Did I nearly blow myself up?

[60]

Frik said:

Nothing wrong with using composites for pressure vessels.

we've got some that are filled to 3000psi at work

[Dangerous2]

bet they are a fair bit lighter than the steel ones!

[Simpo Two]

Frik said:

Nothing wrong with using composites for pressure vessels.

Unless they melt of course.

Bloodt stupid making gas cylinders out of thermoplastic!

[SeeFive]

I'd say you were pretty lucky. I remember a lorry load of those going off about a mile from my house. They were going off like rockets.

This was the news article about it...

http://newsrss.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/669166.stm

[pitbull turbo]

you wouldn't have blown up unless it burnt to a point preassure was lost in the cylinder and it go sucked back in to the cylinder and you achived the lfl wich is 10% gas to air.
so simple answer it would have shot out about a 2 meter flame and if you hadn't seen it the bang.
also as its lpg it sinks as its heavier then air so you could have set the ground on fire like it was covered in oil!

[GKP]

Your burgers wouldn't have been cooked properly.

[grumbledoak]

As that terrorist found recently, they don't generally explode Hollywood style. A jet of flame, and possibly an amateur 'rocket' launch was more likely. That could still have been very nasty, of course...

[Wings]

kambites said:

I don't think it would have exploded - the actual cylinder is steel, that melted bit is just a handle. You might have got a nice jet of flame from the end of that hose if it had melted through, though.

Correct, had the hose melted, gas leak from the hose, then it would just be another source of flame. The explosive element of a gas cylinder is when the liquid (not gas) with in the cylinder gets hot, hence when there is a fire, one will see the fire brigade just using water to cool down gas cylinders. I once heard of guy using an angle grinder to turn cylinders into wood burners, unfortunately the liquid within the cylinder he was cutting/working on overheated and blew his face apart.

[Globs]

GKP said:

Your burgers wouldn't have been cooked properly.

Perhaps leading to fatal food poisoning..

[Simpo Two]

Wings said:

Correct, had the hose melted, gas leak from the hose, then it would just be another source of flame.

Just like when a certain former school-colleague lit a gas tap in the school physics lab. He turned it out hastily when the teacher arrived, but was busted when said teacher came up to the front row and put his hand on the tap!