HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: brech@vision.ethz.ch (Christian Brechbuehler)
Subject: Re: Magnesium flare
Organization: Institute for Communication Technology, ETH Zuerich
Date: Thu, 20 Aug 1992 10:44:07 GMT

In article <1992Aug19.175812.22103@smartstar.com>,
	 syspb@smartstar.com (Paul) writes:

|> Does anyone know how they make magnesuim flares?
I have no good experiences with Mg.

|> I know how to make flash powder, but I want to slow the burning down.
Yup, that's the idea.

|> Aluminum powder would probably work just as well as magnesium.
Al works fine for me. I made _stars_ starting from a star composition
in the (Gopher) PyroGuide 3 file:

	Brilliant White

	Potassium Perchlorate 12
	Aluminum Dust         4
	Dextrine              1
	Bind with water  

As I posted before, I guess this composition is overoxidized; the stoi-
chiometric mixture 3 KClO4 + 8 Al gives the mass ratio 415.647 to 
215.852, or 65.8% to 34.2%. I increased the Al content to 8 parts (40%,
if the binder is ignored). It is desirable to have an excess of Al,
as it will burn in atmospheric oxygen and give more light. An excess
of KClO4 is a waste (if only of your money). I use wheat starch (wall
paper ?) paste instead of dextrine. The stars are very difficult to 
light with a match; they need a priming. I use a slurry of meal black 
powder in an acetone solution of cellulose (mono-?)nitrate (nitro
lacquer). They ignite very well an burn fiercely and very brightly. 
When you light a single star it may take off an go flying, propelled
by the gases produced (remember go-getters).

I'm aware that a flare is quite a different thing from a star. You'll
have to slow the burning rate a lot; adding more paste or sugar or
sawdust should help. I haven't tried this.


Good luck

	Christian Brechbuehler
	
	Communication Technology Lab, Image Science Group
	Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) Zurich, Switzerland
From: ckp@netcom.com (Charles Pooley)
Newsgroups: rec.pyrotechnics
Subject: Silver acetylide
Keywords: boom Ag2C2
Date: 22 Aug 92 01:12:07 GMT
Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services  (408 241-9760 guest)

An interesting explosive is Ag2C2, silver acetylide.  It's amazingly
easy to make: bubble acetylene through a solution of silver nitrate.
   C2H2  +  AgNO3   =   HNO3  +  Ag@C2 (precipitate)
The dark grey powder forms immediately, and it's insoluble.  Let settle,
add water, stir, let settle, and decant (this to remove the HNO3).
The powder is not impact sensitive, but very heat sensitive (over several
hundres degrees).  A spec placed on a 300 watt bulb will go off after
bulb gets hot enough.
As the products of the decomposition is silver and carbon, I had wanted
to test some in a vacuum, to see if entrained air was necessary to make
an explosion.  Otherwise it must be silver vapor...

-- 
Charles Pooley                  ckp@netcom.com    GEnie  c.pooley
EE consultant, Los Angeles, CA
From: dshelton@galaxy.gov.bc.ca
Newsgroups: rec.pyrotechnics
Subject: Re: Flash powder ....
Date: 18 Aug 92 09:38:09 -0700
Organization: BC Systems Corporation


> However mixtures of KMnO4 KClO4 Al have shown
> promise. They tend to be easily ignited (due to the KMnO4) and
> burn very bright and verrrrry quickly. A little confinement makes
> a great flash cracker (Verrry loud and verrry bright).
> I don't have any quantitative measurements of the appropriate
> mixing proportions (I am only experimenting with very small
> amounts - sub gram), however the ratios do not seem to be crucial,
> and pleasing results are easily obtained with a little 
> experimenting.
> 
> Definitely better than a bought one!


I've used straight KMnO4 and Al or KMnO4 and Mg in the past and agree
that it's a very fast burning mixture - the ratios I've calculated are:
10 gms of KMnO4 to 4 Gms Mg or 10 Gms KMnO4 to 3 gms Al. These work well 
particulary if both components are in dust form.

