In the laundry area of a spherical powder production workshop, cotton drying cloths caught on fire due to contact of the plastic baskets where the cloths were kept with a steam-heated (to 170°C) gilled radiator. The baskets were destroyed and the wall of the premises slightly burned by the fire.

After testing both components (plastic and cloth) by heating to 170°C for 2 hours without triggering any reaction, the only explanation for this incident was the presence of powder residue on the cloth.

The operator improved the procedure for verifying the absence of powder on the cloth and modified the feed on the radiator pressure relief valve so that the temperature could not exceed 100°C.