The ignition temperature is the lowest temperature of a hot surface at which the inflammation of an inflammable material as gas/air or steam/air mixture occurs. The ignition tempeature is determined under prescribed test conditions.

 The lower point of explosion is the temperature of a combustible liquid where the concentration of saturated steam in air is equal to the lower explosion limit.

The explosion overpressure p_m and the rate of pressure rise dp/dt describe the violence of reaction of dust/air mixtures of random concentration after ignition in a closed vessel. The maximum explosion pressure pmax and the maximum rate of pressure rise (dp/dt)_max of combustible dusts are determined in closed standard equipment by means of tests over a wide range of concentration.

The limiting oxygen concentration is the maximum oxygen concentration in a mixture of a fuel with air and an inert gas , in which no explosion can occur.

The minimum ignition energy (MZE) is the smallest electrical power stored in a condenser, which sufficiently ignites an ignitable mixture of a combustible atmosphere by an electrical discharge. The MIE is determined under prescribed test conditions.

The electrical conductivity is a measure for the electrostatic rechargeableness of liquids and is usually indicated in the unit pS/m.

The transmission of an explosion of a plant component into another can be prevented, if both are separated by a sufficiently narrow gap.

The flash point is the lowest temperature, at which a liquid  delivers an inflammable gas or steam under prescribed test conditions in appropriate quantity that  a flame develops immediately at a contact of the vapor phase with an ignition source.

The laminar flame speed is the speed, where fresh gas with flame formations of movements flows under  laminar conditions towards the flame front. The flame front of laminar flames on burners is stationary, with turbulent flames, as they occur in most technical burn procedures, the flame front fluctuates around a middle situation. The flame speed of the turbulent flame amounts to a multiple of the speed of the laminar flame.

In mixtures of combustible gases or  steams with air an independent burn can reproduce itself only within a certain concentration range.

The border concentrations, where a explosion is just no longer possible, are called lower and upper explosion limit.

With a concentration below the lower explosion limit the mixture is too "lean" (it contains too little fuel). With a concentration above the upper explosion limit the mixture is too "fat" (it contains too much fuel, i.e. too little oxygen), in order to continue the burn after ignition.