The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1898-10-02
: DANGERS
Of the Popular
Illunlinant,
ACETYLENE GAS.
It's Use Must Be Regulated
For Safety's Sake.


en- up by insurance men all over the
erning the use Of acetylene gas, is find |
ing hearty cooperation in Worcester. |
The recommendation of the special
committee appointed by the national
board to investigate and report on this |
matter, is that boards of underwriters
take decided action in the matter be-
fore acetylene gets too strong foot
hold in their cities, to pass ordinances
governing the use of this, to say the
least, very dangerous substance.
About two weeks ago Chief Engineer
E. L. Vaughn received report of the
committee on lighting, heating and
patents of the National Board of I'm
borate recommendations relative to the |
use of acetylene gas. These recommen-
dations, coupled with what is already |
known by Worcester authorities about
the gas, set the chief to thinking hard, |
and finally resulted in the matter being
brought to the attention of the Worces-
ter Board of Underwriters, with the
recommendation OIL AnleL duSuIl dllb
Capt. Williamson that the board APP
point a committee to consider the adj |
visibility of petitioning the city gov
eminent for an ordinance governing |
the use of this substance.
The petition was drawn up and pre-
scented, being referred to the committee
on ordinances. At a meeting of this |
committee Friday afternoon, but two
of the members were present, and no
action was taken in the matter, but
there is every reason to believe that
the ordinance asked for viii be granted. |
E. P. Ingraham, secretary OF the Wor-
cester Board of Underwriters, and Prof.
L. p Kinnicutt of the Polytechnic In
stitute were present at the meeting ana
explained the formation, use and dan
gers attending the use of acetylene.
Very few people know what this sub
stance is composed of, and even when
enlightened, it seems rather difficult to
comprehend the exact reason for GER
tain properties. Acetylene in its en-
bryo state, is nothing more than lime
and charcoal. These substances are
mixed together and subjected to terri
fic electrical heat. a heat that would
make iron bubble like boiling water.
After the heat process, the substance is
allowed to cool and the result is ace
tylene carbide. This mass of dull, gray
ish substance is harder than flint and
often breaks the machinery used to
crush it. AS soon as moisture commu-
nicates with this substance, the gas
begins to generate, giving OH an door
resembling very much the zepnyrs
waited from the neighborhood in which
pole cat makes its headquarters
| Something like it, only worse, Isl
what one of the insurance men says OF
the substance.
So far as is known, there are mol
plants installed within the city limits
at the present time, although on the
Shrewsbury shore of. the lake, at the
Wachusett Boat Club house and at
Frank Kings hotel acetylene is in
use. Some weeks ago there was
private residence in the city equipped
with one of the plants, but the ap-
paratus got out of order and the plant
has been discontinued.
This last system was one of those to
which the insurance men take excep-
lions. where the generator which holds
the gas is located in the cellar of the
house The furnace used for heating
the building was also located near
by, and in case of a leak or
other difficulty with the gas ma
chine after the furnace fire had
been started, there would be an excel
lent opportunity for an explosion, one
that would apprise the residents Of the
house that something had taken place.
In another instance that came under
the notice of the Worcester insurance
men the can in which acetylene is
shipped was left standing in the cellar
near the generator. The stuff is shipped
in 100-pound tin cans, supposed to be |
Theoretically sealed, and in this case, |
after removing as much of the sub
stance as was needed to charge the
generator, the top of the can was
pushed back into place, leaving plenty
of space, however, for foreign sub
stances to enter
In case of fire, as a natural conse
quence more or less water would find
its way through the floors into the low
er regions. AS soon as the water
struck the acetylene, gas would gen
crate, and in a few minutes time it is
safe to say that there would be the
liyeliest sort of a blaze the only thing, |
it is claimed, that chemicals will not
affect when used in extinguishers.
The Worcester board of underwriters
is not working against the use of ace
tylene, but rather for the establishment |
of rules governing its use with some !
degree of safety to life and property. |
One of the strongest points maintained
by the insurance men is that the entire |
generating plant shall be placed outside |
the building which it supplies with il |
luminant
Different boards make different re-
concentrations as to the conditions |
which shall govern the use of this sub |
stance, but with it's rapid growth in
popular favor, 1t is realized that there
must be some standard by which the |
underwriters of the country may pro-
tect themselves and incidentally the |
lives of those whom they insure.
No one who has observed the light |
generated by scetylene, but admires 1T
and no one burt approves Of the results |
derived from it's use, but the one con- |
dition is to make it safe. Rating com
mittees and local boards are at variance
on the restrictionsb IHpRsed, some ad- |
hitting the generatorsgon the premises |
under certain restrictions.
The New York beardfftipulates that |
all classes of apparatus for generating |
gas shall be in an outside and f1reproof |
structure 1t regulates the size of APP
paratus and the necessary automatic |
safety appliances, also to be outside, re-
stricts quantity and location of carbide |
in store, prohibits use of liquid acety- |
lene or gas produced from 1t, and In
sists that all apparatus must first be
approved at the expense of the owner. |
The New England insurance ex-
change restricts to low pressure, appar
atus of fixed gas storage capacity, pro-
vides for safety appliances and allows
such apparatus by EXPRESS wording OF |
the permit, to be located at any point /
in the insured building from the cellar
to the attic; permits. the storing of car
bide to the extent of $50 pounds inside |
the insured property without restric-
ton as to location, and permits the use
of liquid acetylene in any quantity To-
Gated 80 feet distant from the building. |
The attention of the special commit
tee appointed by the national board has
also been called to the Importance OF I
A.. 10 - ~,