The potential for a conflagration and even an earth-shattering detonation from substances that appear harmless is illustrated by the 2008 explosion at the Georgia Imperial Sugar refinery, which killed fourteen and injured thirty-six, and the 2010 titanium plant explosion in West Virginia, which killed three employees and injured one contractor.
In both incidents, a lack of dust extraction and build-up led to devastating consequences.
Carbohydrates aren’t far off from hydrocarbons, which include petrol, as well as methane (CH4), butane (C4H10), etc., and metals, which will also readily ignite in particulate form, as well as certain metal oxides, such as in thermite, a mixture of a metal powder and a metal oxide that is often iron(III) oxide and aluminium, but also many other metals and metal oxides can be combined for a very rapid burn.
