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Spontaneous Ignition of Decomposing Cellulose Nitrate Film
BY JAMES W. CUMMINGS
NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORD SERVICE, WASHINGTON, B.C.
AND ALVIN C. HUTTON AND HOWARD SILFIN NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS, WASHINGTON, D.C.
Summary — Cellulose nitrate motion picture film in the advanced stages of decomposition is liable to ignite spontaneously. The danger of such ignition is reduced by inspecting stored film stocks and removing and destroying all decomposing film.
DURING THE ABNORMALLY HOT SUMMER OF 1949, numerous fires involving cellulose nitrate motion picture films were reported in New York City and adjacent areas. These fires occurred in processing and reclamation plants and in standard film storage facilities. Losses resulting from these fires, other than those of real property, were severe, for the majority of the films destroyed were original negatives and master copies, some dating back to the "silent era." Due to the fact that these fires occurred either after working hours or on week ends, no casualties to personnel resulted, although some firemen were treated for smoke inhalation.
National Archives and Bureau of Standards engineers who investigated the fires could find no evidence that they were due to the negligence of personnel or the careless use of cigarettes or matches, but rather they appeared to have originated in the spontaneous ignition of deteriorated nitrate film. The summer of 1949 was one of the hottest recorded in the New York area, with the temperature reaching a maximum of 98 F. The mean high temperature for the months of June and July, 1949, was 83.1 F, as compared to a normal for the period of 79.3 F. The rainfall for the entire month of June was only 0.16 in. in contrast to the normal rainfall of 3.33 in. for the same period. The lack of rainfall and the unusually high temperatures of the period seemed to create ideal conditions for the development of spontaneous ignition in film stores.
A CONTRIBUTION: Submitted February 9, 1950.
268 MARCH, 1950 JOURNAL OF THE SMPTE VOLUME 54