>Magnesium burns really well when it gets going - but it's hard to set alight in
> the first place, unless it's fine swarf. I have a Minilite magnesium wheel
>(bent) from a Lola in use as a coffee table base - and you can come over & stub
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
> out cigarettes against any time you like.
So you have a Lola that you're using for a coffee table base - what do you
do with the wheel? 8*)
> You could probably put a lighter to
> it, but I'm not so sure about a blow torch. Hell, you can get steel to burn
> with a blow torch and supply of oxygen - that's all a "thermic lance" is.
I'm pretty sure that if you shave up a sliver, you could get it burning
with a lighter. And once it's going, LOOK OUT! Don't try to put it out
with water, magnesium steals the oxygen from the water and keeps burning,
while lots of hydrogen bubbles off and probably ignites from the heat,
causing neeto explosions, you have to use some kind of oxygen exclusion
type extinguisher for a magnesium fire.
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John R. Lupien
lupienj@wal.hp.com
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