Preparation of Contact Explosives
This is part of a series of files on pyrotechnics and explosives. It’s serious
stuff,
and can be really dangerous if you don’t treat it seriously. For you
kids out there who watch
too many cartoons, remember that if a part of your
body gets blown away in the REAL world, it
STAYS blown away. If you can’t
treat this stuff with respect, don’t screw around with it.
Each file will start with a set of safety rules. Don’t skip over them. Read
‘em and
MEMORIZE ‘em!! At the beginning, there will be a set of general rules
that always apply. Then
there will be some things that you HAVE TO KNOW about
the materials you will be using and
making this time. Read it thoroughly
before starting anything.
Pyrotechnic
preparations and explosives are, by their very nature, unstable,
and subject to ignition by
explosion or heat, shock, or friction. A clear
understanding of their dangerous properties and
due care in the handling of
ingredients or finished products is necessary if accidents are to
be avoided.
Always observe all possible precautions, particularly the following:
1. Mix only small batches at one time. This means a few grams, or at
most, an ounce or so.
Don’t go for big mixes — they only make for
bigger accidents. The power of an explosive cubes
itself with
every ounce. (9 Ounces is 729 times as powerful as one ounce.)
2.
When weighing chemicals, use a clean piece of paper on the scale
pan for each item. Then
discard the used paper into a bucket of
water before weighing the next ingredient.
workbench or equipment between
weighings. Don’t keep open
containers of chemicals on your table, since accidental spillage
replace it on the
storage shelf. Use only clean equipment.
4. Where chemicals are to be ground, grind
them separately, NEVER
TOGETHER. Thoroughly wash and clean equipment before grinding
another ingredient.
5. Mixing of batches should be done outdoors, away from
flammable
structures, such as buildings, barns, garages, etc. Mixes should
also be made
in NON METALLIC containers to avoid sparks. Glass
also should not be used since it will
shatter in case of an
accident. Handy small containers can be made by cutting off the
top of a plastic bottle three or four inches from the bottom. Some
mixes may most conveniently
be made by placing the ingredients in
a plastic bottle and rolling around until the mixture is
uniform.
In all cases, point the open end of the container away from
yourself. Never
hold your body or face over the container. Any
stirring should be done with a wooden paddle or
stick to avoid
sparks or static.
Powdered or ground materials may also be mixed
by placing them on
a large sheet of paper on a flat surface and then rolling them
across
the sheet by lifting the sides and corners one at a time.
6. Never ram or tamp mixes
into paper or cardboard tubes. Pour the
material in and gently tap or shake the tube to settle
the
contents down.
7. Store ingredients and finished mixes where they will not be
a fire
hazard away from heat and flame. Finished preparations may be
stored in plastic
bottles which will not shatter in case of an
accident. Since many of the ingredients and mixes
are poisonous,
they should be stored out of reach of children or pets, preferably
locked
away.
8. Be sure threads of screw top containers and caps are thoroughly
cleaned.
This applies also to containers with stoppers of rubber
or cork and to all other types of
closures. Traces of mixture
caught between the container and closure may be ignited by the
procedure, WORK WITH CLEAN
CONDITIONS.
9. ALWAYS WEAR A FACE SHIELD OR AT LEAST SHATTERPROOF SAFETY GLASSES.
Any careful worker does when handling dangerous materials. Be sure
lenses and frames are not
flammable.
10. Always wear a dust respirator when handling chemicals in dust
form. These small particles gather in your lungs and stay there.
They may cause serious
illnesses later on in life.
11. Always wear gloves when working with chemicals.
12. Always wear a waterproof lab apron.
13. If you must work indoors, have a
good ventilation system.
14. Never smoke anywhere near where you are working.
produce sparks inside.)
No hot water heaters, furnaces, or pilot
lights in stoves!! Sparks have been known to very
readily explode
dust floating in the air.
16. ALWAYS work with someone. Two heads
are better than one.
17. Have a source of water READILY available. (Fire
extinguisher,
hose, etc.)
