The spontaneous ignition of wool. I. the causes of spontaneous fires in new zealand wool

An investigation was made of the causes of heating and spontaneous ignition of baled wool in the New Zealand wool trade. It is shown that temperatures high enough to cause combustion could not be promoted solely by exothermic wetting, bacterial rotting, or by friction during ‘dumping’. Direct reaction with oxygen at temperatures below 60° can cause temperature rises up to the ignition point in some samples of pie wool. Results of analyses of representative pie wools are presented. It is concluded that the majority of (and perhaps all) spontaneous fires in raw wool are caused by pie wool. Adequate scouring of the pie wool removes the combustion hazard.