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To: Cletus.D.Yokel
Boiler feed lines? Why not a malfunctioning NatGas odorant plant? Enough mercaptan there to stink up the entire metro area. Does anyone know if these are underground in NYC?

A bad sequencing control on a boiler. The line itself would be fine and not leaking. But if the control goes bad it could possibly not fire the boiler but allow raw natural gas into the boiler. Boilers use forced draft blowers. If the blower is operating that would take the raw gas on out the boilers exhaust stack usually on the roof. This would likely be a multi story build maybe 5 stories likely much higher. With the area effected it sound like a sizable building.

Natural gas being heavier than air settles to the ground. It would take a building by building search to locate it. A boiler under IIRC 15PSI operation steam pressure doesn't require a boiler operator present which would make immediate detection less likely.

74 posted on 01/08/2007 12:00:21 PM PST by cva66snipe (If it was wrong for Clinton why do some support it for Bush? Party over nation destroys the nation.)
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To: cva66snipe

Still doesn't sound like a high enough concentration of mercaptan to me. Mercaptan levels in natgas are extremely small (odor detection levels at the human nose are around 1 ppb). I work in the natgas industry and have experience with mercaptan.

I also know that natural gas is lighter than air at sea level and would not "settle to the ground" (just FYI)


77 posted on 01/08/2007 12:41:34 PM PST by Cletus.D.Yokel
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