Discovery Education Science Discovery Communications, LLC

Fire Underground
Many chemical reactions occur in
nature. Organisms have chemical
reactions going on inside of them all the
time. For example, chemical reactions
inside a plant allow it to change
sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide into
glucose. This chemical reaction is called
photosynthesis. Another example is
when iron (Fe) comes in contact with
oxygen (O2) and water (H2O) a chemical
reaction takes place and the iron
becomes an iron oxide, or rust. Burning,
or combustion, is another common
chemical reaction that occurs in nature.
During combustion organic materials
such as wood
or coal
combine with oxygen (O2) in the
atmosphere and give off carbon
dioxide (CO2), water (H2O), and a
large amount of heat. In order for
wood or coal to burn, or combust,
they need to be at a raised
temperature. In nature, this can
happen when lightning strikes a tree
or lava from volcanoes heats organic
materials. However, organic
materials can sometimes also
combust without being heated by an
external, or outside, source.

Spontaneous Combustion
When a substance begins to burn
without being heated by an external
source it is called spontaneous
combustion. However, heat is still
required for a spontaneous
combustion reaction to occur. In
these instances, heat is not created
by an external source, but by an
internal, or inside, source. Large
Lightning provides enough heat for an organic material,
such as wood, to combust.
Grain silos, like the ones pictured
here, are where farmers store
large amounts of harvested
grain. If the temperature of the
grain is not monitored,
spontaneous combustion can
occur. Carbon in the grain can
oxidize with oxygen in the air and
build up enough heat for fire to
ignite.

Discovery Education Science Discovery Communications, LLC

Fire Underground
amounts of some substances such as coal, compost, or grain can
create heat internally through oxidation reactions. These
substances contain large amounts of carbon. Carbon atoms will
oxidize with oxygen in the air, releasing a small amount of heat
with each reaction. If there are enough carbon-rich materials
being stored in the same place, such as a silo filled with grain or
a large compost pile, the heat from the oxidation reactions is not
able to escape. Heat inside the material builds up until it is high
enough to cause combustion to occur. When
this point is reached, flames will ignite on the
substance and large amounts of heat will be
released.

Spontaneous Combustion Causes
Underground Fires
There are large coal deposits under the surface
of the earth in many places around the world.
Coal is a fossil fuel and contains a large
amount of carbon. Fossil fuels are formed by
the anaerobic decomposition of organisms.
They are the primary source of energy for our
modern civilization. Humans mine coal out of
the earth in order to use it for fuel. When the
coal is exposed to air, as it is during the
mining process, the carbon present in coal will
begin to oxidize. If the heat created by the coal
oxidation reactions is not able to escape, it will
build up until combustion occurs. When coal
combusts it can cause an explosion, as well as
create fires that burn for a long time and are
difficult to put out.

Coal will always begin to oxidize once it comes
in contact with oxygen. This process will
always build up small amounts of heat. If a
mine has enough ventilation, the coal will not
heat up enough to ignite into a fire. It is
difficult to detect when the coal is getting close
to its ignition point. Scientists are working on
creating detection devices to help miners know
when the coal is getting dangerously hot. Once a fire starts in
one area of a mine it can quickly spread. The fire follows the coal
Coal, pictured below, is a fossil fuel that is mined
from deep in the earth. Coal mines, like the one
pictured above, are built where large deposits of coal
naturally occur. Mine operators must check for risk of
spontaneous combustion of coal dust and coal
deposits in order to provide a safe work environment
for miners.

Discovery Education Science Discovery Communications, LLC

Fire Underground
as it naturally occurs underground. Coal is a highly combustible
material and this makes it difficult to extinguish it once it is on
fire. Many underground coal fires burn for years even as people
work to extinguish them. Being able to detect when a certain
area of coal is close to ignition can help prevent underground
fires and save the lives of the miners who work there.

When coal is mined, it is cut out of the layers of rock in the
earth. This process creates coal dust in the mines. Having coal
dust present in a mine is a danger because it can suddenly
explode. Rather than simply catching on fire, coal dust explodes
when it spontaneously combusts, because of its size. Coal dust
has a much larger surface area in proportion to its small size
than larger pieces of coal. This allows coal dust particles to
oxidize much faster with the oxygen in the air, releasing larger
amounts of heat. Explosions from coal dust can be very
dangerous for miners and cause fires to ignite in the coal still in
the earth. Scientists and engineers are working on ways to
reduce the amount of coal dust in mines and to find better ways
of monitoring it.