explosion.

>?Dust explosions are a frequent hazard in coal mines, grain elevators, and other industrial environments. They are also commonly used by special effects artists, filmmakers, and pyrotechnicians, given their spectacular appearance and ability to be safely contained under certain carefully controlled conditions.

13

memberzs t1_jdux4nq wrote

organic powders like wheat dust, plastic dust, and sweeteners can all explode if blow into the air, even a static spark can ignite it. boilers that aren't maintained or malfunctioning, ammonia systems used for refrigeration and process chillers. the list is quite long for pretty much any manufacturing facility especially food manufacturing.

8

mrg1957 t1_jdw0aq0 wrote

I used to replace the sulpur in my homemade gunpowder with sugar.

1

Janixon1 t1_jdycvue wrote

Mythbusters did an episode on this. I think they used non-dairy creamer. They created a helluva fireball

1