[modeleng] Re: Cutting aluminium DANGER !!!!

I don't know but I think that Al and Fe dust are no more hazardous in 
combination than alone. Maybe that should be just as dangerous in 
combination as alone.

The theory sometimes expounded is that one creates iron oxide dust by f.e. 
linishing ferrous. Al dust is then created by linishing Al. Result thermite 
which catches fire creating iron and Al oxide. I'm not all convinced. The 
reason why thermite works is that Al is more easily oxidized than Fe. The Al 
tears the oxygen from the iron oxide creating Al oxide and iron. Fair enough 
but how is that that the Al which has a greater affinity for oxygen than 
iron is oxidized in linishing but the relatively less reactive iron is 
oxidized?

Personally I try to treat all dust with a good deal of circumspection. 
Breathing the small particles in is no good for you and a black hanky after 
machining is the least of it: the ones you can't see are worse for your 
lungs. The high surface area to mass of small particles makes them very 
inflammable. I speak as someone who spent 25 of his first 30 years blowing 
up tin cans with custard powder and making other more vigourous explosions, 
some of them intentionally.

Also steel wool is rather flammable and dangerous. I know of a couple of 
cases where some shorted out a battery and caused a fire.

Tim (who walks the way of Quentin Crisp when it comes to dust despite 
knowing better).


>From: "Bob Logan" <boblogan@xxxxxxxxx>
>Subject: [modeleng] Re: Cutting aluminium DANGER !!!!
>Date: Mon, 31 Jan 2005 21:09:28 +1300
>
>And ALL workshop must be scrupulously clean with a capital C  L E A N,
>Aluminium fillings, shavings and chipping mixed with iron/steel swarf, is 
>an
>explosive combination.   Dennis Dalla-Vicenza put a posting up a year or 
>two
>back, the photo of the poor victim,  Awful.
>Bob Logan, who has a broom in the workshop, next to bin.


MODEL ENGINEERING DISCUSSION LIST.

To UNSUBSCRIBE from this list, send a blank email to, 
modeleng-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with the word "unsubscribe" in the subject line.

Other related posts: