Yarr The Pirate! :: View topic - man sets carpet on fire with static electricity

SYDNEY (Reuters) - An Australian man built up a 40,000-volt charge of static electricity in his clothes as he walked, leaving a trail of scorched carpet and molten plastic and forcing firefighters to evacuate a building.

Frank Clewer, who was wearing a woolen shirt and a synthetic nylon jacket, was oblivious to the growing electrical current that was building up as his clothes rubbed together.

When he walked into a building in the country town of Warrnambool in the southern state of Victoria Thursday, the electrical charge ignited the carpet.

"It sounded almost like a firecracker," Clewer told Australian radio Friday.

"Within about five minutes, the carpet started to erupt."

Employees, unsure of the cause of the mysterious burning smell, telephoned firefighters who evacuated the building.

"There were several scorch marks in the carpet, and we could hear a cracking noise -- a bit like a whip -- both inside and outside the building," said fire official Henry Barton.

Firefighters cut electricity to the building thinking the burns might have been caused by a power surge.

Clewer, who after leaving the building discovered he had scorched a piece of plastic on the floor of his car, returned to seek help from the firefighters.

"We tested his clothes with a static electricity field meter and measured a current of 40,000 volts, which is one step shy of spontaneous combustion, where his clothes would have self-ignited," Barton said.

"I've been firefighting for over 35 years and I've never come across anything like this," he said.

Firefighters took possession of Clewer's jacket and stored it in the courtyard of the fire station, where it continued to give off a strong electrical current.

David Gosden, a senior lecturer in electrical engineering at Sydney University, told Reuters that for a static electricity charge to ignite a carpet, conditions had to be perfect.

"Static electricity is a similar mechanism to lightning, where you have clouds rubbing together and then a spark generated by very dry air above them," said Gosden.

current of 40,000 volts

wtf, if that guy would have touched a door nob, a desk, or any other non grounded metal object, that guy would have been D E A D...

FYI: 10,000V can kill a man (w/ internal resistance of 1,000 kohms) if the current is around 10mA...

OH YEAH! Let me show you my god Skills!

Balance this shit!

19H2+18Ca(CN)2+6NaAlF4+12FeSO4+6MgSiO3+6KI +2H3PO4+12PbCrO4+24BrCl+6CF2Cl2+24SO2 = 12PbBr2+12CrCl3+6MgCO3+6KAl(OH)4+12Fe(SCN)3+ 2PI3+6NaSiO3+18CaF2+110H2O

Kioto wrote:

Does that explode in some way/shape/form?

I haven't taken a Chem class in like 2 years and I hardly retain any information after its no longer needed, so...I'm kinda lost there.

i dont know.. i just found it some place... who cares

Author:	Jimbean [ Fri Sep 16, 2005 10:12 am ]
Post subject:	man sets carpet on fire with static electricity
Quote: SYDNEY (Reuters) - An Australian man built up a 40,000-volt charge of static electricity in his clothes as he walked, leaving a trail of scorched carpet and molten plastic and forcing firefighters to evacuate a building. Frank Clewer, who was wearing a woolen shirt and a synthetic nylon jacket, was oblivious to the growing electrical current that was building up as his clothes rubbed together. When he walked into a building in the country town of Warrnambool in the southern state of Victoria Thursday, the electrical charge ignited the carpet. "It sounded almost like a firecracker," Clewer told Australian radio Friday. "Within about five minutes, the carpet started to erupt." Employees, unsure of the cause of the mysterious burning smell, telephoned firefighters who evacuated the building. "There were several scorch marks in the carpet, and we could hear a cracking noise -- a bit like a whip -- both inside and outside the building," said fire official Henry Barton. Firefighters cut electricity to the building thinking the burns might have been caused by a power surge. Clewer, who after leaving the building discovered he had scorched a piece of plastic on the floor of his car, returned to seek help from the firefighters. "We tested his clothes with a static electricity field meter and measured a current of 40,000 volts, which is one step shy of spontaneous combustion, where his clothes would have self-ignited," Barton said. "I've been firefighting for over 35 years and I've never come across anything like this," he said. Firefighters took possession of Clewer's jacket and stored it in the courtyard of the fire station, where it continued to give off a strong electrical current. David Gosden, a senior lecturer in electrical engineering at Sydney University, told Reuters that for a static electricity charge to ignite a carpet, conditions had to be perfect. "Static electricity is a similar mechanism to lightning, where you have clouds rubbing together and then a spark generated by very dry air above them," said Gosden. http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20050916/od_ ... tricity_dc

Author:	Chamelius [ Fri Sep 16, 2005 12:51 pm ]
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O_O;;...In my electronics classes we've always joked about this... but wow... Quote: current of 40,000 volts Current is Amperes not Volts. Energy (volts) = Inductance (Amps)*Resistance(Ohms)

Author:	Kazekuro [ Fri Sep 16, 2005 1:03 pm ]
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o_o;; That's some pretty sweet static electricity there! lol, I commend the guy on surviving his own clothing.

Author:	Theterk [ Fri Sep 16, 2005 2:09 pm ]
Post subject:
wtf, if that guy would have touched a door nob, a desk, or any other non grounded metal object, that guy would have been D E A D... FYI: 10,000V can kill a man (w/ internal resistance of 1,000 kohms) if the current is around 10mA...

Author:	Jimbean [ Fri Sep 16, 2005 2:18 pm ]
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yeh i was thinking while reading it, how the hell did the guy manage to make it to all these places w/o making contact with something that would shock him. It sounds almost too crazy to be true but it's yahoo so i'm assuming it is... i dunno but it's pretty fucking nuts if you ask me

Yarr The Pirate! https://w.yarrthepirate.com/phpbb3/

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Author:	Ponuh [ Fri Sep 16, 2005 3:15 pm ]
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i think that's awesome, haha.

