Everyone strives for the hottest flame, but what is the temp of the coldest? When does a reaction become a flame?
2007-03-25 12:27:39 · 1 answers · asked by Michael K 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Chemistry
Wow, you're bordering on philosophy with "when does a reaction become a flame." I actually read up on wikipedia some just to check. Basically it becomes a flame when it's self-sustaining. What happens is that molecules get vaporized, and then they burn in the gaseous state. If their oxidation (burning) is not sufficiently hot to vaporize more molecules to continue burning, it's not a flame. I don't know the temperature of the "coldest" flame, but I do know that for explosions in movie sets the use benzoyl peroxide (the same stuff in acne medication) because when it explodes it's a relatively "cold" explosion--i.e. the flames are not very hot--thereby making them more safe.
If you want to know more, wikipedia's always a good place to start: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flame
Who knew, flames in outer space are spherical... Cool....
2007-03-25 13:09:36 · answer #1 · answered by Some Body 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