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Robert Putnick

By

Butane bubbles and soapy water protect

normally-flammable materials from burning

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SAFETY FIRST:

When handling fire, ALWAYS have a fire extinguisher present.

Also, wear safety goggles, and perform this experiment outdoors, with adult supervision.

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Abstract: (Overview)

Fires originate from the burning of a substance (whether solid, liquid, or gas,) and will endure until the fuel is consumed. Yet, there is such a thing where the fuel in an experiment, along with a quenching substance, will cause the flames to self-extinguish, without burning a material that is normally-flammable. This experiment will harness the powers of the Self-Extinguishing Fire, through various trials, proving its ability to not burn or damage materials, where the fuel and quenching solution is placed.

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Research:

All fires need 3 essentials in order to burn (Heat, Fuel, and Oxygen) which creates the fire triangle. For instance, heat in the form of a spark, lights a branch on fire (fuel), which is fed by the wind (oxygen.) In any fire, heat is the main product, which indicates that a chemical reaction has occurred to the substance which has burned. Water (H2O) is typically used to extinguish fire because it quenches the heat through evaporation, thus removing one of fire’s essentials, causing the flame to go out. However, water is not used as the sole fire retardant since it doesn’t initiate evaporation in liquid fires, but rather causes the liquid to disperse, which in turn, feeds the fire with more oxygen. In contrast, general fire extinguishers are filled with “foam powder” which chokes the flames by quenching oxygen rather than heat. Dish soap is a wetting agent- a substance that reduces surface tension, allowing it to easily spread. When a wetting agent is combined with water to extinguish a fire, the lower surface tension permits the water to penetrate the burning area at a greater rate than usual, using less H2O to extinguish the flames.

In this experiment, oxygen (O2) is present in the air as well as the bubbles formed, while the spark (heat) comes from the lighter, with butane (C4H10), a gas at room temperature, serving as the initial fuel. Each one of the materials used (i.e. paper, cardboard) will be tested to determine whether the solution of butane bubbles coupled with soapy water (wetting agent,) will effectively form a barrier to protect the material from getting burned.

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Question:

Will a solution of butane bubbles and soapy water

protect normally-flammable materials from burning?

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Hypothesis:

If a solution of butane bubbles and soapy water is placed onto normally flammable materials, and ignited, then the flame created will self-extinguish without burning the material.

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Materials:

  • 2 cups of water
  • ¼ cup of dish soap
  • 1 Butane fuel can
  • Lighter
  • Rectangular Glass Dish
  • Metal baking pan
  • Table
  • Foam cup
  • Plastic lid
  • Safety goggles
  • Fire extinguisher
  • 2 or more rags/towels (1 for experiment/others for cleanup)

4 inch x 4 inch piece of the following:

  • Aluminum foil
  • Printer paper
  • Cardboard
  • Wood

NOTE- ^^

The above measurements of specific materials are suitable & required for this experiment.

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Materials:

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WATCH the Experiment!

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Photos: PAPER

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Photos: ALUMINUM FOIL

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Photos: CARDBOARD

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Photos: FOAM CUP

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Photos: PLASTIC LID

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Photos: RAG/TOWEL

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Photos: WOOD

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Photos: MY HAND

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Data:

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Analysis:

To begin with, all of the materials (including my hand) did not burn. The paper, in particular, was soaked with the soapy water solution once the fire self-extinguished. The aluminum foil, cardboard, plastic lid, and wood were all wet on the surface by the remains of the soapy water solution and butane bubbles. In contrast, after lighting the bubbles on the foam cup, the area on the rim/side of the cup was slightly melted- where the bubbles and soapy water was absent. Similarly, due to the wind ‘feeding’ the flame on the towel, the topmost material was singed in the area free of the bubbles and soapy water. Lastly, my hand, after the bubbles were lit, became warm enough to bear, causing me to shake-off the flame. Essentially, the soapy water and butane bubbles permitted me to hold fire for nearly 4 seconds without being burned, which would have been impossible otherwise.