Author:	arlania [ Fri Sep 16, 2005 3:17 pm ]
Post subject:
wow lol

Author:	Pantherxx [ Fri Sep 16, 2005 3:22 pm ]
Post subject:
Gavin wrote: wtf, if that guy would have touched a door nob, a desk, or any other non grounded metal object, that guy would have been D E A D... FYI: 10,000V can kill a man (w/ internal resistance of 1,000 kohms) if the current is around 10mA... IF there is "AMPS" in that volts it can kill person and thats true.

Author:	Chamelius [ Fri Sep 16, 2005 7:00 pm ]
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Voltage cannot exsist without Amperage. If you were to look at his calculation: (I= E / R) 10kV / 1Mohm = 10mA (.01A). At .001A, a charge of that amount would cause the heart to go into fiberlation.....death with-in 30mins-2hrs....slow and painful. 1 Amp would stop the heart completely.

Author:	Kioto [ Fri Sep 16, 2005 7:03 pm ]
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fucking geeks.

Author:	Mythiras [ Fri Sep 16, 2005 7:08 pm ]
Post subject:
thank god im studying japanese and not...something with math and science in it >_> I dont miss it

Author:	Kioto [ Fri Sep 16, 2005 7:14 pm ]
Post subject:
OH YEAH! Let me show you my god Skills! Balance this shit! 19H2+18Ca(CN)2+6NaAlF4+12FeSO4+6MgSiO3+6KI +2H3PO4+12PbCrO4+24BrCl+6CF2Cl2+24SO2 = 12PbBr2+12CrCl3+6MgCO3+6KAl(OH)4+12Fe(SCN)3+ 2PI3+6NaSiO3+18CaF2+110H2O

Author:	Mythiras [ Fri Sep 16, 2005 7:15 pm ]
Post subject:
Kioto wrote: OH YEAH! Let me show you my god Skills! Balance this shit! 19H2+18Ca(CN)2+6NaAlF4+12FeSO4+6MgSiO3+6KI +2H3PO4+12PbCrO4+24BrCl+6CF2Cl2+24SO2 = 12PbBr2+12CrCl3+6MgCO3+6KAl(OH)4+12Fe(SCN)3+ 2PI3+6NaSiO3+18CaF2+110H2O wth? >_>

Author:	Ponuh [ Fri Sep 16, 2005 7:15 pm ]
Post subject:
Kioto wrote: OH YEAH! Let me show you my god Skills! Balance this shit! 19H2+18Ca(CN)2+6NaAlF4+12FeSO4+6MgSiO3+6KI +2H3PO4+12PbCrO4+24BrCl+6CF2Cl2+24SO2 = 12PbBr2+12CrCl3+6MgCO3+6KAl(OH)4+12Fe(SCN)3+ 2PI3+6NaSiO3+18CaF2+110H2O h20.

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Author:	Theterk [ Fri Sep 16, 2005 10:20 pm ]
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Kioto wrote: OH YEAH! Let me show you my god Skills! Balance this shit! 19H2+18Ca(CN)2+6NaAlF4+12FeSO4+6MgSiO3+6KI +2H3PO4+12PbCrO4+24BrCl+6CF2Cl2+24SO2 = 12PbBr2+12CrCl3+6MgCO3+6KAl(OH)4+12Fe(SCN)3+ 2PI3+6NaSiO3+18CaF2+110H2O the answer is C.... or 42... for the record, it should have a -> instead of an = sign, since some reactions can't go back and forth

Author:	Chamelius [ Sat Sep 17, 2005 2:17 am ]
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Im an electronics major, not a chemist...

Author:	Valenia [ Sat Sep 17, 2005 2:33 am ]
Post subject:
Kioto wrote: OH YEAH! Let me show you my god Skills! Balance this shit! 19H2+18Ca(CN)2+6NaAlF4+12FeSO4+6MgSiO3+6KI +2H3PO4+12PbCrO4+24BrCl+6CF2Cl2+24SO2 = 12PbBr2+12CrCl3+6MgCO3+6KAl(OH)4+12Fe(SCN)3+ 2PI3+6NaSiO3+18CaF2+110H2O Does that explode in some way/shape/form? I haven't taken a Chem class in like 2 years and I hardly retain any information after its no longer needed, so...I'm kinda lost there.

Author:	Ponuh [ Sat Sep 17, 2005 11:50 am ]
Post subject:
Valenia wrote: Kioto wrote: OH YEAH! Let me show you my god Skills! Balance this shit! 19H2+18Ca(CN)2+6NaAlF4+12FeSO4+6MgSiO3+6KI +2H3PO4+12PbCrO4+24BrCl+6CF2Cl2+24SO2 = 12PbBr2+12CrCl3+6MgCO3+6KAl(OH)4+12Fe(SCN)3+ 2PI3+6NaSiO3+18CaF2+110H2O Does that explode in some way/shape/form? I haven't taken a Chem class in like 2 years and I hardly retain any information after its no longer needed, so...I'm kinda lost there. That's only 9th grade level chemistry though. Or at least I learned it in 9th grade, I don't know.

Author:	Kioto [ Sat Sep 17, 2005 12:44 pm ]
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i dont know.. i just found it some place... who cares

Author:	Ponuh [ Sat Sep 17, 2005 12:59 pm ]
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Kioto wrote: i dont know.. i just found it some place... who cares I assumed the person who posted it did, haha. Who was it again?

Author:	Kioto [ Sat Sep 17, 2005 1:05 pm ]
Post subject:
me

Author:	Ponuh [ Sat Sep 17, 2005 1:06 pm ]
Post subject:
wow, thanks