Re: "Forest Fire" responsible for a 2.5mi *mushroom cloud*?
At 06:59 AM 9/14/04 +1200, Peter Gutmann wrote:
(The nitrate was desensitised with ammonium sulfate and stored outside,
whenever anyone needed any they'd drill holes and blast off chunks with
dynamite.
AN is extremely deliquescent; perhaps the sulphate was for that? Removing chunks with dynamite is trying rather hard for a Darwin award. When I was a teen I would save the instant-cold packs after soccer games, and recrystalize the AN within. It melts and gives off bubbles but I never collected enough N20 nor did it detonate.
-- On 13 Sep 2004 at 12:50, Major Variola (ret) wrote:
When I was a teen I would save the instant-cold packs after soccer games, and recrystalize the AN within. It melts and gives off bubbles but I never collected enough N20 nor did it detonate.
You need a lot of heat to detonate AN, but I have never failed to detonate it. Perhaps your stuff was contaminated with water or stabilizer, or perhaps you need a better flame. --digsig James A. Donald 6YeGpsZR+nOTh/cGwvITnSR3TdzclVpR0+pr3YYQdkG fi2djYWevOtkRUevhH2YeK5Q2byRVZ/KV1oTz6Kw 4wBDsSosJ6pBM+R7BpJsx2B+Bj//NSN+TD64XPR4S
"Major Variola (ret)" <mv@cdc.gov> writes:
AN is extremely deliquescent; perhaps the sulphate was for that?
No, it was specifically required as a desensitiser by the European nitrogen cartel, since they felt the pure nitrate was too dangerous for processing into fertiliser.
Removing chunks with dynamite is trying rather hard for a Darwin award.
As I said, at the time its explosive properties weren't known so this wasn't unreasonable. There are numerous stories of multi-thousand-ton ammonium nitrate piles burning for hours without exploding (Oppau was the first time there was any significant explosion involving it). Even after Texas City, there were cases of (embarrassed) firefighters watching warehouses full of ammonium nitrate quietly burn to the ground without incident. Peter.
participants (3)
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James A. Donald -
Major Variola (ret) -
pgut001＠cs.auckland.ac.nz