Fireworks, extra effect

ammosmoke · Mon May 07, 2007 6:20 pm

I want advise on this one, could you help me out?

http://www.spudfiles.com/forums/added-effect-t7997.html

Sorry to post about a post, but nobody was reading the other post because of the boring title.

paaiyan · Mon May 07, 2007 6:25 pm

Uh, I do have to say that I wouldn't try napalm if I were you. There's a reason they used it for firebombing. Try some magnesium powder, that'll give it a nice bright white flash. But for fireballs... I'm not sure. Lemme do some looking and I'll get back to you.

super spuder · Mon May 07, 2007 6:36 pm

That guy kinda was onto something, if you used a thick card board tube to hold the propane, if you could get it to 4% i think it might work.

paaiyan · Mon May 07, 2007 6:44 pm

So napalm might work now that I think about it some more. You will want to mix in some sort of oxidizer though to make sure that it all oxidizes before it reaches something else flammable. And use it in small quantities, a little bit of this stuff goes a very long way.

pyromanic13 · Mon May 07, 2007 7:15 pm

use... shit whats it called? its..........red phosphorus! they use it on strike anywhere matches.

paaiyan · Mon May 07, 2007 7:23 pm

Actually, red phosphorus is used on the striking par of safety matches. Strike anywhere matches use some phosphorus compound.

The striking surface is composed of powdered glass and red phosphorus, and the match head is composed of antimony(III) sulfide and potassium chlorate. The act of striking converts some of the red phosphorus to white by friction heat. The small amount of white phosphorus then ignites, and this starts the combustion of the match head.

You could scrape that off and put it on there somehow I suppose.

ammosmoke · Mon May 07, 2007 8:11 pm

I don't know,, napalm sounds a lot easier to me... I realize that I would need to mix in an oxidizer, I put that in my post... But anyway, would that make the napalm unstable? Would the process of making the napalm be made more dangerous? And, finally, wouldn't I have to seal off the napalm in some way to keep it from drying out? (Its much harder to ignite when dry) Or, would the presence of KNO3 in there make it so that it doesn't matter when if it is dry or not?

paaiyan · Mon May 07, 2007 8:27 pm

Well, the presence of the oxidizer won't make it spontaneously combust, it still requires a certain ignition energy. As for more dangerous, not unless you're planning on heating it, which isn't part of the process anyway. I'm not a demo expert, I just like chemistry, so don't take all of my word as the gospel truth, I am not infallible.

ammosmoke · Mon May 07, 2007 8:33 pm

Yeah, well thats good, but would the oxydizer, in general, make it easier to ignite, for the purpose of the aerial shell?

paaiyan · Mon May 07, 2007 8:36 pm

I'm not really sure that it would make it ignite easier, more like just burn faster. The heat of initialization will still be the same. Unles of course, the oxidizer has a lower ignition temperature.

ammosmoke · Mon May 07, 2007 8:49 pm

So, would I have to prime it somehow you think? What is the ignition temp of sodium nitrate? I can't find it. Oh well, it would prob not matter because I don't know what my homebrewed napalm ignition temp is either...

EDIT: Do you you know what a good source of polystyrene plastic is? (thats what they make styrofoam with) Styrofoam is not very dense, and doesn't go a long way, making for a really long process, and usually a shortage of styrofoam is imminent.

paaiyan · Mon May 07, 2007 8:50 pm

so how are you planning on using this anyhow?

ammosmoke · Mon May 07, 2007 8:55 pm

I want to use it for aerial firework shells! I'm not using it for anything but entertainment, and a cool effect. I'm not selling it, nothing like that. I would use the shells this fourth of july, and most likely at my friend's lake property. Just for fun.

EDIT: Read my post up there one ^, in case you missed it.

EDIT: Dude, I just realized something, we both joined at exactly the same day! Weird.

paaiyan · Mon May 07, 2007 8:58 pm

So you're just adding it to pre-made shells then? Hmm. Are you going to be launching it from one of those cardboard tubes that you drop the shell down into?

ammosmoke · Mon May 07, 2007 9:03 pm

Yep, that's pretty much all I am planning on doing. And yes, I would launch it out of one of the cardboard tubes that comes with a shell kit.
I just thought it would be really cool if the was an orange fire-globe when it broke open. I got the inspiration when observed flaming napalm dripping from a stick. It looked kinda like liquid fire, and I was like hmmm.