LIQUID FIRE, The eflammenwerfera or aflame was first employed by the Germans in the European War, 1914-18. It re sembles a fire extinguisher and is hung on the back of the soldier while an extension that is held in the hands throws the flames. The cylinder contains oil and compressed gas. As the oil is forced out of the cylinder by the compressed gas it catches fire and spreads out in a sheet of flame and smoke. A single aflammenwerfera can cover a frontage of about six yards when stationary and the flame burns for about one minute. The extreme range is about 300 yards and the kind of oil used depends upon the atmosphere. The discharge is accompanied by a loud roar, yellowish-red flames and a dense black smoke, making it very difficult for green troops to realize that it is effective for such a short distance. While the heat of the flames is intense the burning takes place entirely in the air and the stream cannot be turned downward as the heat causes an upward current. Protection is easily ob tained by any non-inflammable cover above and a soldier is safe if kneeling on a fire step or just within the entrance of a dug-out. There are two principal kinds or sizes of aflammen werfera— the smaller size being carried by one man. The iron container is usually three
feet long by one and a half feet wide, with two hooks for the body and the mixture is of heavy and light oil plus gasoline. The com bustible used in the flame throwers has varied in source and composition from time to time, but it has one characteristic which is essential for good results — it must have light or easily volatile and heavy and less volatile fractions mixed in carefully graded proportions. The heavy oil is usually a petroleum product or a tarry residual oil from the distillation of wood. The light portion, which ensures the jet's keep ing alight, was originally a light gasoline. The lighting device, fixed at the end of the flexible hose, is the most ingenious part of the contriv ance and is so made that the oil ignites spon taneously the minute the jet is turned on, and is kept alight by a fiercely burning mixture which lasts throughout the discharge. The noz zle is about nine inches long and detachable so that replacement is easy.