Chemistry and Science Explanation of Luthang Gapuyan or Fire Piston

Fire piston was invented in "Dipag" now Dipolog City in the modern Zamboanga del Norte, island of Mindanao, the Philippines over 1,500 years ago by a Subanen tribe teenager named “Anlangan”.

Scientific Explanation of Fire Piston

Problems:

Problem 2: What is the number that goes into C3?

Problem 3: What is the weight of air in the 16 liter tank (N2)?

Problem 4: What is the formula that goes into N2?

Problem 5: If you wanted to figure the total weight of the tank at 3500 psi, what cell do you change?

Problem 6: If the temperature was 92°F instead of 77°F, what would the new formula in I3 become?

Problem 7: What cells need to be updated to do that?

Problem 8: What is the final pressure in mm of mercury (mm of Hg)?

Problem 9: What is the formula that goes in L2?

Problem 10: What would be the final pressure if the end volume was 0.7mL?

Problem 11: What is the pressure now after some of the cotton burns (L2)?

Problem 12: What is the pressure of L2 in atmospheres?

The volume of the air in the fire piston cylinder starts at 10.0 mL and then is squeezed to 1.0 mL. The temperature started as 25°C (room temp) and ended up at 600.°C. The pressure before being squeezed was 740mm of mercury (Note 760mm Hg is 1 atmosphere). We want the final pressure. If temperature had remained the same, this would be easy. The volume went down to 1/10 its original size, which would make the pressure be 10 times larger (740mm x 10=7,400mm mercury). However, the temperature changed, so it's more complicated. We can start with PV=nRT; however, there are two conditions. One at the beginning and one at the end. So we need two PV=nRT formulas. Let P1V1=n1RT1 be the values before it was compressed. Then P2V2=n2RT2 would be the values after compression and becoming hot. Since R is constant, it is the same in both equations. We can exploit that fact. Let's solve both equations for R. In the first R=P1V1/n1T1, and the second is R=P2V2/n2T2. Since both are equal to R, they are equal to each other. So, P1V1/n1T1=P2V2/n2T2. Since the moles of the gas didn't change, n1=n2, we can multiply both sides by n1, which would cancel out both n1 and n2. Our equation now reads:

P1V1/T1=P2V2/T2

We know all of these values except for P2 (final pressure). So lets solve for P2 by dividing both sides by V2 and multiplying both sides by T2. We now get

P1V1T2/(T1V2)=P2, which can also be written as P1x V1x T2 /T1 /V2=P2. This looks like a good job for a spreadsheet. Since there's no R in the formula, we don't need pressure measured in atmospheres or volume in liters, but we do have to use Kelvin. So 273 gets added to the Celsius degrees.

The pressure in the fire piston will go up at the point the tender attached to the bottom of the pistion catches fire. (I used a piece from a cotton ball in my fire piston). When the cotton burns, it will consume the oxygen but will produce carbon dioxide and water vapor and higher temperatures. So the pressure should go up due to more gases and higher temperature.

Cotton is cellulose, which has the formula of

(C6H12O5)n. The "n" means it is a long chain of these glucose molecules. But we can treat it like it was burning C6H12O5. Here's the balanced equation.

2C6H12O5+13O2 --> 12CO2 + 12H2O

We can't ignore the nitrogen gas, which is 5 times the number of oxygen molecules (5 x 13=65). So we can add that to the reaction.

2C6H12O5 +13O2 + 65N2--> 12CO2 + 12H2O + 65N2

Looking at this we see that we start with 78 moles (12+65) of gases and end with 84 moles (12+12+65) of gases. Also, the burning will increase the temperature. The yellow flame indicates a temperature around 3,000 Kelvin.

This problem is similar to the last one but the intitial conditions are the final conditions in the above problem.

That was P2V2=n2RT2

After the flame heats up the air and creates the extra gases, the condition is different. Let's use P3V3=n3RT3 for the new final condition.

Like before we can solve for R on both and set them equal to each other. This looks like the last time we did it:

P2V2/n2T2=P3V3/n3T3

This time the moles are changing, but the volume is the same. So we need to keep the moles (n2 and n3) but we can drop the volumes. That simplifies it to:

P2/n2T2=P3/n3T3

Solving for the final pressure (P3) by multiplying both sides by n3 and T3 gives us:

P2n3T3/n2T2 = P3

Even though we don't know the exact number of moles, we do know the ratio of moles, which works fine when you have one divided by the other. So the 78 moles for n2 and the 85 moles for n3 that we got from the balanced equation works fine.