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Conclusion:

The butane (fuel) in the bubbles was ignited by the lighter (heat) while the oxygen in both the bubbles and the surrounding air fed the fire, on each normally-flammable material = a perfect fire triangle. This successful fire was limited by only one factor, the traces of soapy water, which served as a wetting agent; a “barrier” that established the self-extinguishing characteristics of the flames. This is what protected each material from getting burned where the butane bubbles and soapy water was placed, but areas without the solution were vulnerable, as seen in the slight melting of the foam cup and searing of the towel, with the presence of an extraneous variable (SEE BELOW.)

My hypothesis was validated by the results of this experiment in predicting that when the solution of soapy water and butane bubbles was lit, it would produce a fire which would self-extinguish without burning each material.

An extraneous variable, while still affecting the results of an experiment, is undesirable or not intended. In this case, wind was the extraneous variable which affected the results of my experiment, influencing the turnout of the fire lit on each material. If I performed this experiment again, I would ensure that the wind was not recognizable enough to affect the results.

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Conclusion:

In this case, even though my research concluded that 1 of the typical traits of a chemical reaction is heat, the heat which was naturally produced during each trial by the fire (best sensed when held in my hand), did not signal a chemical reaction occurring with each material, since they were not burned. Rather, it was the butane gas C4H10 (which burned as the fuel) that underwent a chemical reaction with oxygen O2 in both the bubbles created & the atmosphere, producing carbon dioxide gas CO2 and water H2O.

Below is a balanced chemical equation of the combustion reaction involving butane--

REACTANTS

PRODUCTS

2C4H10 + 13O2 -> 8CO2 + 10H2O

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Conclusion: IMPLICATIONS

There are real-life implications of the principle of soapy-water serving as a wetting agent, in firefighting. For starters, a water-dish soap solution is already recognized by fire departments to be just as effective as Class A foam, and is used in place of foam in instances where it is not readily available. Foam in general (including which is created from a soapy-water solution) is seen as an alternative to water, in particular, for conservation purposes. In 2011, Dawn dish soap was used by North Carolina fire departments to effectively extinguish a blaze that was “nearly the size of a city block and about five stories high…,” in Bertie County.

TAKING THIS FURTHER:

Testing other combustible gases that can be used in place of butane, to obtain the same results.

1 possible alternative is Methane CH4

Testing other normally-flammable materials to see if they won’t be burned by the Self-Extinguishing Fire

(I.e. rubber, cotton balls, certain foods, and maybe even samples of liquids such as rubbing alcohol)

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Works Cited:

"FireDos GmbH "Admixing Systems for Fire-fighting." FireDos. FireDos, n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2017. <http://www.firedos.de/system/attachments/1154/original/FireDos_Guideline_WettingAgent_web.pdf?1311681450>.

"How does water help extinguish fire?" Thermodynamics - How does water help extinguish fire? - Physics Stack Exchange. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2017. <https://physics.stackexchange.com/questions/141128/how-does-water-help-extinguish-fire>.

Libretexts. "Wetting Agents." Chemistry LibreTexts. Libretexts, 31 Jan. 2017. Web. 21 Apr. 2017. <https://chem.libretexts.org/Core/Physical_and_Theoretical_Chemistry/Physical_Properties_of_Matter/States_of_Matter/Properties_of_Liquids/Wetting_Agents>.

Swartz, John. "Dawn Soap Helps Put Out Recycling Center Fire." WCTI. N.p., 25 May 2016. Web. 25 Apr. 2017. <http://www.wcti12.com/news/dawn-soap-helps-put-out-recycling-center-fire/15050031>.

Urich, Michael. "Michael Urich." Fun Science Hub. N.p., 22 May 2015. Web. 21 Apr. 2017. <http://www.funsciencehub.com/a-simple-fire-experiment-that-is-sure-to-dazzle-you>.