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What Can
We Learn from the Hindenburg Disaster?
The explosion of the luxury airship Hindenburg at Lakehurst, NJ,
on May 6, 1937, serves as one of the most spectacular moments recorded
by the media. Until very recently, it has aided in paralyzing the
development of widespread hydrogen use as a fuel, due to concerns
for safety (and viewing the fiery picture above, understandably
so). But knowing the actual nature of the Hindenburg disaster, as
well as knowing the behavior of hydrogen allows us to dispel this
stigma associated with hydrogen.
The Facts
on the Hindenburg Disaster:
- The bags
of hydrogen that provided the lifting force for the Hindenburg
were NOT the main contributor to the fire. The surface of the
ship was coated with a combination of dark iron oxide and reflective
aluminum paint. These components are extremely flammable and burn
at a tremendously energetic rate once ignited. The skin of the
airship was ignited by electrical discharge from the clouds while
docking during an electrical storm. This reaction has been proven
chemically for years, and was demonstrated with actual remnants
of the Hindenburg sixty years later, which burned as vigorously
as on the day of the disaster.
- The hydrogen
burned quickly, safely, above the occupants. When the escaping
hydrogen was ignited by the burning skin of the airship, it burned
far above the airship, and was completely consumed within 60 seconds
of the ignition. During this period of time, the airship descended
to the ground from the 150-foot docking tower.
- Almost all
deaths were caused by jumping or falling from the airship. Of
the 35 deaths from the disaster, 33 were caused by jumping or
falling. Only two deaths were caused by burning, and it is likely
that those two were from proximity to the burning skin of the
airship, or from the stores of diesel fuel that were ignited by
the covering. Whereas the hydrogen burned within one minute of
ignition, the diesel fires burned for up to ten hours after the
ignition.
- The Hindenburg
would have burned if it had been filled with inert helium gas.
Even if the Hindenburg had not been lifted by hydrogen, the ignition
of the covering would still have happened, and would then have
set ablaze the diesel stores, resulting in the same disaster.
- The main
cause of the disaster was pilot error. The only way to prevent
the disaster would have been if the pilot had chosen to land in
better conditions elsewhere, which was very feasible, considering
he had had enough fuel remaining to reach all the way to California.
The Nature
of Hydrogen:
Hydrogen is
less flammable than gasoline. The self-ignition temperature of hydrogen
is 550 degrees Celsius. Gasoline varies from 228-501 degrees Celsius,
depending on the grade. When the Hindenburg burned, it took some
time before the hydrogen bags were ignited.
Hydrogen disperses quickly. Being the lightest element (fourteen
times lighter than air), hydrogen rises and spreads out quickly
in the atmosphere. So when a leak occurs, the hydrogen gas quickly
becomes so sparse that it cannot burn. Even when ignited, hydrogen
burns upward, and is quickly consumed, as shown in the Hindenburg
picture. By contrast, materials such as gasoline and diesel vapors
are heavier than air, and will not disperse,
remaining a flammable threat for much longer.
Hydrogen is a non-toxic, naturally-occurring
element in the atmosphere. By comparison, all petroleum fuels are poisonous to humans.
Hydrogen combustion produces only water. When pure hydrogen
is burned in pure oxygen, only pure water is produced. Granted,
that’s an ideal scenario, which doesn’t occur outside of laboratories
and the space shuttle. In any case, when a hydrogen engine burns,
it actually cleans the ambient air, by completing combustion of
the unburned hydrocarbons that surround us. Compared with the toxic
compounds (carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, and hydrogen sulfide)
produced by petroleum fuels, the products of hydrogen burning are
much safer.
Hydrogen can be stored safely. Tanks currently in use for
storage of compressed hydrogen (similar to compressed natural gas
tanks) have survived intact through testing by various means, including
being shot with six rounds from a .357 magnum, detonating a stick
of dynamite next to them, and subjecting them to fire at 1500 degrees
F. Clearly, a typical gasoline tank wouldn’t survive a single one
of these tests.
What Have We Learned?
No fuel we currently use or have yet to develop will be totally
without hazards, through all the processes of production, transportation,
and consumption, just as no kitchen knife can be used without risk
to the chef. Hydrogen has long been considered close to ideal as
a fuel due to its abundance, non-toxic characteristics, and international
availability. We must recognize that each of us has learned to use
knives safely, and do so daily. As long as we use wisdom in our
methods of production, storage, and use of hydrogen, we’ll enjoy
the same safety we have had with petroleum fuels, with the additional
benefit of fewer health hazards when leaks do occur.
Sources:
The following sources were used for this article:
Research by Addison Bain, NASA Investigator into the Hindenburg
disaster.
McAlister, Roy. The Philosopher Mechanic.
Cox, Jack. "Will Hydrogen Bomb?" The Denver Post. April
5, 2000.
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