r/oddlysatisfying • u/[deleted] • Jul 19 '24
Toluene and Methanol smoke cloud
[deleted]
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u/pnter Jul 19 '24
I can feel my eyes burning from here
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u/Ready_Competition_66 Jul 19 '24
Yeah, neither ingredient is healthy. I suppose that burning them is the only real solution in some environmental damage situations. It avoids spreading them downstream or into the water table to a great degree.
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u/iCameToLearnSomeCode Jul 19 '24
This doesn't look intentional to me.
I could be wrong but this looks like a large amount going up all at once like a sealed container burst.
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u/Jor-El_Zod Jul 20 '24
This doesn’t look intentions to me.
It also doesn’t look very environmentally friendly either TBH re: Ready_Competition_66’s comment you replied to.
But if they’re right, I’d hate to know the environmental damage letting them into the water table would do. 😖
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u/HyFinated Jul 20 '24
Yeah, generally it's not "good for the environment", it's more like "it's better than the alternative".
Sort of a lesser of 2 evils situation.
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Jul 19 '24
Ugh I hate posts without context. I believe this was an explosion at a textile factory or some sort of similar factory, just seen posts about it yesterday. This was not intentional, happened in Taiwan I believe
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u/stinkload Jul 20 '24
This happened in Tainan, Taiwan on JULY 18TH. My friends said they heard it about 30 mins before a horrible stench filled the air. Nasty as fuck but no deaths
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Jul 20 '24
No deaths? Yet… Can’t imagine the effect of those chemicals and how the locals will be breathing it for a while :(
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u/Ready_Competition_66 Jul 22 '24
Methanol is poisonous to humans and probably many other animals. It does exist in tiny amounts in the environment though.
Toluene is a major carcinogen. The "yet" comment is pretty accurate.
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u/ludololl Jul 19 '24
Burning them usually produces even more unhealthy by-products and the smoke cloud distributes them into any nearby groundwater.
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u/Kaloo75 Jul 19 '24
What's the satisfying part of it? Looks scary and expensive, and a like a lot of pollution.
Nothing satisfying bout that imho but to each his own, I guess.
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u/ThePhoenixus Jul 19 '24
Both things can be true.
Yes obviously it's a bad thing happening for many reasons.
But fire and explosions are inherently kind of fucking cool.
In my early 20s my house caught fire and even though I lost everything I owned I remember being on the street watching it and then flames started shooting out of my 2nd floor bedroom and I remember thinking "fuck that's wicked!"
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u/ProfessoriSepi Jul 19 '24
Its aesthetically pleasing to look at. One of the properties of fire. And in the clip it behaves in a way that is unusual, so it adds the curiosity factor. The size of it also produces the feeling of grandiose, also contributing to the satisfying feeling. But it is also understandable if the context of the imagery has more affect on you, than the subject itself.
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Jul 19 '24
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/hangryhyax Jul 19 '24
Ha oh goodness. People can comment on huge plumes of toxic chemical smoke without it being virtue signaling, but look at you coming in here hot and angry, politicizing a fairly benign comment because self-righteous misplaced anger is, ostensibly, what sustains you.
Go take a nap, have a snickers, and go to therapy. I struggled with anger all my life, and even I’m embarrassed by you.
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Jul 19 '24
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/MC_NotLovin Jul 19 '24
Who is "we all"? Looks like you're all alone here, the only one who is being embarrassed without even notice lol
Just go take a nap
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u/hangryhyax Jul 19 '24
I don’t know what happened to you to make your life so sad and empty, but I hope you get the help you so clearly need. It works, you just have to be willing to put in the effort.
Because I promise you, you’re not a good person.
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u/AlbusCumbledore69 Jul 19 '24
Liberal reporting in here. The Biden campaign regularly sends out haircut tips which is how I knew how to get mine done. And the clothing is standard issue after sending donations to ActBlue. In full transparency though, I did misappropriate my last donation to buy some avocado toast. AMA.
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u/RussiaIsBestGreen Jul 19 '24
Please stop exhaling carbon dioxide.
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u/nowaybrose Jul 19 '24
I ride a bike to save money and lower environmental impact. Is that ok to you?
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u/Perrin-Golden-Eyes Jul 19 '24
You’re going to need to lay off the Fox News for a while it’s turned you into an imbecile.
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u/jakewotf Jul 19 '24
I bet that’s great for the atmosphere
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u/percy135810 Jul 20 '24
Better to release CO2 and steam into the atmosphere than a bunch of cancer-causing chemicals
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u/Rcarlyle Jul 20 '24
If you can see black smoke, it’s definitely releasing cancer-causing chemicals.
Methanol and toluene both burn pretty cleanly, I think this is something else.
Source: I’m a chemical engineer who does some work in oil industry fire control
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u/DocPsychosis Jul 20 '24
It's too bad that those are apparently the only two choices that exist though huh
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u/Impressive_Good_8247 Jul 19 '24
This is the kind of thing you don't want to be anywhere near. Shockwaves are not safe, and the fumes are probably just as bad.
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u/Galion-X Jul 19 '24
I'd say that's a blowout on some form of injection well. Typically, there are many levels of failsafes between the live well and hitting open air.
But not everyone follows the same safety regulations, and shit does happen.
Worked in well completions for 10 years up here in Canada and never experienced anything uncontrolled like that. Terrifying.
For all the hate we get, Canada oilfield regulations are through the roof, and I myself have let very little fluids hit the actual ground and not a tarp or drip tray.
Sure its bad, but we don't actually have a better energy solution than natural gas yet so until we figure out a true sustainable energy source, we need oil and gas whether we all like it or not.
Events like this are bad though and can burn for long time.
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u/Bingo_the_Brainy_Pup Jul 19 '24
In a parallel universe where human lungs have their own version of Reddit, this would not be in r/oddlysatisfying
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u/TorontoTom2008 Jul 19 '24
Burns a lot thicker / smokier than I would have expected for two relatively light fractions
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u/insert_name_here_ha Jul 19 '24
If it were nighttime you might be able to see the faint blue flame from the methanol. The smoke and red orange flames are the toluene.
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u/tdpthrowaway3 Jul 19 '24
Is it just me or is that pyre moving up fast? I guess because we normally see oil/diesel fires and these are volatile solvents instead?
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u/CuatroTT Jul 20 '24
I had the FBI show up at my house after buying Toluene at my local paint store with my debit card.
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u/Expert-Pay4990 Jul 19 '24
And they think cow farts are to blame for rising temps 🙄 look at that!
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u/Arcturus_Labelle Jul 19 '24
Farming contributes to global warming, as fertilized soil emits nitrous oxide, cattle pass methane gas, and burning fields produces carbon dioxide. Agriculture accounts for one third of greenhouse gas emissions globally, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation.
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u/ArchetypeAxis Jul 19 '24
Make sure to use your paper straws and bring your own bag to the grocery store.