Time: Tue Jul 22 12:04:08 1997 by primenet.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id MAA17561 for [address in tool bar]; Tue, 22 Jul 1997 12:01:56 -0700 (MST) by usr01.primenet.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id LAA05859; Tue, 22 Jul 1997 11:45:14 -0700 (MST) Date: Tue, 22 Jul 1997 11:44:44 -0700 To: (Recipient list suppressed) From: Paul Andrew Mitchell [address in tool bar] Subject: SLS: TWA 800 - The Center Fuel Tank Distraction (fwd) <snip> > >Brenda posted the following: > >>Topic: TWA Flight 800 >> >>The CFT Distraction >> >>The Flight 800 Investigation >>07/20/97 Richard Hirsch >> >>THE CENTER FUEL TANK DISTRACTION >> >>The NTSB has done a masterful job of drawing our attention to the theory of >>the exploding center fuel tank (cft). A number of very expensive tests are >>being performed on another 747 at tax payers expense to learn how the cft >>exploded. From where did the mystery spark emanate? > >[...] > >>It turns out that jet fuel, like other fuels, has what is known as >>explosive limits. >> >>THE LOWER EXPLOSIVE LIMIT: If the volume of fuel vapors in the tank are >>less than one half percent of the volume of air in the tank there can be no >>explosion (too much air). > >>THE UPPER EXPLOSIVE LIMIT: If the volume of the fuel vapors in the tank are >>more than five percent of the volume of air in the tank there can be no >>explosion (not enough air). > >>The above is well known by any one working with aircraft fuels and has been >>widely known for many years by petroleum engineers. When large storage >>tanks are filled with petroleum, they fill the first part slowly and wait >>for the vapors from the first part of the liquid to go past the upper >>explosive limit before filling the rest of the storage tank. > >[...] > >>Remember, the pool of fuel in the cft is very large in area and very >>shallow in depth. The large fuel surface produces a lot of vapor in a short >>time. In two hours time the fuel vapors in the cft have gone beyond the >>lower explosive limit, through the zone of potential explosion, and past >>THE UPPER EXPLOSIVE LIMIT. What that means is the cft was actually in a non >>explosive state when Flight 800 took off from JFK. Even if there was a >>stray spark in the fuel tank there wouldn't be an explosion because the >>tank was TOO RICH at that time. > > >This is an outstanding piece of work. As soon as I read it I realized that >it is something I should have thought of. Indeed it is a point that should >be obvious to anyone who is old enough to remember when autos had manual >chokes. (That includes me, folks). Mr. Hirsch deserves an accolade for >for writing this and Brenda deserves one as well for bringing it to our >attention. > >Comments anyone? > >-- EZ > <snip> ======================================================================== Paul Andrew Mitchell : Counselor at Law, federal witness B.A., Political Science, UCLA; M.S., Public Administration, U.C. Irvine tel: (520) 320-1514: machine; fax: (520) 320-1256: 24-hour/day-night email: [address in tool bar] : using Eudora Pro 3.0.3 on 586 CPU website: http://www.supremelaw.com : visit the Supreme Law Library now ship to: c/o 2509 N. Campbell, #1776 : this is free speech, at its best Tucson, Arizona state : state zone, not the federal zone Postal Zone 85719/tdc : USPS delays first class w/o this As agents of the Most High, we came here to establish justice. We shall not leave, until our mission is accomplished and justice reigns eternal. ======================================================================== [This text formatted on-screen in Courier 11, non-proportional spacing.]
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