How did dragons breath fire?

[Blue]

I've always wondered how dragons breathed fire, I myself have three theories.

First way is always the one that first comes to most peoples minds is that they breathed out a flammable gas. But I'm not sure you can get much distance with gas, and if there are strong winds (like when flying) the flames can get redirected.

my second thoughts is they spewed out a stream of flammable liquid. This can give dragons great distance like a fire hose. As with the first if there are strong winds it can get redirected. Also if the flammable liquid gets blown back on the dragon it would burn him/her too.

My third theory is one that I personally like, it consist of dragons being able to store baseball sized hard goo that can be spit out like a blow dart. This type of fire breath would also produce the classic flying fireball and upon impact the goo ball would smash causing a small gas bomb type of explosion.

I Like theory three, if done right, a dragon can probably shoot the goo ball out like a cannon and when the dragon makes too many I bet they could spit them out safely and store them for later use. Explosive hairball anyone?

Disagree/agree or have a different theory?

Edited: Grammar and capitalization. ~Namhias.

[Jasriella]

Watch that movie Reign of Fire and you'll see how the theory of intermixing two relatively harmless chemicals that when mixed ignite works with dragons. It's two sets of glands that pretty much jet their fluids, kinda like how us humans gleek. Of course the dragon runs the risk of burning itself, the saying goes you play with fire you get burned. So I would assume that once it did burn itself I think it would learn not to do that again.

You're third theory though, how would this ball of goo generate then? And of what substance? There's plenty of chemicals that alone are harmless but when mixed with another certain chemical ignites, though which ones are produced naturally I haven't an idea.

Your first theory, have you any idea how far a flammable gas can be shot? My specialty is welding, and a good bit of it involves and Oxyacetylene torch. And with that baby I've managed a 6' long flame without bringing the pressure levels above a dangerous level witch is about 12psi at the max for the Acetylene 45psi max for the Oxygen before it snuffs out the flame itself. The only true problem with "blowing" out this flammable gas to "breath fire" is what's the ignition source? For an Oxyacetylene torch it's usually a flint striker on steel, a lighter (again flint to steel) or a match which starts off of the spark/heat of being wiped against certain substances.
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I am trapped between heaven and hell. My wings carry me upon the winds. Above lies heaven, below hell. Yet I must land in hell to soar in heaven. I am a Dragon!

[Blue]

Ya I have seen reign of fire.

On how far flammable gas can shoot, I myself dont work with it much so cant say, but I do have a question for you. you bring up psi how much psi you think it would take to shoot a 15ft flame?

as for the hard goo balls two things come to mind that have potential to work. one would be were dragons would go around licking tree sap which is flammable. another way could be natural oils produces by the body, instead of a goo ball being shoot out it could be a ball of fat tissue saturated in oil

[ANightmaresDream]

I saw this one episode of Effin' Science where they explain something with a term that I forgot, but they basically shot a gasoline "cloud" (gas droplets being so small, like mist, that they are suspended in the air and covers a larger area) and then lit the cloud on fire, making the explosion much bigger using a smaller amount of gasoline. The same may work in this case, maybe with different chemicals though.

Also, on Wikipedia, after looking up "Phantom Limb", I found that sometimes, it will also do the same for organs. Last night, It was the same as any other night, and I was meditating. A minute or two afterwards, I experience this extreme pain near the back of my throat. It was not a sore throat, nor was it strep throat, because it was a much more distinctive pain. So, I put 2 and 2 together and say that it was a Gland used by dragons to possibly breathe fire, and it might as well be considered an organ. The really suspicious part is that this occured shortly after I meditated.

[Jasriella]

Well first off if it was a physical pain you felt I honestly think you should get it checked out if it's persisting at all. And yes, the gland could be considered an organ since if you look at venomous snakes, they have what's called the Jacobson's Organ which contains their venom. Though the theory of the chemical being gasoline....no not possible in the slightest. Gasoline is a man-made substance. A mixture of petrolioum, hydrocarbons, iso-octene, and benzene. None of these by the way are consumable by any living thing that we know of so it's hard to imagine a living being producing it.
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I am trapped between heaven and hell. My wings carry me upon the winds. Above lies heaven, below hell. Yet I must land in hell to soar in heaven. I am a Dragon!

[Shaprite]

The gas that could make dragons' breathe fire is methane. You produce when you digest food.
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Beware. I bite!

[ANightmaresDream]

[Jasriella]