CHAPTER-6

Combustion and Flame

Question 1. List conditions under which combustion can take place.
Answer: Combustion can take place in the presence of:
(a) a combustible substance.
(b) oxygen, that is, the supporter of combustion.
(c) attainment of ignition temperature of the substance.

Question 2. Fill in the blanks.

(a) Burning of wood and coal causes _____ of air.
(b) A liquid fuel, used in homes is ______
(c) Fuel must be heated to its ______ before it starts burning.
(d) Fire produced by oil cannot be controlled by ______
Answer:
(a) pollution
(b) LPG
(c) ignition temperature
(d) water

Question 3. Explain how the use of CNG in automobiles has reduced pollution in our
cities.
Answer: The use of CNG in automobiles has reduced pollution in our cities as it is a
quality fuel and has some benefits:
(a) It gives out less carbon dioxide gas, carbon monoxide gas, sulphur dioxide and
nitrogen dioxide, which is beneficial as they play crucial role in global warming and
acid rain.
(b) It leaves behind no residue after its combustion.

Question 4. Compare LPG and wood as fuels.

Answer:

LPG Wood
(i) It does not cause pollution on combustion. (i) It pollutes air on its combustion.
(ii) No smoke is produced. (ii) It produces smoke.
(iii) It is a liquid fuel. (iii) It is a solid fuel.
(iv) It has more calorific value (55000 kJ/kg). (iv) It has less calorific value (17000 kJ/kg).
(v) It can be easily transported, as it is stored in
(v) It can’t be transported easily like LPG fue
cylinders.
Question 5. Give reasons.
(a) Water is not used to control fires involving electrical equipment.
(b) LPG is a better domestic fuel than wood.
(c) Paper by itself catches fire easily whereas a piece of paper wrapped around an
aluminium pipe does not.
Answer: (a) Since water is a good conductor of electricity, it may result in electric
shocks to the person trying to extinguish fire.
(b) LPG is better domestic fuel than wood because it does not produce gases, nor
does it leave any residue behind. Moreover, it has more calorific value than wood.
(c) As its ignition temperature is low, the paper by itself catches fire easily. But a
piece of paper wrapped around an aluminium pipe does not catch fire easily, as the
heat being given gets absorbed by the aluminium pipe and the piece of paper does
not get its ignition temperature.

Question 6. Make a labelled diagram of a candle flame.

Answer:

Question 7. Name the unit in which the calorific value of a fuel is expressed.
Answer: The unit in which the calorific value of a fuel is expressed is kilojoules per
kilogram (kJ/kg).

Question 8. Explain how CO2 is able to control fires.

Answer: As CO2 is heavier than oxygen, it forms a blanket around fire, because of
which the supply of air is stopped. Men over, it brings down the temperature of the
burning substance. In these ways, it plays a significant role in controlling fire.

Question 9. It is difficult to burn a heap of green leaves but dry leaves catch fire
easily. Explain.
Answer: The green leaves hold some amount of water, so its ignition temperature
gets increased and it does not burn easily. On the other hand, dry leaves are
waterless, so they catch fire easily (having low ignition temperature).

Question 10. Which zone of a flame does a goldsmith use for melting gold and silver
and why?
Answer: A goldsmith uses the outermost zone of a flame, which is non-luminous, to
melt gold and silver as it is the hottest zone of the flame, having more temperature.

Question 11. In an experiment, 4.5 kg of a fuel was completely burnt. The heat
produced was measured to be 180,000 kJ. Calculate the calorific value of the fuel.
Answer: Calorific value of a fuel = Heat Produced/Amount of fuel
= 180000/4.5 kJ/kg
= 40,000 kJ/kg.

Question 12. Can the process of rusting be called combustion? Discuss.

Answer: The process of rusting emits heat during the formation of its oxide. So we
can call the process of rusting as slow combustion.

Question 13. Abida and Ramesh were doing an experiment in which water was to be
heated in a beaker. Abida kept the beaker near the wick in the yellow part of the
candle flame. Ramesh kept the beaker in the outermost part of the flame. Whose
water will get heated in a shorter time?
Answer: The water which was put by Ramesh will get heated in a shorter time;
because he had put it nearer to the hottest zone of the flame.

EXTRA QUESTIONS
Question 1. What are the main constituent of biogas and kitchen gas (L.P.G.)?
Answer: The main constituent of biogas is methane and of kitchen gas (L.P.G.) is
butane.

Question 2. What is biogas?

Answer: Biogas is formed by the decomposition of plant and animal wastes.

Question 3. Give two examples of inflammable substances.

Answer: Petrol and LPG.

Question 4. Which substances burn with a flame?

Answer: The substances which vapourise during burning, form a flame.
Question 5. Why is respiration referred to as slow combustion?
Answer: During respiration, oxidation takes place but energy is released so slowly
that we cannot see it happening. Therefore, it is known as slow combustion.

Question 6. Distinguish between combustible and non-combustible substances.

Answer: Combustible substances : The substances which bum easily are called
combustible substances, e.g., paper, cloth.
Non-combustible substances : The substances which do not bum easily are called
Non-combustible substances, e.g., iron, glass.

Question 7. Can you put off a fire due to electric short circuit by using water? Why?
Answer: We cannot put off a fire due to electric short circuit by using water
because water is a conductor of electricity and may result in electric shock.

Question 8. Explain the different zones of a flame with the help of a neat and well
labelled diagram.
Answer:

 The innermost zone is the dark zone. It contains unbumt vapours of

wax.
 The second zone is the yellow zone where incomplete combustion
takes place. It is known as luminous zone.
 The thin outermost zone of the flame is blue in colour and complete
combustion takes place. This is the non-luminous zone.

Question 9. When the clothes of a person catches fire, we cover him with a blanket.
Why?
Answer: When the person is covered with a blanket, the supply of oxygen is cut off.
So, the fire is put off.
Question 10. What is a fuel? Define calorific value of a fuel. Give the characteristics
of a good fuel.
Answer: A fuel is a substance which gives heat on burning.
Calorific value is the amount of heat energy produced on complete combustion of 1
kg of fuel. It is expressed as KJ/Kg.
Characteristics of a good fuel are –
o It should have high calorific value.
o It should not leave ash behind.
o It should be easy to store, transport and handle.
o It should have convenient ignition temperature.

Question 11. Give reasons.

1. Water is not used to control fires involving electrical equipment.
2. LPG is a better domestic fuel than wood.
3. Paper by itself catches fire easily whereas a piece of paper wrapped
around an aluminium pipe does not.
Answer:
1. Water is not used to control the fire involving electrical equipment
because it is a good conductor of electricity. The person using it can
get a shock.
2. LPG is a better domestic fuel than wood because
o It does not give out smoke.
o It has high heat content.
o It does not leave ash behind.
o It is easily available.
2. Paper by itself catches fire easily because it is a highly combustible
substance. But when it is wrapped on aluminium, it does not bum
because aluminium is a good conductor of heat and it takes the heat
from paper.

Question 12. Draw a labelled diagram to show the construction of soda-acid fire
extinguisher and explain its working.
Answer:
In the soda-acid fire extinguisher, carbon dioxide is produced by the reaction of
sulphuric acid and sodium bicarbonate. The bottle containing sulphuric acid is
struck with a knob and the reaction starts.

Carbon dioxide produce is neither combustible nor supporter of combustible. Being

heavier than air it forms a blanket over the fire and cuts off the supply of air. The
water formed cools the substance below its ignition temperature.