Gas that is released or produced after a primary chemical reaction or explosion, or fumes remaining after fuel combustion.
From 'after' (Old English 'æfter') combined with 'gas' (possibly from Dutch 'geest' or created by chemist Jan Baptist van Helmont in the 1600s). Technical term used in chemistry and engineering.
Coal mines were deadly places partly because of aftergas—deadly methane that accumulated after explosions, often causing secondary collapses that miners couldn't anticipate, making mining reforms in the 1800s crucial.
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