On 17 Dec 2003 18:07:05 GMT, (ERich10983) wrote:

I just heard on New Hampshire Public Radio that Rt 89 was closed down because a
tanker filled with liquid nitrogen had gone off the road. The road was closed
because of the danger of explosion!

Never seen, or seen evidence of, a liquid nitrogen explosion ? It's
comparably energetic to propane.

LN2 is generally shipped in a vacuum insulated vessel. After an impact
there's a risk that the two shells are put in contact, or the vacuum
may be lost. This is a big heat leak, big enough to boil liquid into
vapour and cause an overpressure accident. Although there are
blow-out disks etc., if something like a road tanker turns over, then
these may either be blocked, or may leak and then block themselves by
freezing groundwater into an ice plug.

--
Smert' spamionam