I've had no sensitivity problems with these mixtures - caution at all
times however. Try creating a powder train from the mixture - two feet 
of trail should take less than 1/2 second to burn from one end to the other.
From: billn@hpcvaac.cv.hp.com (bill nelson)
Newsgroups: rec.pyrotechnics
Subject: Re: Story Help
Date: 20 Aug 92 23:52:57 GMT
Article-I.D.: hpcvaac.1992Aug20.235257.2164
Organization: Hewlett-Packard Company, Corvallis, Oregon USA

jason@mercury.cs.uregina.ca (Jason Breti) writes:
: 
: The good guys want to knock you out (BUT NOT KILL YOU, and try to avoid
: singeing you too much).  So they want the fire on the other side of the
: North Door to instantly steal all the oxygen from the room, and the tunnel,
: to momentarily knock you out.
: 
: How do I do this without the fire killing people?  You can manipulate the
: above situation a bit if you like, but not too much.  The fire can occur 
: elsewhere, or can be made of various materials, but we need to knock our
: villans out.  Remember this is a story.  I will NOT be attempting it, but
: I want the fire to behave as it would in real life.
: 
: Ideas please?

Why insist on the complications involved with a fire? Why not just inject
some gas into the room? What do the good guys do if the villains have gas
masks with selfcontained oxygen supplies?

Bill

: 
Newsgroups: rec.pyrotechnics
From: sbonds@jarthur.claremont.edu (007)
Subject: Re: How to get aluminum powder.
Organization: Harvey Mudd College, Claremont, CA 91711
Date: Mon, 17 Aug 1992 03:03:47 GMT

loki@acca.nmsu.edu (Entropic Destroyer) writes:

>This may be off the wall, or at least off the subject, but I thought that,
>at least for making thermite, you didn't want the aluminum ground up that
>fine, because surface oxidation would destroy a lot of its activity.  Am
>I totally wrong in this, or is thermite just a different case from rocket
>fuel?

For thermite you want as fine as you can get-- 80 mesh or smaller.  Thermite
works much better if the aluminum and iron oxide are virtually homogenous.

  -- 007
-- 
 000   000  7777 | sbonds@jarthur.claremont.edu
0   0 0   0   7  |----------------------------------------------------------- 
0   0 0   0  7   |        Childhood is short...
 000   000   7   |                    ...but immaturity is forever.
Newsgroups: rec.pyrotechnics
From: joec@fid.morgan.com (Joe Collins)
Subject: Re: Stink Bombs
Organization: None
Date: Thu, 20 Aug 1992 20:54:23 GMT

In article <1992Aug20.002221.21946@smartstar.com> syspb@smartstar.com (Paul) writes:
>This isn't really a pyrotechnic device, but it may be related.  

>If anybody out there knows what that brown liquid is, or how
>to make other stink bombs, please post it.  Thanks, syspb@smartstar.com

The famous rotten-egg smell is H2S, Hydrogen Sulphide. This is readily 
made by mixing iron sulfide with any acid, including vinegar. Heating
accelerates the reaction. Most of the bad odor stuff has sulphur in it.

Iron Sulphide can be (crudely) made by putting iron filings in warm molten
sulpher, mixing and letting it cool down. Break it into chunks when cooled.

The H2S odor is strong and horrible - do it outside. Be aware that it is
toxic and the odor will tend to deaden your sense of smell. Thus you
could be overcome by the odor without warning.

Follow the cardinal rule - small quantities.

Joe
joec@morgan.com
usual disclaimers....
From: lyn@conquest.ksu.ksu.edu (Myself)
Newsgroups: rec.pyrotechnics
Subject: Re: The gopher system (Re: FAQ)
Date: 18 Aug 1992 14:31:38 -0500
Organization: Kansas State University
NNTP-Posting-Host: conquest.ksu.ksu.edu
Keywords: Information system

   One comment on the gopher files, as the poster both times...

	For the MOST part, the files are acurate, and as safe
	as anything can be when working with things that are
	intended to produce powerful, semi-controlled forces.
	There are, however, a few errors, some of which are
	fairly important. A list of all the ones I could find
	follows, and I welcome any additions to it. Please
	POST them, and if someone would be kind enough to keep
	a compilation (I have NO room), I will post it along
	with the files everytime I put them up (usually when
	someone requests them, or 50% of the posts are 'what
	is this gopher thing?').

