[JohnE]

So while on my over to the Continent, I stopped at my little (6"4, 240 lbs...) brothers place outside Chicago. He works in fire supression systems, the kind that fill aircraft hangars with foam in like 3.2 seconds. He metions he is working soon in a place with some chemical, methylethyldeath somthing or another, that one human exposure to is okay, but the second will cause one to explode. Yes, explode. Go boom. I call bull**** on this, because 1) He is an idiot, and 2) I find nothing on Youtube about it, and C), We were drunk, as often happens when Irishmen get together. With anyone.
Soooo...does anyone know of said chemical? I told him to go for it. If he explodes I will have a great story to tell his kids about his demise, and they will have great pick up lines in the bar when they are older.

Still calling bull**** on it...

 

[Silver]

Sounds like total BS, considering 1 and C

You have a "big" little brother too? I stopped being able to beat mine up when he was 10. ****er already weighed more than me.

 

[Pesqueeb]

Well, I suppose they aren't all the same, but the fire suppression system in our hanger sprays a mix of chemicals that are both unhealthy, and corrosive to a fair degree. Will they make a man go "boom"? I doubt it.

 

[stevew]

So while on my over to the Continent, I stopped at my little (6"4, 240 lbs...) brothers place outside Chicago. He works in fire supression systems, the kind that fill aircraft hangars with foam in like 3.2 seconds. He metions he is working soon in a place with some chemical, methylethyldeath somthing or another, that one human exposure to is okay, but the second will cause one to explode. Yes, explode. Go boom. I call bull**** on this, because 1) He is an idiot, and 2) I find nothing on Youtube about it, and C), We were drunk, as often happens when Irishmen get together. With anyone.
Soooo...does anyone know of said chemical? I told him to go for it. If he explodes I will have a great story to tell his kids about his demise, and they will have great pick up lines in the bar when they are older.

Still calling bull**** on it...

worst drunk post ever?

 

[johnbryanpeters]

I think your brother has been sniffing gluons.

 

[Brian HCM#1]

I'd ask JBP, after all he was the one who invented fire


j/k....... He actually was the first one to witness it.

 

[eric strt6]

typical hanger systems use a fluoroprotein foam suppresent

here is the MSDS

http://www.wfrfire.com/msds/fluor.htm

dry chem

Dupont FE 227 MSDS

http://www.fireboy-xintex.com/manuals/HFC-227ea MSDS.pdf

 

[DirtyMike]

Sounds like a pop rocks and coke arguement

 

[Westy]

It is true. I talked to a guy at a bar once whose cousin knew a guy who saw someone explode after sniffing that **** twice. Ter'rists have started exposing themselves to it hoping to start fires on airplanes, then POW!!

 

[MarkDH]

Some chemicals are sensitizers, meaning that the first exposure may not have any effect but repeated exposure will cause an allergic reaction to develop. However, I highly, highly doubt there is anything that would cause an explosion.

 

[Kevin]

Anti matter...

 

[BikeMike]

Dimethyl mercury is legitimately frightening stuff. But probably not involved in fire extinguishing...

Diethyl zinc is apparently quite frisky in the "bursts into scary flames/explosion risk" kind of way. And dimethyl zinc is even more so. Possibly a quite risky and exotic way to start a fire...

 

[Pesqueeb]

Dimethyl mercury is legitimately frightening stuff. .

Bummer dude.

 

[Mr Jones]

Dimethyl mercury is legitimately frightening stuff. ..

That's one effed up coma

she fell into a coma described by one of her former students as not being "... the kind of coma I'd expected... She was thrashing about. Her husband saw tears rolling down her face. I asked if she was in pain. The doctors said it didn't appear that her brain could even register pain.

 

[MarkDH]

Dimethyl mercury is legitimately frightening stuff.

As uncommon as accidents like that are day to day, it's just one of the many reasons I would/will leave chemistry for another career...

 

[CrabJoe StretchPants]

As uncommon as accidents like that are day to day, it's just one of the many reasons I would/will leave chemistry for another career...

Two things I refuse to touch are chemical stuff and electrical stuff. Both can kill you instantly with no warning signs. At least with mechanical stuff you can hear/see **** before it gets ya.

 

[Silver]

As uncommon as accidents like that are day to day, it's just one of the many reasons I would/will leave chemistry for another career...

When I was in University, I remember walking into Chemisty lab and seeing half of the idiots in there working with toluene and benzene on the open bench instead of using the fume hood like the TA mentioned multiple times and the directions mentioned, in big bold letters. I told the TA I was going to get a coffee, came back an hour later when all those idiots were finished and did my lab.

 

[jonKranked]

Try it now

 

[MarkDH]

When I was in University, I remember walking into Chemisty lab and seeing half of the idiots in there working with toluene and benzene on the open bench instead of using the fume hood like the TA mentioned multiple times and the directions mentioned, in big bold letters. I told the TA I was going to get a coffee, came back an hour later when all those idiots were finished and did my lab.

Aye that's another thing, even if you're really careful yourself you can't account for other people being muppets. Less of a problem in industry I believe cos it's so tightly regulated and you could potentially lose your job, but in academia there tends to be a few people who seem to enjoy the 'mad scientist blowing my eyebrows off' image.

On another note, an old professor at my uni told he us they used to wash their hands with benzene at the end of the day, back in the day!

 

[Sandwich]

anything is possible...WITH SCIENCE

 

[splat]

On another note, an old professor at my uni told he us they used to wash their hands with benzene at the end of the day, back in the day!

that's funny , I had a Professor who said the same thing.

 

[golgiaparatus]

Methylethylketone?

If exposed for too long one might think he exploded. I've worked around this stuff and it's the nastiest stuff I can think of. I've heard stories of people working in small areas cleaning up epoxy floors/counters and getting stuck in the room because they couldn't remember what a door was much less how to use a doorknob.

 

[golgiaparatus]

Dimethyl mercury is legitimately frightening stuff. But probably not involved in fire extinguishing...

Diethyl zinc is apparently quite frisky in the "bursts into scary flames/explosion risk" kind of way. And dimethyl zinc is even more so. Possibly a quite risky and exotic way to start a fire...

Jeezbus! Maybe MEK isnt so bad!

 

[kazlx]

When I was in University, I remember walking into Chemisty lab and seeing half of the idiots in there working with toluene and benzene on the open bench instead of using the fume hood like the TA mentioned multiple times and the directions mentioned, in big bold letters. I told the TA I was going to get a coffee, came back an hour later when all those idiots were finished and did my lab.

We had at least one fire every year in chem lab in college. You would think chem/biochem majors wouldn't have theirs heads that far up their azzes. How people make it that far in life amazes, especially since most of them wanted to be doctors....

I was also amazed at how few people could actually get the correct results from the chem labs.

And for the OP, not possible.

 

[offsprung]

I think your brother has been sniffing gluons.

Quarks says I!

 

[Ciaran]

anything is possible...WITH SCIENCE

She blinded me! WITH SCIENCE!!!

 

[JohnE]

http://www.irishcentral.com/news/Irishman-dies-of-spontaneous-human-combustion-coroner-finds-130412373.html

So maybe you cant blow up, but maybe combust?

 

[kazlx]

He probably had a heart attack and dropped a cigarette on his chest. Just because a couple investigators are stumped doesn't mean they have a clue.