Naphtha a.k.a White Gas, Naphthalene, Mineral Spirits

Naphtha is usually comprised of shorter chain hydrocarbons from c5-c7, can be aromatic (ie sweet smelling, carcinogenic), can contain sulfuric compounds or other impurities. It is often mostly paraffins with colorants and a thiol for scent. Because of it's distillate definition, has the lowest boiling point of all the petrols. This gives naphtha the highest vapor pressure of all distillates, meaning that they will produce vapors whenever not contained in a vapor seal container and will disperse quickly if well ventilated.

Naphtha is very easy to light (always producing fumes), burns on many surfaces (including ice), will evaporate quickly (in about 15 minutes) from most surfaces, and must be very carefully contained at all times. Unfortunately, since it can contain a high percentage of aromatics, it can also be smoky, toxic and carcinogenic. Certain naphtha based fuels have reduced aromatic content (Coleman fuel) and some are naturally high or augmented (lighter fuels). Because few makers are willing or able to purify naphtha products down to strictly alkanes and naphthanes, internal use should be avoided without specific knowledge of their aromatic content.

From a performance standpoint, you can't ever trust this fuel in open containers. If you have a dip can, make sure it has a vapor seal lid. Make sure your dip cans are closed when fire is around, don't allow smoking near any large quantity of Naphtha, and try to keep your fuel station well ventilated. On the other hand, this fuel is one of the few that can be used for contact fire (raking), will burn off the ground for spin-out tricks, and produces the biggest, brightest, hottest flames possible. It's hard to extinguish while spinning so you can go absolutely crazy when you spin it. Also, because camp fuel sources tend to be fairly consistent in quality, you can bet on the same results from different cans of the same brand of camp fuel (different brands are only internally consistent).

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