18. Never, under any circumstances, use any metal to
load chemicals or
put chemicals in. Fireworks with metal casings are worse to handle
than a live hand grenade. Never use any metal container or can.
This includes the very
dangerous CO2 cartridges. Many people have
been KILLED because of flying fragments from metal
casings. Again,
please do not use metal in any circumstance.
19. Always be
thoroughly familiar with the chemicals you are using.
Some information will be included in
each file, but look for
whatever extra information you can. Materials that were once
thought to be safe can later be found out to be dangerous stuff.
20. Wash your hands
and face thoroughly after using chemicals. Don’t
forget to wash your EARS AND YOUR NOSE.
21. If any device you’ve built fails to work, leave it alone. After a
half hour or so,
you may try to bury it, but never try to unload
or reuse any dud.
22. If dust
particles start to form in the air, stop what you are
doing and leave until it settles.
23. Read the entire file before trying to do anything.
24. NEVER strike any
mixture containing Chlorates, Nitrates,
Perchlorates, Permanganates, Bichromates, or powdered
metals don’t
drop them, or even handle them roughly.
These rules may all look
like a lot of silly nonsense, but let’s look at one
example. When the movie "The Wizard
of OZ" was made, the actress who played the
good witch was severely burned when one of
the exploding special effects got
out of hand. The actress who played the bad witch got really
messed up by the
green coloring used on her face, and the original actor who played the Tin
Man
got his lungs destroyed by the aluminum dust used to color his face. The actor
we
know of as the tin man was actually a replacement. The point is, these
chemicals were being
used under the direction of people a lot more knowlegable
of chemicals than you are, and
terrible accidents still happened. Don’t take
this stuff lightly.
The
contact explosives we will be describing use only a few chemicals. Some do
need extra caution
to keep from causing trouble.
Iodine Crystals
Though most people don’t
realize it, Iodine is not a brown liquid, but a
steel-grey solid. The tincture of iodine you
buy at the drugstore actually
contains just a tiny bit of iodine dissolved in a jarful of
inexpensive
alcohol, and resold at a huge mark up. We’ll be using iodine in the crystalline
off with soap
and water. We’ll talk about removing these stains later. If it
gets hot, it vaporizes into a
purple cloud, that smells like the chlorine in a
swimming pool. This cloud is dangerous to
inhale, since it will condense in
your lungs, and is corrosive. Since we won’t need to heat
this stuff, it is not
a problem, but you should make sure that you don’t let any iodine
crystals
spill onto a hot surface. If you don’t touch it and keep it away from your
face, you shouldn’t have any troubles.
Ammonium Hydroxide
This is just
good old household ammonia. Be sure to get the clear kind. The
sudsy stuff won’t be too
useful. It is made from ammonia gas dissolved in
water, and every time you open the bottle, it
loses some of its strength, so be
sure to use fresh stuff. We need it to be as strong as
possible. Some of the
formulas given here use lab grade concentrated ammonium hydroxide. It is
much
stronger than the supermarket kind, and is very unkind to skin or especially
the
eyes. It is a good idea to wear eye protection with even the supermarket
grade. Though we
don’t usually worry about this when using household ammonia
for cleaning, we usually dilute it
for that. Here we’ll be using it straight
out of the bottle, and it is much more corrosive in
that form. Never use this
material if you don’t have real good ventilation, as the ammonia
vapors can be
overpowering.
Potassium Iodide
This is a reasonably
safe chemical. You get Potassium ions in some of the fruit
you eat, and Iodide ions (usually
as Sodium Iodide) are added to the table salt
you buy at the store. So, while you don’t
directly eat this chemical, you do
eat the components that make it up. Don’t be scared of this
stuff.
Sodium Thiosulfate
Otherwise known as photographic hypo.
When dissolved in water, this will remove
the iodine stains left by touching iodine crystals,
and exploding contact
explosive. Not particularly nasty stuff, but make sure to wash it off
after
cleaning yourself with it.
