Re: [CH] plants coming indoors...
jim@wildpepper.com
Tue, 17 Oct 2006 20:25:52 -0400
Re: *Mercaptans contain sulfur. That’s what makes them smell. The kind
used blends well with natural gas and, in a gaseous state, has much
the same properties as natural gas, so it will also rise and dissipate
with natural gas.
Remember *you* said this: Just my morning to be a pedantic
nit-picker. :-P
Back at you :-)
Methyl mercaptan has a vapor density of well over 6.0. It won't rise
with the gas but instead percipitate out. It is also highly toxic.
It's use with natural gas comes from the fact that the human nose can
detect mercaptans down to the ppb- as in billion, not ppm (million).
There is little else, if anything, that humans can detect in lower
quantities... unless it's chile peppers to the weak ;-)
I believe skunk oil is in the same family as well. Can't says as I
would ever mistake the heavenly aroma of garlic for mercaptan :-)
Should have seen the mess we had around here when the gas company, as
part of an education program, but a 'scratch & sniff' dot of mercatpan
on the gas bills one month. It was supposed to show the public what a
gas leak smells like. Yeeessshhhh!!! We ran 'gas leaks' and 'gas odor'
calls non-stop for DAYS!
-Jim C
Mild to Wild(R)
http://www.STepUpForCharity.org