Is Blood Flammable? Understanding the Properties and Potential Risks

Blood is a significant body part comprising 6-7% of the body mass. This liquid has a vital role in our bodies. It delivers oxygen to our other body parts and carries away waste staff. Generally, it stops our bodies from being poisonous. Is Blood Flammable?

Blood is not flammable, and it won’t catch fire. Because this liquid consists of 55-60% Plasma, and Plasma contains 91-92% water. Water doesn’t ignite the fire, so this liquid also doesn’t catch on fire.

But dried blood is explosive. When the water evaporates from this liquid, minerals, hemoglobin, and other proteins remain. This is called a blood meal, and this can ignite a fire.

Is Blood Flammable

What is blood made of?

Around the whole body, this liquid carries oxygen and other nutrients essential for every cell. It also carries away the waste from our cells. Moreover, this liquid is a physical component that generates naturally. No artificial or lab-made sample has been invented till today.

Generally, this liquid consists of 4 significant elements. They are Red Blood Cells (RBC), White Blood Cells (WBC), platelets, and Plasma. RBC maintains the oxygen delivery system in the body. WBC’s job is to immune our body system if the body is cut, platelets bond there and heal the wound.

Plasma is a clear fluid where the cells and platelets ride. It contains mainly water, proteins, hormones, and minerals.

Why is Blood Non-Flammable?

Mainly, blood is not flammable because it’s made up of water. Water extinguishes it and doesn’t burn at all.

But in theory, it is possible to evaporate all the water in this substance. After evaporating, blood dries and remains the remaining material elements like minerals, proteins, etc. But the dried one is flammable.

It is possible to detect blood and trace DNA traces after thermal exposure?

The effect of fire and extreme heat on this liquid and its detection has not been recognized well yet. This is believed that blood and DNA are no longer traceable after exposure to a temperature of 1000 degrees Celsius.

However, even after exposure up to a maximum of 1000 degrees Celcius, it was still possible to produce a complete DNA pattern from around 60% of its samples. Consequently, crime scenes destroyed by fire should be evaluated with the same attention to detail as the unburned areas.

What is Spontaneous Human Combustion (SHC)?

You might know about some incidents where several people were found burned to death with no apparent source of fire available. We know this as Spontaneous Human Combustion (SHC).

Incidents of SHC say that the bodies ‘just caught fire and the person burning. Generally, it appears to be relatively straightforward. Only one part of the human body burns well. It is body fat that burns. You might know that human fat is simply oil. If it gets hot enough, it will catch on fire.

Spontaneous Human Combustion: An Example

Imagine a heavy drinker and smoker human being who gets into bed with a lit cigarette and drops that without noticing it.

We know this often happens in many cases where smokers set fire to the bed. Many smokers have died or were injured because their bedding caught fire.

In some cases, the cigarette doesn’t fall on the bed. It falls on the body parts. Then if someone is also drunk, the event doesn’t notice him or her. The cigarette then burns the skin quickly and reaches the body fat. Then the fat and liqueur undoubtedly catch fire, and the person burns.

Generally, blood full of water is not flammable, but body fat is just oil. Oil is flammable, and it may ignite other body parts. So, fat fires burn very quickly.

Will alcohol make blood flammable?

Before alcohol (ethanol essentially) becomes flammable, it must reach about 50% to 100% proof. Although, lower concentrations of ethanol can light up briefly as well.

But before drinking up to that level, there’s a high chance that you will stop drinking. Let it explain, at 0.2% blood alcohol level (BAC); most people will suffer severe physiological damage. If anyone reaches above the 0.4% BAC level, it probably causes a coma.

There’s a considerable gap between 0.4% to 50%. So, blood transformation into a living fuel for consuming alcohol is mostly impossible.

FAQs

How flammable is a human?

The human body consists mainly of water. Its only highly flammable properties are fat tissue and methane gas. Fats made the human body flammable. The possibility of SHC being an actual phenomenon seems remote.

What happens when someone sets fire to blood?

This liquid is not flammable, and it won’t catch on fire. This liquid is made up mainly of Plasma. This is 55% of the blood, consisting primarily of water. Water doesn’t ignite or sustain a fire. Water is used to put fires down, not start them. So mostly, it will not catch fire.

Which part of the human body does not burn in a fire?

Quite often, the peripheral bones of the hands and feet will not be burned because those bones don’t have enough fat to burn immediately. Usually, bones are flammable when they are dried.

Can humans explode in space?

Humans don’t explode in space. Even though outer space represents a lack of air pressure, which usually counters the internal pressure in human bodies. Human body tissues are strong enough to handle the imbalance of air pressure in space.

verdict

In this article, we noted that blood is not flammable. However, dried one can become ignitable if it comes in contact with the correct ignition source.

So, we need to be cautious around it. Here are some tips to keep blood meals away from a smoldering source because this can be a potential ignition source. Another tip is to avoid dust clouds at all costs when loading or unloading blood meal packages to prevent accidental explosions.