	1. Nitrogen Tri-Iodide can explode at ANY time, even
	   when wet. EXTREME CAUTION is advised, as this is
	   a fairly powerful reaction, and can literally be
	   set of by blowing hard on it. (Did this one with
	   a straw-I did use higher quality components than
	   the file calls for.)

	2. I seem to recall some errors in the formulae in
	   file 3, as well as some dangerous/unstable forms.

That's all Folks...

-- 
* NSA CIA BUSH KILL ASSASSIN FBI CRIME HACKER SPOOK RSA PGP DES DSS RDX *
* Spook Bait .sig virus-copy me against spooks ** Disagreeing with my   *
* I am Myself (lyn@matt.ksu.ksu.edu)           ** opinions is fine-just *
* You can flame me-I'll just throw a fireball  ** remember I'm God.     *
Newsgroups: rec.pyrotechnics
From: brech@vision.ethz.ch (Christian Brechbuehler)
Subject: The gopher system (Re: FAQ)
Keywords: Information system
Organization: Institute for Communication Technology, ETH Zuerich
Date: Mon, 17 Aug 1992 11:00:22 GMT

In article <9208170605.AA18652@dougal.teaching.cs.adelaide.edu.au>,
agbrooks@teaching.cs.adelaide.edu.au (Zoz) writes:



|> 6c. Net-Available Information
|> -----------------------------
|> 
|> The so-called "gopher files", a collection of 4 introductory files on
|> pyrotechnics, is available via email-request from brech@vision.ethz.ch.


Better you get yourself a gopher client and fetch the stuff yourself. I
saved my files from "rec.pyrotechnics", but now I know how to use gopher.

"gopher is a distributed information system."
		emv@msen.com (Edward Vielmetti)
Do an anonymous ftp to Boombox.micro.umn.edu, look in the directory 
"pub/gopher/", and get the sources for your system. Build the software 
and try it out. A README file at boombox says:

    If you want to test a gopher client without setting up
    your own gopher server you should configure the client to
    talk to "gopher.micro.umn.edu" at port 70. This will 
    allow you to explore the distributed network of gopher
    servers at the University of Minnesota. You can try the
    Unix client by telneting to consultant.micro.umn.edu and
    logging in as "gopher".

In many gopher servers you find a directory "Fun & Games"; it is number 4
from the top (on some systems you have to go to "International Gopher" to
find it). Position 5 in "Fun & Games" is "Pyrotechnics", and in that dir-
ectory, you find "Pyroguide 1" to "... 4".

Read "comp.infosystems.gopher" to learn more about it.





|> "The Big Book Of Mischief 1.3", commonly abbreviated TBBOM, is 
|> available via anonymous FTP at kalikka.jyu.fi, or via email-request 
|> from brech@vision.ethz.ch, subject "Send TBBOM".

The preferred address is "jyu.fi". They have removed tbbom. It is quite
bad anyway.

	Christian Brechbuehler
	
	Communication Technology Lab, Image Science Group
	Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) Zurich, Switzerland


Newsgroups: rec.pyrotechnics
From: jason@mercury.cs.uregina.ca (Jason Breti)
Subject: Story Help
Reply-To: jason@mercury.uregina.ca (Jason Breti)
Organization: University of Regina, Regina, Saskatchewan
Date: Thu, 20 Aug 1992 17:07:05 GMT

Hello there!  I need some help regarding Fire Behaviour for a story I'm
writing.  I need to know how I can get fire to behave like this (I don't
need super specifics, just enough to explain it properly):

Ok.  Picture this.  You're in a Military Complex.  A tunnel.  The tunnel
leads to a large room at the end.  You're the "villans".  The complex
is controlled by a computer that guides the fire fighting system, as
well as the automatic doors in the tunnel.  The doors close by moving
down from above (like a garage door).  The doors are fire-proof.
The computer can override or disable the fire fighting system.
The tunnel can be closed off behind you.

