[Shop-talk] Welding a full tank

[David Scheidt]

On Fri, Apr 30, 2010 at 3:50 PM, Wayne <wmc_st at xxiii.com> wrote:

> On 4/30/2010 2:25 PM, David Scheidt wrote:
>
>> ...Car exhaust is available and portable.  With exhaust pumped
>>>
>>> into the container to purge the oxygen, you can weld the tank
>>>
>>>  Right, because filling a tank with an explosive gas is always a good
>> idea!
>> Particularly right before you expose it to open flame!
>>
>
> I was thinking the same thing.  That sounds like a super bad idea.  What
> happens if you're welding this thin sheet metal and blow a hole through it
> and the gas starts leaking out?!
>
> As far as the "explosive gas" I guess you mean CO?  Any car with a properly
> functioning fuel injection and catalytic converter(s) should have nearly
> zero CO content;  ditto for unburned gas or oxygen.  So if you're ever in
> the mood to kill yourself, don't do the old "car in the closed garage"
> trick.  It don't work anymore!


yes.  CO is flammable at concentrations from about 10 to 80%, and it's
capable of very vigorous deflagration or detonation when exposed to oxygen,
as when you've finished and are purging the vessel.   There are lots of
vehicle around that produce substantial amounts of  CO (like elderly
gasoline engines, diesels in poor tune.) and they tend to be the sort of
thing around on farms and workshops where someone would think it would be a
good idea.



-- 
David Scheidt
dmscheidt at gmail.com