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From: ems@amdahl.UUCP (ems)
Newsgroups: net.misc,net.garden
Subject: Re: Spontaneous combustion and people! (really of HAY; compost)
Message-ID: <2652@amdahl.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 27-Jan-86 13:55:11 EST
Article-I.D.: amdahl.2652
Posted: Mon Jan 27 13:55:11 1986
Date-Received: Wed, 29-Jan-86 04:09:06 EST
References: <3101@brl-tgr.ARPA> <197@prometheus.UUCP> <3326@brl-tgr.ARPA> <224@hropus.UUCP>
Organization: Circle C Shellfish Ranch, Shores-of-the-Pacific, Ca
Lines: 42
Xref: watmath net.misc:9216 net.garden:921
Summary: Hay burns from oxidation, not from being 'alive' ...

In article <224@hropus.UUCP>, ijk@hropus.UUCP (Ihor J. Kinal) writes:
> >> is Tracey Baker's article.
> >>	It does seem strange that something in the body could (supposedly)
> >>	generate that much heat, but I have heard of other examples of
> >>    spontaneous combustion that sound just as strange.  (...)
> >>    Apparently, if the hay was not cured
> >>	properly, the temperature in the middle of the bale could get
> >>    high enough to set the hay on fire. (...)
> 
> Give me a break!!!  The reason 'hay' can burn is that grass continues
> to 'live' after it's cut; (...)

Cut hay is dead.  It lays in the field long enough to assure that.
What happens is that insufficiently dried hay can suffer bacterial
decay and oxidation leading to heat build up and fire.

> Normally, spontaneous combustion refers to things like oily rags,
> which oxidize very slowly, but if the heat cannot escape easily...

And hay.  And unturned compost.
> 
> Ihor Kinal
> P.S.  Supposedly, pouring water on burning hay only makes the problem
> worse, since it just speeds up the grass's natural processes.
> But I've never confirmed that.

Pouring water on burning hay puts it out.  At least for small lumps.
I have confirmed that.  For a whole barn full, I have no idea.   You
might get all kinds of strange things  (Like water gas?  From coal
at high temp and pressure C + H2O -> CO + H2).  I grew up in
farm country.  Green hay is a real threat to the survival of
the barn.  And the stuff is real dead.  I've pulled apart a few
bales of 'warm' green hay in my life.  Decaying, yes.  Live?  No.

BTW, one really big problem they had at rice dryers was with rice
dust.  Every decade or so we would loose a dryer to fire/explosion.
For a real fun time put a sack of flour on a tuna can of explosives in
a 12ft square shack.  Light fuse and get a LONG way away!
-- 
E. Michael Smith  ...!{hplabs,ihnp4,amd,nsc}!amdahl!ems

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