General Information
This is a
powerful and highly sensitive explosive. A dust sized particle will
make a sharp crack or
popping sound. A piece the size of a pencil lead will
produce an explosion as loud as any of
the largest firecrackers or cherry
bombs. It cannot be exploded by any means when wet, and
therefore can be
handled and applied with safety. When dry, it will explode with the touch of
a
feather, or a breath of air.
The strength of the ammonia water you use will
have a direct effect on the
strength of the final product. If you use supermarket ammonia, the
explosive
will work, but not as spectacularly as if you use a 15% or higher (10 to 15
molar) solution. The stronger it is, the better. You’ll also need filter paper,
and a funnel.
A properly folded coffee filter will do nicely if you don’t have
the filter paper. If you’re
not sure how to fold filter paper, check an
elementary chemistry textbook.
Methods of Preparation
1.) Granular Explosive. This is the easiest kind, and the only
kind that will
work reasonably well with supermarket ammonia. Crush enough iodine crystals
to
make a pile of powder equal to the volume of a pencil eraser. Do not grind into
a
fine powder. Put about 4 ounces or 1/2 measuring cup of strong ammonia water
into a small
container with the iodine, and seal it for about 5 to 10 minutes,
shaking frequently. While
the mixture is reacting, get your filter paper ready.
While it is best to consult a book that
shows how to do this, you take the
circle of filter paper, fold it in half, fold it again at
right angles to the
first fold, and then open it to form a cone. Open or close it as needed to
make
it conform to the angle of the funnel, and moisten it a little to make it stick
in
place. Place the funnel over a container that will catch the waste liquid.
Let the mixture
settle long enough for the sediment to settle, and pour off as
much of the clear liquid as
possible before filtering the sediment. Pour the
remaining liquid and sediment into the
filter. The sediment (and the filter
paper covered with it!!!) is your explosive. The small
amount you have made
will go a lot farther than you realize. Particularly if you used good
strong
ammonia. Place the explosive in an airtight leakproof pill bottle. As this
explosive is unstable by nature, fresh amounts give better results than stale
ones that have
been sitting around for a day or so. Best results are obtained
with small fresh batches. But
as you’ll see, there are a few tricks you can do
with this material that do require it to sit
for a day or more.
The explosive should be stored and applied while wet.
2.) Paint type explosive. This will use up a lot of iodine crystals. Make up a
strong tincture
of iodine using about 4 ounces or 1/2 measuring cup of rubbing
alcohol, denatured alcohol, or
wood alcohol. Wood alcohol is preferable. Add
iodine crystals and shake thoroughly until no
more will dissolve. Pour the
liquid into a fruit jar. Add the ammonium hydroxide and stir the
mixture until
the mixture is a chocolate brown and shows a little of the original color of
equal volume of
ammonia is usually sufficient for a 15% or higher solution. The
solution should be filtered at
once, and shouldn’t ever wait more than 10 or 15
minutes, because it starts to dissolve
again.
The explosive again should be stored and applied while wet. This material is
from a
solution, it is much more finely divided, and the reaction happens
almost simultaneously, so
you can get it out before it all vanishes back into
the solution.
3.) Paint type
#2. Dissolve 1 gram of potassium iodide in about 90cc of
18%-22% ammonium hydroxide. Add 4
grams of pulverized iodine. A deep black
sediment should start forming. Let stand, and stir
frequently for five minutes.
Then, filter as usual. While the potassium iodide is not an
integral part of
the chemical reaction, the dissolved potassium iodide will allow the
iodine
crystals in turn to dissolve, and its common ion effect will cause less iodine
crystals to be wasted. Since the iodine is by far the most expensive
ingredient, you’ll save
money in the long run by using it.
Care in Handling And Storage
Because
this material is so unstable it deteriorates quickly. Don’t make any
more than you need to use
in the next 24 hours. If you can’t use it all
immediately, the container you keep it in should
be recapped tightly after use
and the mouth wiped clean. The explosive can cause dark stain
damage to things
as rugs, clothing, chair seats, wallpaper, and light or clear plastics. A
hands and
clothing before they set. Never leave the container of explosive in
direct sunlight for more
than a few minutes, as it will weaken the strength. Do
NOT attempt to make a large explosion
as it is dangerous and can cause
deafness. All equipment used should be thoroughly washed and
the used filter
paper flushed down the toilet. Under no circumstances attempt to handle the
storing the
material in a container at all, there will be no chance that a
loose stopper will let the
material dry out and become a potential bomb. Tiny
bits of this can be great fun, but it has
to be handled with care.