We can check the units to see if they cancel and we can check the logic. In the above spreadsheet we see that we have 85 moles over 78 moles. So that's 85/78, which will make the pressure larger as expected. We see the temperature ratio of 3000 over 873 or 3000/873, which will also make the pressure larger. So these fractions are doing what we expect should happen to the pressure which is to become larger when there's more moles and higher temperatures. Read more at Chemistry land

Canadian mining firm admits wrongdoings to Gukom State of Subanon Territories in Mindanao

 Gukom sog Pito ko Dolungan (Gukom of the Seven Rivers Region)

After years of violating the human rights and customary laws of the Subanon Territory, TVI Resource Development, Inc. (TVIRDI)  a Canadian firm later then admitted to its wrongdoings in a cleaning Ceremony led by the Subanon's traditional judicial authority in Gokom State.

TVIRDI, a subsidiary of the Canadian mining firm TVI Pacific, began exploiting the resources within Mount Canatuan in 1994. However, the company never obtained the Subanon's consent to occupy the sacred mountain, which is located within the ancestral domain lands in the Subanon Territoreis, Philippines province of Zamboanga del Norte. The Subanon Authority led by Honorable Timuay Jose Boy Anoy refused to give his consent to TVIRDI, because Mount Canatuan is sacred mountain to our ancestors.

Over the years, the Subanon did everything in power to protect the mountain; but with the Philippine government being a major investor in the mine, our efforts always fell through.

In 2007, with no other options in sight, the Subanon authority in Gukom State decided to turn to the own Traditional judicial authority for help. The Traditional authority, known to the Subanon here as the Gukom sog Pito ko Dolungan (Gukom of the Seven Rivers Region), agreed to step in.

After months of deliberation, the Gukom found that TVIRDI was guilty of violating human rights and Subanon customary law. The verdict mentioned, in part: TVI's refusal to recognize Timuay (traditional leader) Jose "Boy" Anoy as the traditional leader of the Subanon in the area; damages they caused to personal property and the environment, the physical abuse of certain individuals; and their failure to obtain the Subanon's free, prior and informed consent (FPIC).

The verdict required TVIRDI to take part in a mandatory cleansing ceremony and pay fines to the Subanon for their actions.

Initially, the company would have no part of it; but, "In August 2009, after a series of consultations, Honorable Timuay Boy Anoy was formally installed by the Gukom as the legitimate Timuay in the titled ancestral domain in Canatuan. During the event, TVIRD also publicly declared their recognition of Timuay Anoy's leadership and declared its willingness to discuss ways of resolving their conflict with Timuay Anoy and his Council" the Gukom state, in a May 18 Press Release. "The act paved the way for further negotiations of the other penalties."

Two years later, on May 17, 2011, TVIRDI took part in that Ceremony.

During the Ceremony, the company finally acknowledged that Mount Canatuan is a sacred site and admitted that they were wrong for desecrating it. They also admitted to their other misdeeds and agreed to pay the fines as stipulated by the Gukom.

"Since TVIRDI admitted its fault and presented themselves to Honorable Timuay Boy Anoy whose authority they violated, the imposed penalty could be negotiated to an agreed minimum amount," explained Timuay Fernando Mudai. The fine was presented by a TVIRDI representative before the formal opening of the Boklug Ceremony.

Some may view the Ceremony--and indeed, TVIRDI's admission---as little more than a symbolic gesture; however, as Mines and Communities points out, "For the legitimate leaders who have struggled for recognition (and lost much in the process because of their anti-mining stance), this event is more than symbolic. The submission by TVI to tribal justice marks a victory in overcoming the huge imbalance of power faced by tribal people like the Subanon when confronting such companies."

The victory is of the rarest kind, given how Canadian mining companies incessantly claim they're accountable only to themselves.

That said, with the ceremony now over, TVI has to prove that it means it. Mines and Communities suggests that "TVI should back up its apparent new-found respect for the Subanon, by assuring that the Canatuan mine is closed according to best international practice and by agreeing not to mine on the lands of other Subanon peoples without their Free, Prior and Informed Consent."

Subanen UN-CERD Complaint against Racial discrimination

Subanon UN-CERD Complaint from katutubo ako on Vimeo.

Back in 2007, when the Subanon first approached the Gukom Office, they also filed a complaint with the UN Committee for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (UNCERD) against the Philippine Government for its own role in the Canatuan mine.

As the Gukom explain in the press release, the government is just as responsible for what happened as TVI. Only they don't want them to go through a ceremony. They want to proceed with the complaint. As Honorable Timuay Noval states, "...our complaint in the UNCERD is against the violations of the Philippine Government to our rights, customs and traditions. The Buklog... is TVIRDI's compliance to the Gukom's imposed penalty."

 "Whether we accept or not TVIRDI's atonement, it does not matter to our UNCERD complaint because the fact remains that the Philippine Government violated our rights," added Timuay Lambo. 

"We are not imposing penalty nor requiring the government to conduct a cleansing ritual, what we are asking is an admission of their fault and commitment to protect the rights of indigenous peoples, first and foremost," said Timuay Jose Boy Anoy.

