While my science degrees were in mechanical engineering (BSME, MSME) and not metallurgy, I have gained a lot of experience working in the industry for the past 25 years. I don't think it's accurate referring to me as an "amateur" in the field, or to my contributions to the discussion as "hot air."
As a retired Materials Scientist/Metallurgist (BSEng, MS, PhD), with long experience (35 years) in the aerospace industry, it is almost always true that the engineers I have worked with have effectively only "amateur" knowledge of the field. There are some exceptions, chemical engineers often "Know" metals by more than knowing their names
But, you almost expect that from the word Chemical.
I suspect that the typical ME is doomed to be a relative amateur in materials much as a mathematician is doomed to be a relative amateur in ME. Even though mathematics is so essential to the ME field.
It takes a fair amount of heat to ignite mag, but once lit it sustains itself and is very difficult to extinguish. I've seen it demonstrated at firefighting school in the USN. The preferred method of extinguishing it is to push the aircraft off the flight deck and into the water.
The relevant issue of much of metals burning is the surface area to volume ratio. The surface area is what supports the combustion, and the volume is the "Thermal Damper" that tries to cool the surface down and retard combustion. There is also the issue of the very hot temperatures at the combustion front.
If there isn't enough volume (fine particles or thin wide ribbon), the combustion rate tends to go sky high (because of the high temperatures) with no ability to self extinguish by heat transfer to the colder interior of the combusting item.
When highly reactive metals burn in bulk or fine form, the temperatures are often such that any water sprayed onto them will be decomposed and the oxygen contained in the water will be used to react further with the hot burning metal. In other words, water can aggrivate the burning, not extinguish it.
That is one reason why pushing the burning aircraft off the deck is wise.
I'm skeptical as to whether one can ignite a titanium pot over a backpacking stove. However, the information is useful. No sense in being careless.
I too am skeptical about the ignition of a Ti pot over a backpacking stove, but if it is thin enough and the heat is localized and intense enough......
So far, there don't seem to be any reports of burning Titanium cookware.
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