Re: How safe is Hydrogen ?

"Philip Felton" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
news:[EMAIL PROTECTED]

> Apparently there's no problem with using natural gas or propane today.

I'd not go so far as to say that there's _no_ problem, but it is maintained
at a manageable level.

We still have the occasional natgas disaster, but it's rare.  Once in a
great while, a house gets spread around the lot by an explosion, and
occasional exterior leaks cause fires, but by and large, it's pretty safe.

The steep part of the collective learning curve occurred back when
accidents weren't always someone else's fault (The lawyer said so!) and
we've brought things down to a level that's reasonable by most people's
view.

Ditto gasoline.  Dittotto electricity.

LPG, be it propane or butane, isn't (usually) as safe as natgas, and
because it gets hauled around and pumped into tanks here and there, with
constant fiddling with connectors and valves, problems occur more
frequently.  Also, LPG is denser than air (at the same temp and pressure)
and will tend to collect locally in open basins and not dissipate as
readily as natgas.

But it's still reasonably safe.  Except for fire fighters, who not
infrequently receive minor injuries while training with burning (empty)
tanks and the infamous "tree".

But then, they're _asking_ for trouble.  ;^)


            d

-- 
         Do you know what a pessimist is? A person who thinks everybody
         as nasty as himself, and hates them for it. -George Bernard Shaw
        Duke McMullan n5gax nss13429rl(fe) (505)255-4642 [EMAIL PROTECTED]