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A large compost pile can spontaneously combust if improperly managed. Spontaneous combustion or spontaneous ignition is a type of combustion which occurs by self-heating (increase in temperature due to exothermic internal reactions), followed by thermal runaway (self heating which rapidly accelerates to high temperatures) and finally, autoignition. [1]
Spontaneous combustion is caused when coal oxidizes and airflow is insufficient to dissipate heat; this more commonly occurs in stockpiles and waste piles, rarely in bedded coal underground. Where coal fires occur, there is attendant air pollution from emission of smoke and noxious fumes into the atmosphere.
The autoignition temperature or self-ignition temperature, often called spontaneous ignition temperature or minimum ignition temperature (or shortly ignition temperature) and formerly also known as kindling point, of a substance is the lowest temperature at which it spontaneously ignites in a normal atmosphere without an external source of ignition, such as a flame or spark. [1]
Coal dust suspended in air is explosive—coal dust has far more surface area per unit weight than lumps of coal, and is more susceptible to spontaneous combustion. However, five elements are needed for an explosion to occur: oxygen, an ignition source, coal dust, dispersion of the coal dust, and confinement of the dust. [4]
Spontaneous combustion is a type of combustion that occurs by self-heating (increase in temperature due to exothermic internal reactions), followed by thermal runaway (self-heating which rapidly accelerates to high temperatures) and finally, ignition. For example, phosphorus self-ignites at room temperature without the application of heat.
Larger coal stockpiles have a reduced rate of heat loss, leading to a higher risk of spontaneous combustion. Travelling, luffing boom stackers that straddle a feed conveyor are commonly used to create coal stockpiles. Tunnel conveyors can be fed by a continuous slot hopper or bunker beneath the stockpile to reclaim material.
Lignite combustion produces less heat for the amount of carbon dioxide and sulfur released than other ranks of coal. As a result, lignite is the most harmful coal to human health. [ 3 ] Depending on the source, various toxic heavy metals , including naturally occurring radioactive materials , may be present in lignite and left over in the coal ...
That is, the heat of combustion, ΔH° comb, is the heat of reaction of the following process: C c H h N n O o (std.) + (c + h ⁄ 4 - o ⁄ 2) O 2 (g) → c CO 2 (g) + h ⁄ 2 H 2 O (l) + n ⁄ 2 N 2 (g) Chlorine and sulfur are not quite standardized; they are usually assumed to convert to hydrogen chloride gas and SO 2 or SO