Chemistry Interview Question:

Do all explosions produce carbon dioxide?

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An explosion is nothing more than the rapid release of energy. This is most commonly due to the rapid combustion of a material, although nuclear explosions do not involve combustion. The combustion of any hydrocarbon or other carbon-containing substance ALWAYS produces carbon dioxide. This might include explosion due to a natural gas or gasoline.

It is possible, however, to explode substances that do not contain carbon, such as pure hydrogen (the very famous Hindenburg disaster in 1937 is a classic example of a very big hydrogen gas explosion. An explosion of hydrogen produces only water vapor (H2O), NOT carbon dioxide (CO2).

Also, nuclear explosions (both fusion and fission) themselves do not produce carbon dioxide, although they may cause surrounding objects to incinerate, which would release carbon dioxide.
Submitted by: Administrator