"hyperbolic" reminded me of "hypergolic":
Hypergolic

Definition
A hypergolic mixture ignites upon contact of the components without any external source of ignition (heat or flame).
The only field in which this is a desirable event is in rocket fuel research

a recent tv show (C.S.I. Miami) had a case of murder that was cause by such a reaction.

(in the presense of methane fuel-which burns almost invisible)

Hypergolic has a strange etymology: hyper- (we all know, related to Latin super-), plus erg (as in energy) and ol (as in alcohol). With syncope. Oh, those gutsy scientific neologists!