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Safety
The Definition Of Explosion
by Robin M. Giroux
September 9, 2013
| A version of this story appeared in
Volume 91, Issue 36
Regarding Richard Rosera’s letter “Choosing the Right Words,” explosion is the correct term (C&EN, Aug. 5, page 4). The definition of the word explosion is the rapid expansion of a gas.
To quote Rosera, the case at hand was “caused by the rupture of a nitrogen line or vessel by overpressure.”
Rob Kovacich
Hood River, Ore.
Recalling my years dealing with hazard evaluation led me to question Rosera’s letter. An explosion is defined as the rapid increase in volume and release of energy in an extreme manner. Or, as Frank T. Bodurtha explains in his book “Industrial Explosion Prevention and Protection,” “an explosion is the result, not the cause, of a rapid expansion of gases. It may occur from physical or mechanical change.”
Thus, the rupture of a nitrogen line or vessel does indeed result in an explosion, as does the rupture of an overfilled tire.
Robert G. Robinson
Lawrenceville, N.J.
As a chemistry educator and professional pyrotechnician, I answer myriad questions regarding explosions. If the term explosion is used to refer to “the rupture of a nitrogen line or vessel by overpressure,” it is more specifically a mechanical explosion, but it’s an explosion nonetheless.
The criticism leveled by Rosera is unwarranted. Both the mainstream press and C&EN are correct in addressing the CF Industries accident as an explosion. Although physical failure of materials containment may be due to either chemical or mechanical reasons, the result is still an explosion.
Kathleen Holley
Arlington, Texas
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