Blau gas

Blau gas (German: Blaugas) was an artificial illuminating gas similar to propane named after its inventor, Dr. Hermann Blau of Augsburg, Germany. It was manufactured by decomposing mineral oils in retorts by heat, and compressing the resulting naphtha until it liquefied. It was transported in this condition, and on releasing the pressure assumed again the gaseous state.

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Blau gas was burned for lighting and heating; a less pure form known as Pintsch gas fueled railroad car lights and stoves in the late 19th and early 20th century. Blau gas was most famous, however, as the fuel for the LZ 127 Graf Zeppelin^[1] It had several advantages over liquid fuels such as gasoline. It was non-explosive, and because it weighed approximately the same as air, burning it and replacing its volume with air did not lighten the airship—eliminating the need to adjust buoyancy or ballast in-flight.^[2]

See also

• Propane
• Pintsch gas
• Airship

References

1. ^ Graf Zeppelin site
2. ^ "Blue Gas & Hydrogen". TIME, October 15, 1928

• This article incorporates text from The Modern World Encyclopædia: Illustrated (1935); out of UK copyright as of 2005.