You break into the room at the end of the tunnel.  The good guys are in
an auxilliary room that you can't get to.  There is another automatic door
at the other end of the room (let's call it the North Door).

The good guys want to knock you out (BUT NOT KILL YOU, and try to avoid
singeing you too much).  So they want the fire on the other side of the
North Door to instantly steal all the oxygen from the room, and the tunnel,
to momentarily knock you out.

How do I do this without the fire killing people?  You can manipulate the
above situation a bit if you like, but not too much.  The fire can occur 
elsewhere, or can be made of various materials, but we need to knock our
villans out.  Remember this is a story.  I will NOT be attempting it, but
I want the fire to behave as it would in real life.

Ideas please?

Newsgroups: rec.pyrotechnics
From: technews@iitmax.iit.edu (Kevin Kadow)
Subject: Re: Merck Index
Organization: Technology News, IIT, Chicago, IL
Date: Wed, 12 Aug 92 19:56:24 GMT

In article <1992Aug11.163630.4010@midway.uchicago.edu> ar12@midway.uchicago.edu writes:
)Just a comment on the Merck-
)They typically sell for $30- not $100 as someone suggested.
)Andre
).
)

We got our (fine, leather? bound) copy of the eleventh edition from the
publisher for $35, and worth every penny.

-- 
          Thank you for not trying to raise my consciousness.

technews@iitmax.iit.edu                           kadokev@harpo.iit.edu
                         My Employer Disagrees.
Newsgroups: rec.pyrotechnics
From: haba@lesti.hut.fi (Harri "Haba" Suomalainen)
Subject: Re: Getting Al powder
Organization: Helsinki University of Technology, Finland
Date: 20 Aug 92 22:40:36

In article <hp48sx.714252380@wuarchive.wustl.edu> hp48sx@wupost.wustl.edu (HP48SX Archive Maintainer) writes:

   European contact (I live in Denmark) was quite expensive, about $400+
   for 500 grams of 99% Al. So I asked them to contact their US contacts to
   look for prices there, as I was told that it costs nly about $4-5 per
   kg. over there.

Prize depends highly on the quality. I guess your 99% is called "p.A. or z.A."
ie. analysis quality. That quality has usually the list of impurities and
how much there is any perticular impurity. Manufacturer analysis avery batch
they make so you'd know what you get. That makes it so damn costy.

If you get lower grade Al it will cost only a fraction of that. Usually
so called "technical grade" is good enough. (90-96% usually, no list of
impurities included) That grade is just fine for pyrotechnics, often it is
good enough for synthesis of something in the lab...

--
--
Harri Suomalainen        Harri.Suomalainen@hut.fi       haba@vipunen.hut.fi
Newsgroups: rec.pyrotechnics
From: billn@hpcvaac.cv.hp.com (bill nelson)
Subject: Re: a.p cookbook idea
Organization: Hewlett-Packard Company, Corvallis, Oregon USA
Date: Tue, 18 Aug 1992 05:23:05 GMT

cptully@med.unc.edu (Christopher P. Tully) writes:
: 
: Try going to your local army surplus store.  They (should) have old army
: manuals that give a lot of simple and SAFE compositions along with more
: detailed instructions than anyone with a BS should need.  I'm refering
: to such little wonders as the _Handbook_of_Improvised_Gorilla_Warfare_.
: Wonderful title, but it gives good and safe info.

Don't kid yourself, Chris. All Improvided munitions procedures assume that
there will be casualties in the making and using of the explosives. In a
war-time situation, this is acceptable. It is questionable is such is the
case otherwise.  If you do use these procedures, expect to have an occasional
batch blow up on you. Use them in a place where you will not be endangering
others.

