Chemicals for Garage Fires.

Chemicals for Garage Fires.

Experiments which Deputy Fire Chief Thomas Lally has just completed are of great interest to the automobile industry, owing to the almost certain eliminate n of disastrous garage fires. As a fire-fighting agency where gasoline is stored and where soaked waste and grease-stained floors abound water is to be discarded and a simple chemical, which on ignition throws off a dense smoke, is be utilized as an automatic fire blanket. It the recommendations of Chief Lally are approved ammonia nitrate w ill become the foe of garage fires Its effectiveness in subduing the most promising of fires has been demonstrated by experiments which Chief Lally has conducted along the lines ot scientific fire prevention. The numerous had fires which have incurred in gar ages caused him to make a special study of combating this fortp of tire Chief Lally's experiment with ammonia nitrate was as successful a bit of fire fighting as he has done in his forty-one years’ connection with the department, He took a large barrel which had been thoroughly soaked in oil and inside ot this he placed a large quantity of kindling wood which had been given a benzine hath. Then, to make sure that this inflammable pile would not lack for air, he raised the barrel on bricks, leaving several inches of air space on the bottom. A pan containing a small amount of ammonia nitrate was placed in the bar rel. When a match was applied to the bottom of the barrel its oil soaked contents flashed into flame, which was fanned into a miniature con flagration But the spread of the fire was checked the instant the ammonia nitrate was ignited The duse smoke w hich this chemical threw off slowly hacked down on the fire, and within a few minutes had cut off the oxygen so thoroughly that not a spark was visible. So quickly had the ammonia nitrate done its work that the benzine soaked chips had not been lighted, although fire had blackened them. "Were a building stored with ammonia nitrate, or were this material pres cut in sufficient quantity in the form of sulphate of ammonia.” said Chief Pally, “a tire would he quite out of tile question, due to the fact that the fusing of these ammonia salts would produce vast quantities of nitrous oxide gases that would hover over the flame, completely fill the surrounding space, displacing oxygen, resulting in the quenching of the flame.”

Experiments which Deputy Fire Chief Thomas Lally has just completed are of great interest to the automobile industry, owing to the almost certain eliminate n of disastrous garage fires. As a fire-fighting agency where gasoline is stored and where soaked waste and grease-stained floors abound water is to be discarded and a simple chemical, which on ignition throws off a dense smoke, is be utilized as an automatic fire blanket. It the recommendations of Chief Lally are approved ammonia nitrate w ill become the foe of garage fires Its effectiveness in subduing the most promising of fires has been demonstrated by experiments which Chief Lally has conducted along the lines ot scientific fire prevention. The numerous had fires which have incurred in gar ages caused him to make a special study of combating this fortp of tire Chief Lally's experiment with ammonia nitrate was as successful a bit of fire fighting as he has done in his forty-one years’ connection with the department, He took a large barrel which had been thoroughly soaked in oil and inside ot this he placed a large quantity of kindling wood which had been given a benzine hath. Then, to make sure that this inflammable pile would not lack for air, he raised the barrel on bricks, leaving several inches of air space on the bottom. A pan containing a small amount of ammonia nitrate was placed in the bar rel. When a match was applied to the bottom of the barrel its oil soaked contents flashed into flame, which was fanned into a miniature con flagration But the spread of the fire was checked the instant the ammonia nitrate was ignited The duse smoke w hich this chemical threw off slowly hacked down on the fire, and within a few minutes had cut off the oxygen so thoroughly that not a spark was visible. So quickly had the ammonia nitrate done its work that the benzine soaked chips had not been lighted, although fire had blackened them. "Were a building stored with ammonia nitrate, or were this material pres cut in sufficient quantity in the form of sulphate of ammonia.” said Chief Pally, “a tire would he quite out of tile question, due to the fact that the fusing of these ammonia salts would produce vast quantities of nitrous oxide gases that would hover over the flame, completely fill the surrounding space, displacing oxygen, resulting in the quenching of the flame.”