a substance that speeds up a chemical reaction or makes a fire burn faster, often used by arsonists or in controlled demolitions.
From Latin 'accelerare' (to hasten), combining 'ad-' (to) and 'celerare' (to speed up, from 'celer' meaning swift). The suffix '-ant' indicates a substance or agent that performs an action.
Accelerants are crucial in forensic science—fire investigators can identify which accelerant was used by analyzing the burn patterns and chemical residue, which often proves whether a fire was accidental or deliberately set.
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