- published: 04 Sep 2014
- views: 31257
Smouldering (or smoldering) is the slow, low-temperature, flameless form of combustion, sustained by the heat evolved when oxygen directly attacks the surface of a condensed-phase fuel. Many solid materials can sustain a smouldering reaction, including coal, cellulose, wood, cotton, tobacco, cannabis, peat, plant litter, humus, synthetic foams, charring polymers including polyurethane foam, and some types of dust. Common examples of smouldering phenomena are the initiation of residential fires on upholstered furniture by weak heat sources (e.g., a cigarette, a short-circuited wire), and the persistent combustion of biomass behind the flaming front of wildfires.
The fundamental difference between smouldering and flaming combustion is that smouldering occurs on the surface of the solid rather than in the gas phase. Smouldering is a surface phenomenon but can propagate to the interior of a porous fuel if it is permeable to flow. The characteristic temperature and heat released during smouldering are low compared to those in the flaming combustion (i.e., ~600 °C vs. ~1500 °C). Smouldering propagates in a creeping fashion, around 0.1 mm/s, which is about ten times slower than flames spread over a solid. In spite of its weak combustion characteristics, smouldering is a significant fire hazard. Smouldering emits toxic gases (e.g., carbon monoxide) at a higher yield than flaming fires and leaves behind a significant amount of solid residue. The emitted gases are flammable and could later be ignited in the gas phase, triggering the transition to flaming combustion.
When I travel
I unravel
You come out suffocating
In the morning
I try and solve it
You come out suffocating
I can twist it
I can't resist it
You come out suffocating
On your shoulder
You can smoulder
You come out suffocating
You come out suffocating
Suffocating
You come out suffocating
Suffocating
Gonna twist it
Your head is blistered
You come out suffocating
The road's a menance
I need a head rest
You come out suffocating
The girls are screaming
A movie sceening
You come out suffocating
You are a phantom
That I've been counting
You come out suffocating
When I'm walking
I hear you talking
You come out suffocating
Everyhting's burning
Your eyes are turning
You come out suffocating
Just like a candle
All I can handle
You come out suffocating
Inside the coffin
You put The Lord in
You come out suffocating
You come out suffocating
Suffocating