Experimental study and hazard analysis on the flash point of flammable liquids at high altitudes

Flash point, an important physical property of the flammable liquids, is one of the main indicators to evaluate the fire hazard. In this article, a series of field measurement at different altitudes were carried out by using a portable flash point–measuring apparatus. The six tested altitudes are 3650, 3950, 4250, 4500, and 4750 m in Tibet plateau and 58 m in Hefei, China. Both the theoretical analysis and the experiment results show that the reciprocal of flash point is in linear relationship with the altitude. This article also ranks the fire hazard class of the flammable liquids at different altitudes, based on the classification codes in China. The correlation of fire hazard with altitude is of practical use for the safety management of flammable liquids during production, storage, transport, and usage in high-altitude plateau and aviation environments.