Welcome back to a beloved segment of Bastard Speculative Biology
Now we’ve had a few different posts I’ve done in regards to Flambae’s anatomy and biological functions that can be found organized in my makeshift archive I keep in my pinned post if you want to catch up on previously discussed biological functions of caloric metabolic processes as well as genital temperatures, and my personal favorite of the best fire extinguishers to use for putting him out
Next we’re discussing the way he ignites / activates his powers
To discuss how this occurs we’ll first look at the process of spontaneous combustion, which I believe is the method of which his flames appear. Spontaneous combustion is a phenomenon where a material suddenly catches fire without an external spark or heat source. It occurs by self heating due to exothermic internal reactions, followed by thermal runaway (self heating which rapidly accelerates due to high temperatures) triggering auto ignition. This is normally caused due to improper storage of flammable materials. A similar process to this is the chemical property of pyrophoricity where a substance ignites spontaneously at room temperature without an external heat source. I did look into this as a possibility for his powers, but ultimately determined that they did not fit the biological functions I was more focused on.
Spontaneous combustion requires three things to be possible: fuel, an oxidizer, and heat
In this scenario, we’ll look back on my previous research, detailing his metabolic conversion of calories to the overproduction of glycerol. Even though I had found a theoretical fuel source within his body that didn’t fully cover what triggered the ignition itself. I wanted it to be connected to both his emotional state and his physiological exertion. To do so, I had to understand the triggers of this energy release within the body, leading me to his endocrine system.
The endocrine system is dictated by the hypothalamus in the brain which controls the pituitary gland. This then triggers other hormonal controls of the body, such as the thyroid, adrenal glands, the pancreas, and the gonads to name a few. These hold the control of the metabolic process, release of cortisol and adrenaline, blood sugar levels, and sex hormones such as testosterone. I believe that the key to his ignition is through the endocrine system, breaking down the fuel source into its more flammable components. Glycerol has a high ignition point and is not generally considered a combustible material, however, building upon my previous research I realized it can be converted properly into lactic acid (the compound pictured above) which is considered a combustible material when exposed in its pure form to oxygen as the catalyst oxidizer in the process of spontaneous combustion. How then would it be released from his body?
We turn back once more to my previous research in way of his sweat. Sweat is triggered by the hypothalamus sensing a rise in body temperature from heat, exercise, or emotional stress. The nerves tell eccrine glands to extract water and salts from the blood and push them onto the skin as a cooling reaction for thermal regulation.
Here’s where we push the limits of speculative biology
Glycerol comes into play through this process. It is a predominant energy source within the human body stored in the adipose tissue (body fat). Lactic acid is produced mainly by the breakdown of glucose under anaerobic conditions, and subsequently released into the bloodstream to be metabolized by the liver and kidneys. I believe that, in Flambae’s case, lactic acid is also utilized in the process of creating sweat to be then exposed to oxygen triggering oxidization, which will then be subject to spontaneous combustion as the oxidization and presence of his external body heat would naturally lead to the chemical reaction.
In the same way that his caloric intake has to be elevated in order to produce the amount of consistent flames that he does, I also believe that he has an overabundance of hormones that are produced in addition to overproduction of lactic acid. There is a condition that exists called hyperlactatemia where blood lactate levels are elevated, but acidity of blood remains normal. The body produces lactate faster than the liver and kidneys can clear it. This is triggered by severe physiological stress / intense exercise without inadequate tissue oxygenation. Normally this condition is held by those in severely deteriorating, chronically ill, or terminally ill status of health, but for our purposes, we’re going to say that this is a semi baseline for him. It stands to reason that these levels of hormones, as well as production of lactic acid, must be expended for his body to maintain proper equilibrium.
If we go off the assumption that he overproduces his hormones for this release, both emotionally and physically, it would be considered detrimental to his health to not be able to create fire daily. In such cases where a power suppressor would be present, not only would his physical health begin to deteriorate due to the extensive lactic acid build up in his system, but he would also be subject to intense bouts of anxiety, depressive episodes, and unregulated aggression with nowhere to funnel the excess hormonal imbalance. In simple terms, suppression of his powers would be akin to medical malpractice at best and abuse at worst. That one’s for all you angst writers to have a little tidbit of medically researched trauma for our favorite flaming homosexual
I hope you enjoyed this segment of a bastard’s research presentation which took me four days of a fugue state and six attempts to write and post my findings as Tumblr kept deleting it. Have a wonderful day my Flambae nation.
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