Fire

“Sitting around a campfire, you can feel its heat, smell the woody smoke, and hear it crackle. If you get too close, it burns your eyes and injures your nostrils. You could stare at the bright flames forever as they spark in endless appearances… But what exactly are you looking at?”

Its Fire. Let’s learn about fire.

Fire is the visible effect (light and heat) of the process of combustion – a special type of chemical reaction. It occurs between oxygen in the air and some sort of fuel.It is an example of the chemical process of oxidation.

Fire is useful, but also very dangerous because it can cause houses, trees and many other things to burn into ashes. Forest fires are very harmful. They can destroy a huge area in a matter of minutes.

Fire can be made in many different ways. Some ways are rubbing sticks together for a long time, using flint (grey stone) and steel, or using matches.However, the Sun does not make fire. Instead, it crushestogether hydrogen atoms to release energy through the process of nuclear fusion.

Fire Tetrahedron:

Fire is either man-made or natural. Sometimes it’s started on purpose and other times it’s an accident. Fire has a purpose, but comes with risks. The components of a fire are called the fire tetrahedron.

There are three types of heat—and all three types can start a fire.

How it works:

Consider a natural gas flame, such as from a stove-top burner. The fire can be extinguished by any of the following:

• Turning off the gas supply, which removes the fuel source;
• Covering the flame completely, which smothers the flame as the combustion both uses the available oxidizer (the oxygen in the air) and displaces it from the area around the flame with CO2;
• Application of water, which removes heat from the fire faster than the fire can produce it, or

In contrast, fire is increased by increasing the overall rate of combustion.

Human control:

The ability to control fire is a dramatic change in the habits of humans.

Picture	Uses of fire
	1. Making fire to generate heat and light made it possible for people to cook food.
Sea Horses	2. The heat produced would also help people stay warm in cold weather, enabling them to live in cooler climates.
Oysters	3. Fire also kept night-time predators at bay.

Fire safety:

Fire is very dangerous to humans as it can easily burn or blister skin. It is important to take safety precautions when using fire.

Fire Safety Tips for Kids:

Helpful Fire Safety Products:

Here are some fire safety products that may be helpful to have on hand during a fire or to prevent one from getting out of hand:

1. Fire Extinguishers: Store a fire extinguisher in your kitchen and on each level of your home, near bedrooms.
2. Fire Blanket: Use a fire-retardant blanket to extinguish a small fire by smothering it before it has a chance to get any bigger.
3. Smoke Detectors: Use standard smoke detectors.
4. Home Fire Sprinklers: Automatic home fire sprinklers, once activated, can help greatly reduce flames and heat, often long before the fire department can get to your home. You can search for companies near you that can install sprinkler systems in your home.
5. A Fire Escape Ladder: If you live in a building with more than one level, fire escape ladders can help you quickly and safely escape out a window.

What to Do in a Fire:

Once everyone in your family is out of your house, stay out. Don’t go back inside for anything—it’s too dangerous! The firefighters will be able to go back inside to save anything they can.

Interesting Facts:

Flames are the part of a fire which we can see, they can be in different colours, depending on the substance which is burning.

• A candle flame typically burns at around 1000 degrees Celsius (1800 Fahrenheit).
• Scientists believe that humans began using fire to cook food in a controlled way around 1 million years ago.
• Forest fires can be extremely destructive and are dangerous to both humans and wildlife.
• Fires are also an important ecological process that can stimulate growth.