Why does h2o put out fire

Hydrogen affects only the fuel side. Oxygen only affects the oxygen side. If you were to compare the gases being released by the fire before and after you added the oxygen, there would be no difference. All you did was accelerate the process that was already happening. Hydrogen, on the other had adds an extremely receptive fuel source. Hydrogen is so ready to oxidize that it has a hard time existing in its pure state here on Earth. This actually gives us a clue as to WHY water puts out fire.

It is the same reason that carbon dioxide CO 2 is also a pretty good option throwing pure carbon dust on a fire would have a similar, albeit smaller, flare as throwing hydrogen on it.

Water puts out fire by creating a barrier between the fuel source and the oxygen source it also has a cooling effect which has to do with the energy required to convert liquid water into water vapor. This smothers the fire. The same thing would happen if you used the ashes that remained after a completely spent fire. Or, as I mentioned before, CO 2. Since grease floats on water, the water cannot block the fuel grease from the oxidizer air.

So the point of this is that you CAN learn how water puts out fire by testing its component parts. That concept is still deterministic in nature and can be studied through reductionist experimentation of the components to achieve a deeper understanding of their interplay and how manipulating those inputs at different intensities can affect the system as a whole even if the prediction is imperfect.

Go ask a meteorologist. When hydrogen becomes oxidized, it loses an electron, ionizing it into a cation. This makes for a very explosive combination, indeed, as the hydrogen gas produced will ignite violently in the presence of oxygen.

Check out what happens when water is put on a flammable metal in this case magnesium :. Use a class D fire extinguisher, like this one, instead.

While ordinary fires of solid material are often easily extinguished with water, electrical fires, oil or liquid fires, and metal fires should never be tackled with water. You are at a high risk of harming yourself, property, and others if you do so.

Does it Work? Does Cost Money? The Price of Emergency Calls. Can It Start a Fire? Skip to content As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases at no added cost to you. Is Fire Alive? Conclusion Related Articles:. How does water put out fire?

What will happen if you put water on an electrical fire? Don't use water to put out a grease fire! Firefighter shows what happens.

Don't try this at home. To put it simply, fire is basically oxygen exploding. But wait a minute… a water molecule is made of 2 hydrogen atoms and an oxygen atom. What is going on here? Water cools and smothers the fire at the same time. You can also put out a fire by smothering it with dirt, sand, or any other covering that cuts the fire off from its oxygen source.