Calcium Carbide

Specifications

Calcium carbide is a chemical compound with the chemical formula of CaC2. The material is colorless, but most samples appear black through to grayish white lumps, depending on the grade. Its main use industrially is in the production of acetylene. Calcium carbide is used in carbide lamps, in which water drips on carbide and the formed acetylene is ignited. These lamps were unusable in coal mines where the presence of the flammable gas methane made them a serious hazard. The presence of flammable gases in coal mines led to the miner safety lamp. However carbide lamps were used extensively in slate, copper and tin mines, but most have now been replaced by electric lamps. Carbide lamps are still used by some cavers exploring caves and other underground areas,[8] though they are increasingly being replaced in this use by LED lights. They were also used extensively as head lights in early automobiles, although in this application they are also obsolete, having been replaced entirely by electric lamps.

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