Acetylene leak may have triggered blast on ONGC ship in Cochin Shipyard

Context:

  • The “tendency to bypass safety procedures and the overconfidence of workers” might have triggered fatal accident at the Cochin Shipyard.
  • A preliminary inspection points to a leak in the huge quantity of acetylene that was being stored (for welding work).
  • It is inflammable in the 3% to 100% range (meaning it triggers an explosion even when oxygen is absent).”

About Acetylene

  • Acetylene (ethyne) is the chemical compound with the formula C2H2.
  • This colourless gas is widely used as a fuel and a chemical building block.

Applications of Acetylene:

  • Welding
  • Used for carburization (that is, hardening) of steel
  • Portable lighting
  • Used to volatilize carbon in radiocarbon dating etc.

Source:TH

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