Why is table tennis so flammable?

Table tennis usually burns very quickly, even when only a small spark is exposed. Why is that?

Do table tennis balls contain flammable gas?

Table tennis (also known as "ping pong" ) tends to burn very quickly right after being lit by a match. Even in some direct ping-pong matches, this can also happen. That's why many people believe that table tennis contains a very flammable gas, but that is not the real reason for this phenomenon.

A standard table tennis ball has a diameter of 40mm and weighs 2.7 grams. Contrary to many people's guesses, in fact, every ping pong ball is just a normal gas.

Test shows that table tennis burns very fast.

According to Science ABC, although there is no clear regulation on whether ping pong balls need to be pumped with air or some other gas, manufacturers use conventional air because it is a reasonable choice. most economically when producing on a large scale.

Why is table tennis flammable?

Celluloid is a highly flammable and flammable substance made from this material.

Materials made up of table tennis are usually celluloid (or some other plastic) and this is why they become so flammable. Celluloid is a substance capable of catching fire very well and because table tennis is made from this material, the phenomenon that they burn relatively easily is also understandable.

Moreover, old ping pong balls containing celluloid were acidified and caused instability increased over time. Therefore, only a small heat source such as sparks can burn table tennis.

Why is celluloid flammable?

To answer, we will have to consider the composition of celluloid. First, celluloid is not a specific substance. Rather, this is the name given to the compound made from nictrocellulose (or cellulose nitrate), camphor, dye and some other substances.

Chemical structure of nitrocellulose.

More specifically, the specific composition of cellulose is nitrocellulose (74%) and camphor (24%). It is considered to be the first thermoplastic, very easy to shape and mold, decomposes quickly and is highly flammable.

This flammability may be due to chemical structure. In the presence of heat, nitrate groups in celluloid will be separated from the structure and release nitrogen gases (such as nitrogen monoxide and dinitrogen monoxide) in the air. Therefore, nitrocellulose does not need oxygen from the outside so that it can continue to burn because the reaction produces oxygen itself.

So, if you are taking part in a dramatic match and the ping-pong ball suddenly bursts into fire, you can take a break, find another ball and explain the cause of the phenomenon just before the admiring eyes of those playmates