For more information, please contact: 

Soliling Eufemio Undadi 
Media Relations Officer 
Mobile Phone: +63 (0)921-254-6917 

Or 

Honorable Timuay Noval L. Lambo 
Gulang Gukom 
Mobile Phone: +63 (0)926-485-9820 

Or 

Gukom sog Pito ko Dolungan Office Block 7 Lot 8 Phase I Country Homes, Ayala Zamboanga City Email: gukom7d @ yahoo.com

Subanen tribal council, slain Basilan mayor named “Peace Weaver” awardees

Delia Bisquera-Biel received the posthumous award for her husband, Mayor Luis R. Biel II of Isabela City who was gunned down in March last year, while Subanon Timuay Noval Lambo received the award on behalf of the Gukom Sog Pito Kodulungan (Council of Seven Rivers) on December 2 at the Garden Orchid Hotel here.

Biel was mayor when Basilan’s capital town became a city in 1998. The Peace Advocates Zamboanga’ awards committee conferred on him the award, though posthumously, in recognition of his  “boundless compassion, noble vision and just peace for the people Basilan.”

“In the eight years since his first election in 1998, Mayor Biel built a city hospital, government complex, public markets, two bus terminals, schools, day care and feeding centers for children, multi-purpose and barangay halls, roads for farmers, cultural centers for his Muslim constituents as well as Christians, health units, and many more,” the citation read.

“He created livelihood assistance programs for the poor, farmers, fishermen, rebel returnees and women for them to enjoy economic security and human dignity. He initiated and encouraged inter-cultural dialogue and interfaith programs amongst his Muslim and Christian brothers and sisters,” it added.

The committee also noted how Biel “proudly promoted the new city as a tourism destination mainly for its people’s rich and unique cultural diversity.”

Biel’s family managed a transportation business in Basilan with hundreds units of buses and passenger jitneys plying different routes reaching even far-flung areas. Before becoming the city’s chief executive, Biel also held different elective posts in the island.

The entire city mourned his death as “it meant a loss of a father and loss of a builder of Isabela,”  Biel’s wife, Delia, said in accepting the award.

“He was a simple man but with big heart for Isabela City and for Isabeleños. He gave the contentment and peace to the heart (of Basilan people),” she said as she accepted the recognition before the award’s committee from Peace Advocates Zamboanga and the local interfaith group called Interreligious Solidarity Movement for Peace.

“His death, though, is not in vain, for men and women of goodwill continue to remember, honor and love him.  Truly, the blood of this martyr will water our meadows of hope for a long, long time,” the citation read.

The Gukom Sog Pito Kodulungan (Gukom), Subanon council of seven rivers in the Zamboanga Peninsula is composed of some 30 timuays (chieftains) of various tribal communities, whose total present population is approximately 300,000, mostly living in the highlands of the southern part of the peninsula.

The awards committee cited the Gukom’s mission of reviving and consolidating the traditional form of leadership and governance in their efforts to federate their widely dispersed (Subanon) villages.

The committee also honored Gukom’s role as facilitator, mediator or arbiter in communal conflicts among its tribesmen.

“As such, it is an authentic modern-day peacemaker who utilizes time-honored, traditional ethnic norms of conflict management and resolution.   Its continuing successes are reinforcing the Subanons’ sense of indigenous identity and pride, thereby empowering them to achieve their many hopes and dreams,” the citation stated.

Gukom, through the support of other civil society groups, also served as its people’s vanguard in their quest for better social and economic well-being.

“Indeed, this awarding occasion is considered as the most memorable event in the history of our Subanon people,” said Gukom chieftain Timuay Noval Lambo in his acceptance address.

Aside from it being the first award they received, the Timuay said, it also recognized Subanon people despite  “our being the most marginalized tribe in our present society.”

He assured that Subanon had been and will remain peace-loving citizen in this region.

“Peace-building has been observed faithfully and religiously by our Subanon people up to the present time. Where there is peace, the Subanons are there,” he stated in response to the common goal of the award.

Fr. Angel Calvo, PAZ president and chair of the awards committee said the recognition is given annually to individuals or groups who demonstrated consistent effort and works in promoting peace and development in different areas and fields and their communities.

Previous awardees include fomer Zamboanga Archbishop Carmelo Morelos, the late Muslim leader Professor Amilussin Jumaani, community worker James Alih Abdul and Miriam Suacito, Tausug women rights advocate Piang Albar, former Basilan Bishops Romulo dela Cruz and Jose Ma. Querexeta and Fr. Rhoel Gallardo.

The Peace Weaver Award is also part of the annual activity calendared for the weeklong celebration of the Mindanao Week of Peace. This year’s celebration started on November 29 and ends on December 05. (Nung Aljani/MindaNews)