Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1922-11-02
Danger Of Static Electricity.

a passerby didn't know wha! he was
doing and picked up a piece Of chain
He saw the chain dangling BY one end
from the truck and thought he would
| possibly save the truck from bc.ng
wrecked through foulng the chain ir
one of the wheels.
The man didn't know the chain was
| hanging there for purpose. He
/ didn't know that gasoline, unlike va
/ ter, is non-conductor of electricity.
Possibly he didn't even know that
| flowing gasoline, especially when
| strained through such materials as
channels filters, sets UP considerable
charges of frictional or static cleo
| tricity. But that was what caused the
trucks destruction.
Usually when the big tank truck
backs up to the filling plug at a ser
vice station or other storage place,
the metallic nozzle from the truck
touches the metallic intake pipe and
thus forms ground for any charge of
static electricity that may collect in the
truck. Sometimes, however, the noz-
zle does not touch a grounding point,
and with no other metallic ground
from the truck, the car is perfectly in
sulated, standing as it does on rub
Der tires. Sometimes, also the noz-
zle OF the truck outlet pipe rests
against wooden piece in the intake
pipe and is thereby likewise insulated
as dry wood is also an insuIator.
While the gasoline is poured into the
storage tank certain amount of
vapor arises, and there is certain to be
some about the intake and the truck.
The flow of the liquid will set UP
static charge in the truck. AS the
charge increases, it may become strong
enough to leap the gap to the nearest
ground, or the two points may be
brought into contact. There is
spark, a flash, an explosion and un-
told damage may result.
4 Consequently the careful tank driv-
er always has metallic part hanging
from the truck to the ground, a rod or
chain, to drain off the electric charge
as it collects, as long as the gasoline
is being drawn off,
The same basic fact has been the
cause Of numerous smaller fires and
explosions in garages, both private and
public. In one instance a car was be-
ing filled with gasoline from a can.
While the employee ran the gas into
the can he strained it through
chamois filter in a funnel To make
the funnel sit up straight in the hole
in the tank wooden ring was placed
in the hole and the funnel was placed
in that. Thus the can was isolated
, After pouring some gasoline into the
tank, the man brought the can spout
into contact with the tank. There was
, spark, flash and the resulting ex-
plosion.
A man was pumping gasoline into
can in his own garage. He Jung
the pail on the hook over the spout of
the pump. He did not notice that the
pail had a wooden handle By reason
, of the wooden handle the pail was in
, sulated from the pumps. The flow
ing gasoline set UP static charge in
the pail which leaped the gap to the
pump and another fire was started.
Friction of silk cloth will produce
static electricity and fires have been
caused, it has been reported to gov
eminent agencies, when silk cloths
, soaked with benzine or gasoline were
used to rub the CRIME off mechanics
hands. Sparks are a prolific curse of
gasoline fires, especially sparks from
open flames, broken electric lights, anj
from friction. Even the clash on p
concrete pavement of the nails in
shoes have been known to form sparks
which resulted in fires when gasoline
vapor was present.
II gasoline is stored in an ope,,
place, such as in pail, the United
States Bureau of Mines reports, the
room in which the pail is left will
shortly be filled with an easily ex-
plosible mixture. The limits of ex-
possibility are between is per cent and
= per cent of gasoline vapor in air.
In other words, only little gasoline
vapor is needed to render air explos-
ive-one and one-half feet of gasoline
vapor for each 81 and one-half feet
of air One gallon of gasoline can,
under Derfect conditions ranJa- , 100