Bill
Newsgroups: rec.pyrotechnics
From: ahahma@polaris.utu.fi (Arno Hahma)
Subject: Re: Chemical and safety questions
Organization: University of Turku
Date: Thu, 20 Aug 92 11:06:16 GMT

In article <1992Aug20.083235.19576@usenet.ins.cwru.edu> cd353@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Norman Spiney) writes:

>Does any body know about the relative safety and chemical and 
>physical properties of the following chemicals;

>a) DDNP
>b) TACC

>specifically, as TACC is a chlorate, will microscopic traces of 
>inorganic acids cause unwanted decomposition (possibly explosive)

Acids will cause decomposition. Depending on the acid concentration,
the decomposition may lead to ignition or not. In any case, acids are
very harmful in contact with TACC and that is probably one of the
reasons this compound is not widely used.

>I have very little data on TACC. DDNP seems to be relatively safe
>to handle as it is used commercially, although I do not anything
>about safety and precautions in manufacture.

DDNP is also safe to manufacture, there is virtually no possibility of
an explosion due to errors in the manufacturing procedure. You would
have to really try blowing things up to get any trouble with that.
What is possible is a total mess, if the materials are spilled around.
(The raw materials are very effective dyestuffs as well). One of the
reactions is rather exothermic ( I assume picric acid as the starting
material) and may cook off on the table (experience ;-).

>Is DDNP a suitable replacement for PbN3? The latter is much 
>easier to synthesize, but I do not like using chemicals 

DDNP can be used as direct replacement for PbN6. It is slightly less
effective and requires considerably more pressing to function
properly. DDNP is also less sensitive against mechanical action (safer
to press) but much easier to ignite with a flame (static sensitive).

>containing heavy metals (Yes I do care about my health and that
>of the environment).

Well, the amounts of heavy metals you need are quite neglidgible
compared to any other source of pollution. While manufacturing PbN6
the lead is really not the hazard you are concerned about. The
hydrazoic acid (easily evolved in high enough concentrations) is the
compound you should be careful with (a nasty experience speaks again
;-).

>Mark.

ArNO
    2
From: Jeremiah.Blatz@dartmouth.edu (Jeremiah Blatz)
Newsgroups: rec.pyrotechnics
Subject: Firecracker casings
Date: 19 Aug 92 22:56:59 GMT
Article-I.D.: dartvax.1992Aug19.225659.25354
Organization: Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH

Is there any reason not to substitute sodium bicarbonate in for
potassium carbonate to neutralize acid when mixing glue for firecracker
casings?

Jeremiah
Newsgroups: rec.pyrotechnics
From: cpbeaure@lambert.uwaterloo.ca (Chris Beauregard)
Subject: Re: Stink Bombs
Organization: University of Waterloo
Date: Sat, 22 Aug 1992 02:33:45 GMT

In article <w0_n4w+.ckp@netcom.com> ckp@netcom.com (Charles Pooley) writes:
>
>A fairly safe stink bomb with a built-in delay is made by mixing in
>a paper bag 1 part NaOH with 2 parts NH4NO3, dry.   The reaction, which
>requires water, goes slowly from atmospheric moisture and small amount
>of water in the AN (which is hydroscopic), then rapidly, as the water
>produced wets the mass.  After 2-15 minutes (not accurate timer, but rel-
>iable), the stuff becomes a boiling hot gurgling mess which is rapidly
>evolving ammonia.  Ammonia isn't too dangerous compared to some other stink
>chemicals.

I wouldn't classify this a stink bomb.  More like tear gas for those on
a budget.  It doesn't stink all that much.  However, it makes breathing,
seeing, smelling, and if there's a lot of it, just plain standing there,
extremely unpleasant.  The large volumes of ammonia this can produce
can be also be quite painful if you happen to have any open cuts...Ditto
for those of us who wear contact lenses.

It does have the advantage of being cheap and simple, however.  Just
drop the two chemicals together and watch the fun start.  

Oh, yes, about 2 parts NH4NO3 to one part NaOH by weight gives the best
results.  Ye old reaction is

                NaOH + NH4NO3  -->  NH3 + NaNO3 + H2O

As an added bonus, if you can recover it, you get Sodium Nitrate out of
it...

Don't leave this stuff around where little kids and adults can get into
it.  Sodium Hydroxide.  Very caustic...

