“The flash point of mineral oil is the temperature to which it must be heated (under prescribed conditions of test) in order to give off sufficient vapor to form a flammable mixture with air. The fire point is the temperature that provides sufficient combustible vapors to sustain a fire for 5 s (under the same test conditions). A low flash point may indicate the presence of volatile combustible contaminants in the mineral oil.”
(Quote from IEEE C57.106-2015)
What method is used to analyze the sample?
ASTM D92
How do you interpret the results?
IEEE C57.106-2015
What do the results indicate?
“The flash point is one measure of the tendency of the test specimen to form a flammable mixture with air under controlled laboratory conditions. It is only one of a number of properties that should be considered in assessing the overall flammability hazard of a material. Flash point is used in shipping and safety regulations to define flammable and combustible materials. Consult the particular regulation involved for precise definitions of these classifications. Flash point can indicate the possible presence of highly volatile and flammable materials in a relatively nonvolatile or nonflammable material. For example, an abnormally low flash point on a test specimen of engine oil can indicate gasoline contamination. This test method shall be used to measure and describe the properties of materials, products, or assemblies in response to heat and a test flame under controlled laboratory conditions and shall not be used to describe or appraise the fire hazard or fire risk of materials, products, or assemblies under actual fire conditions. However, results of this test method may be used as elements of a fire risk assessment that takes into account all of the factors that are pertinent to an assessment of the fire hazard of a particular end use. The fire point is one measure of the tendency of the test specimen to support combustion.” (Quote from ASTM D92)