DUST EXPLOSIONS.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 2722, 9 December 1881, Page 2

DUST EXPLOSIONS.

A subject which has attracted a good deal of attention in America has been the explosion of mills from the ignition of the dust, which the atmosphere in them holds in suspension. A remarkable instance of this was the burning of the Washburn, Diamond, and Humboldt Mills on May 2, 1878, at Minneapoli. This fire was due to the explosion of particles of flour and bran mixed with air, and the force of the explosion was so great as to cast down walls six feet thick, and sheets of iron from the roof of the Washburn Mills were thrown so high in the air that they were carried by the wind a distance of two miles. A similar explosion took place on July 30, of the present year, in a splendid building seven stories high, used as a lager beer brewery by Mr George Ehret, in New York. The malt dust became ignited and caused an explosion by which the building was set on fire and considerably damaged. Many other explosions of like nature have occurred in America, and Professor Peck has investigated their cause, which he attributes to the fact that many kinds of matter become combustible and explosive by being finely divided and suspended in air. He illustrates his his theory in this way If a largo log of wood were ignited it might be a week before being entirely consumed. Split it up into cord wood, and pile it up loosely, and it would burn in

a couple of hours. Again, split it up into kindling wood, pile it up loosely, and perhaps it would burn in less than an hour. Cut it up into shavings and allow a strong wind to blow them in the air, or in any way keep the chips comparatively .well separated from each other, and the log would, perhaps be consumed in two or three minutes ; or, finally, grind it up into a fine dust or powder, blow it in such a manner that each particle is surrounded bj air, and it would burn in less than a second. The singular point is that though explosions of this kind appear to be common in American mills and breweries we can recollect no instance of any occurring elsewhere.