Re: Bullets + Gas tanks. The truth?

[T-RO <tro@xxxxxxxxxx>]

"Robert J. Hansen" wrote:

> > Whats the truith behind guns and gas? What really happens if I use my
> > AK-47 to shoot up the gas tank of an Accord stationwagon?
>
> You get a punctured gas tank and gas leaking out on the ground, which is
> a definite fire hazard.  But bullets rarely make sparks (for an example,
> swing a sledgehammer against an I-beam, and see how many sparks get
> created), so there's not much risk of the bullet itself setting the tank
> afire.
>
> Tracers and API (armor-piercing incendiary) rounds are exceptions to
> this rule, of course.
>
> > What about those big gas tankers? Will it destroy a city block if I
> > shoot at it with a 5.56?
>
> You won't even penetrate the tank.  Those things are heavily armored for
> a reason.  You'd need a fifty-cal, or something in that range.
>
> Even then, there'd be no explosion, nor would the gasoline catch fire.
> The tanks are purged with nitrogen, which is an inert gas.  There's no
> oxidizer to react with, thus, no fire.  Once the gas spurted out the
> fifty-cal hole at high pressure, though, it'd aerosolize and at that
> point a stray spark could be catastrophic.
>

Cool, thanks.