Application
Although largely a scientific
curiosity, this explosive finds itself well
suited for practical jokes. It may easily be
painted on the bottom side of
light switches, sprinkled on floors, painted in keyholes, pencil
sharpeners,
doorknobs and in hundreds of other unsuspected places. It is also ideal for
catching locker thieves and desk prowlers. It will leave a dark stain on his
hands when it
explodes, and only you will know how to remove it.
Reaction Equations
Ammonium
Ammonium Ammonium Nitrogen
Iodine Hydroxide Iodide Tri Iodide Water
2 4 4 3 3 2
The theoretical yield of
explosive from pure iodine is 54.1% by weight. The
remainder of the iodine may be recovered
for reuse from the ammonium iodide
waste product by evaporating the waste liquid and treating
with chlorine if a
chemistry lab is available. The contact explosive is Ammonium Nitrogen
Ammonium
Nitrigen
Tri-Iodide Iodine Nitrogen Ammonia
2NH NI —> 3I + N + 2NH
3 3
2 2 3
Some Clever Uses For This Material
1.) Contact Explosive Torpedos.
Get some gelatin capsules, the kind pills are
made of. Fill the small half with uncooked dry
tapioca until it is half full.
Then place a wet blob of contact explosive about 4 times the
size of a straight
pin head on top of it. Either the granular or paint type explosive will
work.
The capsule is then filled the rest of the way up with tapioca until, when the
capsule is put together, the grains of tapioca are packed tightly, and none are
loose. If this
is not done properly, the torpedos could go off prematurely, and
the joke would be on you. The
torpedos are then moistened at the joints to seal
them and stored until the next day. They are
not sensitive enough until the
next day and too sensitive the day after, so plan your
activities accordingly.
These torpedos are the most fiendish devices made. You can lay one on
top of a
door, where it will roll off when the door is opened, and it will explode on
contact with the floor. If you toss one some distance away it will appear as if
someone else
was responsible for the explosion. These torpedos are ideal as
booby traps or for pulling
practical jokes with. They may be carried in a small
box filled with cotton until needed. Just
treat the box gently, and all will be
well.
2.Contact Explosive Booby Traps.
Prepare a small amount of contact explosive.
Cut strips of newspaper 1 1/2 inches wide and 1
foot long. Cut a piece of
string 1 foot long. Put a small amount of wet contact explosive on
the strip of
paper 1 inch from the end. Double the string. Now pull one end of the string
Lay this
double loop across the wet contact explosive and tightly roll the
paper and glue the end. Put
away for a few days until thoroughly dry. When dry,
pull the ends of the string and the booby
trap will explode. The strings, when
pulled, rub against the dry contact explosive, and make
it explode.
Getting The Materials
There are quite a few chemical
supply houses that you can mail order the
materials you need. You’ll have to sign a form
stating that you’re over 21 and
won’t use the chemicals for the types of things we’re learning
here. Note that
the people who run these supply houses know what Iodine Crystals and
Ammonium
Hydroxide can do when mixed together, and if you order both from the same
place, or in the same order, it may arouse some suspicion.
Check the classified ads in
the back of magazines like Popular Science for the
current supply houses. Order as many
catalogs as you can find. Not all sell
every chemical that you may want for this series. Also,
you can break the
orders up so as not to look suspicious. Lastly, some houses are used to
selling
to individuals, and will provide chemicals in 1 or 4 ounce lots, while others
prefer to sell to large institutions, and sell their wares in 1 or 5 pound
jugs. Split up your
orders according to the quantities of each item you think
you will be needing. An ounce of
Iodine Crystals will cost three or four
dollars an ounce, and an ounce bottle of iodine is
pretty tiny, but it goes a
long way. If you had to buy that by the pound, you might just want
thing.
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