>Charles Pooley                  ckp@netcom.com    GEnie  c.pooley
>EE consultant, Los Angeles, CA

Chris Beauregard                                cpbeaure@napier.uwaterloo.ca
Warning:  These premises protected by reality.
Newsgroups: rec.pyrotechnics
From: dingbat@cix.compulink.co.uk (Codesmiths)
Subject: Re: Rocket fuel
Cc: dingbat@cix.compulink.co.uk
Reply-To: dingbat@cix.compulink.co.uk
Date: Sun, 16 Aug 1992 00:35:38 +0000


>         Has anyone had any experience with using Ammonium
> Nitrate, Aluminum powder (missile grade), and epoxy as a
> fuel/binder as a solid rocket fuel?


Whats the epoxy ?  Some grades, especially for adhesives & potting
compounds are chock full of fillers, which would explain your "black
crud". I've found the clear liquid epoxies to be best for this sort
of thing, but I've also heard that the quick-set additives can affect
structural integrity at high temperatures - any comments ?

What sort of nozzle dimensions are you using ?  I think some degree
of crud is unavoidable, and the nozzle should take this account.
Certainly I'd look at a blow-out nozzle fitting, in preference to
having the entire casing rupture.

Polybutadiene seems more commonly used as a binder than polythene.
You need to obtain either in resin form, rather than solid, which
(round here anyway) is a little awkward in sub-truckload quantities.
Various hot melt rubbers have also been tried, with some degree of
success  8-)

Anyone tried using asphalt as a binder with this type of fuel mix ?

          Andy Dingley    dingbat@cix.compulink.co.uk
Newsgroups: rec.pyrotechnics
From: jws@billy.mlb.semi.harris.com (James W. Swonger)
Subject: Re: Stink Bombs
Date: Thu, 20 Aug 1992 18:03:08 GMT
Organization: Harris Semiconductor, Melbourne FL

 Ammonium Sulfide is also quite vile; I vaguely recall making this stuff for
stink-bombery as a child (I had a well-stocked chemistry set and my own
bunsen burner). It might have been H2SO4+NH4OH, take-what-you-get. I dunno.
Maybe it was bubbling H2S through the ammonia. Anyhow, I do recall a jar of
the result was greenish and was better left capped. Not just rotten eggs.
Maybe rotten eggs and rotten ham...

 Right around then I found out how much fun could be had with the jar of 
fine red phosphorus. Such an interesting little flame, such copious smoke.
1TBSP fills a house nicely...

 And that time I disassembled one of my Estes rocket motors looking for the
smoke trace part, but lit off the booster material by mistake. Altered the
ole' hairdo a bit, yes sir. One of my little brothers did the same thing
with some M-80 dust later (probably flash powder). Took about a week of 
hospital time for the skin to finish peeling off his face. Not a deep burn
but plenty dramatic.

 Fortunately the encyclopedia leaves out 1 important detail in the manufacture
of nitroglycerine... being as they also left out the importance of keeping it
chilled and basically of not being an idiot, neither of which prerequisites
were satisfied that day...

 Unfortunately my nifty magic-with-chemistry (or pyromania made EZ) book
disappeared. Had all sorts of good stuff too. Pyrophoric iron, etc. 
I wonder who might have taken it... 
-- 
##########################################################################
#Irresponsible rantings of the author alone. Any resemblance to persons  #
#living or dead then yer bummin. May cause drowsiness. Alcohol may inten-#
#sify this effect. Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain. Billy!#
From: u_banzai@mcl.ucsb.edu (Buckaroo Banzai)
Newsgroups: rec.pyrotechnics
Subject: Re: Rocket Fuel question
Date: 14 Aug 92 11:58:35 GMT

In <1992Aug12.134807.9367@news2.cis.umn.edu> mark@lenti.med.umn.edu (Mark Olson (CDC)) writes:

>   I've got a question regarding the HTPB (polybutadiene) component
>of a composite rocket propellant - how does one degass the mixture

Is there a source where I can find out how to make a HTPB-based rocket?
ftp sites would be great....
--
=  Marc Tamsky    u_banzai@mcl.ucsb.edu    KB6JWE  =
Newsgroups: rec.pyrotechnics