Working with flammable chemicals
Many chemicals are flammable depending on the environmental conditions. Understanding when these conditions are met is needed to work safely.
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Flashpoint
The lowest temperature at which the vapours of a volatile material will ignite in air ( 20.95% oxygen) if given an ignition source.
Fire point
The temperature at which the vapour will continue to burn after the ignition source has been stopped (usually higher than the flashpoint)​.
Flammability limit
The concentration between which (upper and/or lower limits) upper or lower the gaseous or vaporized substance at a fixed temperature and pressure can lead to flame propagation, detonation or an explosion. ​Â
Flashpoints
​Flammable Flashpoint: equal to or higher than (≥) 230C (73.40F) and lower or equal to (≤) 600C (1400F)​
Highly Flammable Flashpoint: lower than (<) 230C and a boiling point higher than (>) 350C (950F)​
Extremely Flammable Flashpoint: lower than (<) 230C and a boiling point lower than (≤) 350C​
Non-flammable chemicals
Concentrations outside both limits are considered to be non-flammable. Flammability limits vary with temperature and pressure. However, the normal expression is in terms of % of volume at 25 °C at 1013.25mbar (mean sea-level atmospheric pressure (MSLP)). ​
​This information can be found on the Safety Data Sheet (SDS) for the substance​.
Flammable chemicals
All chemicals known to be flammable will display this symbol.Â
Last updated: Thursday, September 30, 2021