Scientists discover a "New Type of Fire"

related:
http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2016/08/03/1605860113

>The growing worldwide demand to reduce emissions from combustion calls for development of alternative technologies for high-efficiency and low-emission combustion. Whereas fire whirls are known for their intense and disastrous threat to life and surrounding environments, their swirl properties and thus higher combustion efficiency imply an unexploited potential for highly efficient, low-emission combustion. In studying fire whirls over water for oil-spill cleanup, we discovered a beautiful, swirling flame phenomenon, the “blue whirl,” which evolves from a fire whirl and burns with nearly soot-free combustion. Understanding and control of the blue whirl and its predecessor, the fire whirl, will suggest new ways for fuel-spill remediation, reduced-pollution combustion, and fluid mechanics research.

have we started the fire?

>>65771
literally the fire rises

Presumably the shape and dynamics of the fire somehow keeps out the atmospheric air which contains enough shit in it to turn it yellow. And the fuel is clean so you don't get any yellow flames from it either.

>>65786
It's quite the opposite. Combustibles need an oxidant to burn, is this case oxygen and usually you take that oxygen from the atmospheric air.

The article says:
> It evolves from the yellow fire whirl, whose color comes from glowing soot particles that indicate that there’s not enough oxygen to burn up all the available fuel. In contrast, the blue flame results when there is enough oxygen to burn fuel completely. Complete combustion means less soot and lower carbon emissions.

Basically the dynamics of the whirls allow to keep the fuel better oxygenated; while in the typical flame convective current are not efficient in doing so, causing the combustion to occur in oxygen-starved conditions.

So how long until I can buy a cigarette lighter that makes a tiny version of this?

so this is spiral power

>>65760
how neat is that.
after a million years, we found a new and cooler way to make fire, and that is actually useful

Im actually very elated to know this

>>65829
don't believe the article, believe in me who believes in the article.

im not /science/ but i wonder if they can use this knowledge to apply it for more efficient space travel

>>65875
yours is the flame that will burn the heavens!

>>65876
not sure we actually use fire based propulsion, i think its all nuclear(up in space that is)

>>65881
well im thinking for land to space liftoff, we use a lot of fuel right now. it's horribly inefficient and expensive, I wonder if this could make some strides in that department

>>65760
That's pretty cool.

We wont see any benefits til after the government gets to make a weapon out of it. They always get first dibs

>>65849
you saying it that way really made me smile, anon.

well spoken

>>65889
depends how quickly the spirals burn, if its more efficient but slow it wont help shuttles but power plants? hopefully so

>>65795
Ah okay cool.
I don't see how the shape of the whirl can be maintained, though.

>>65958
Also I don't think the whirl could be exposed to open air like the liftoff fire is right now and still maintain it's shape, you'd probably need a "whirl chamber" or something similar so that the shape is preserved.

>>65771
Nah. It was always burning since the world was turning.

>>65889
We would be better off focusing all of our funds and energy making space elevators a reality. But yes, fossil fuels are the future. Good goy.

>>65771
Yes brother but they'll be expecting one of us in the wreckage

Isn't this basically just a freestanding swirler as found in every jet combustor since 50+ years ago?

I feel like this is something that other fields of engineering just stumbled into old discoveries from another field they had never heard of and called it something new. It's neat and all, but not revolutionary other than maybe being a novel application. According to the UMD article I'm not even certain they have a reliable way to replicate the phenomenon in an open space.

>>65983
Yah. We didn't write it but we're trying to fight it

eye of sauron-cool

>>65760
>Engineers experimenting with fire tornadoes
This is either the best or worst job on the planet.

>>66303
It's all fun and games until you get time locked into the man size fire-tornado chamber

then it's like that scene in the Watchmen, only with more screaming and less ressurection

>>65760
HAHAH THIS IS WHAT PHYSICS MAJORS DO WITH THEIR TIME
REINVINTING FIRE
I'M DYING

>>66631
>First word of the the first article: "Engineers".
>From the first paragraph of the second article: "team of researchers in the University of Maryland’s A. James Clark School of Engineering say their discovery of a type of fire tornado..."
>Authors of the paper: Huahua Xiao (Department of Aerospace Engineering), Michael J. Gollner (Department of Fire Protection Engineering), Elaine S. Orana (Department of Aerospace Engineering))

I'm sorry anon, you are literally retarded.

That's actually awesome. Sooner or later we get to firebend hopefully.

>>65901
This, also this new burning techniques coukd be used in coal fired power stations a more efficient flame to heat the water probably resulting in more efficient power production, less coal needed less air pollution, there are fuck loads of other benefits in other industries too.

>>66749
>>65901
what? it's not like every research or new technology must be related to military to be relevant

>>65795
I wonder, this would probably work to keep a fire burning in low gravity environments, not that one would necessarily want that.

This is useless as fuck.

Exponential technological advancement is a myth.

>>66879
>he said posting on the internet in 1996 even

>>66911
And since 1996 what has changed?

>>66999
Sylvester Stallone's career is over now.

>>66879
>it's not obviously and immediately beneficial to me, therefore it's useless as fuck

If technological advancement is slowing down, it's entirely due to fuckheads like you.

>>65760
>burns nearly soot-free
This could reignite the coal industry!

>>67033
I love science and technology. I have dreamed on an end to cell death and a chance to explore the stars.

But the older I get the more I realize technology just doesn't improve that fast.

It's largely because our predictions for technological growth include the ridiculous apollo missions.

It's not my fault NASA constantly gets my hopes up for "new discoveries" that essentially clickbait. I didn't make it so the goal of medical science is profit rather than health.

The scientific community is corrupt (global warming, tobacco, child sex changes, think-tanks, the holocaust, 911...)

People don't become pessimistic for no reason.

>>66125
This is every new discovery these days. They're just trying to get more funding.

>>67111
Filter out the ignorance and study/read only meaningful research from reliable sources. After all, why would you even call people that get paid to fabricate data "scientist"?
And about NASA the problem is that, being a government agency, it is at the mercy of that human garbage we call politicians.

>>67116
>why would you even call people that get paid to fabricate data "scientist"?
Because they are literally scientists.

You can't just ignore corrupt practices, as if that magically creates a field of study free of corruption.

>it is at the mercy of that human garbage we call politicians
This isn't just a NASA problem, it's all science. You either receive your funding from the government or a corporation.

>>67118
you talk like any recent scientific discovery is bullshit.

>>67128
How about you just inform me of the recent scientific discovery I should be impressed by?

Cure my pessimism, please.

>>67128
Theyre not bullshit, theyre just pushed in a certain direction, you know what i mean?

I'm strange to this part of 4chan and that's awesome

>>67116
>Filter out the ignorance and study/read only meaningful research from reliable sources.
How about: only pay attention to replication.