Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Zinc powder and potassium nitrate

kobayakawa - 13-3-2007 at 01:10

will there be any reaction with zinc powder and potassium nitrate plus water?
is it violent?

actually, zinc + silver nitrate + water can react, but silver nitrate is too expensive and easily decomposed...
can AgNO3 replaced by KNO3?

YT2095 - 13-3-2007 at 01:17

if you had Zinc nitrate and potassium metal it would indeed react to leave KNO3 and zinc metal, your way around is starting with the End products already. it shouldn`t react as there`s no driver for it.

Zinc is more reactive than silver though, and that`s why it works with your silver nitrate.


you Can use Ammonium nitrate and Zinc powder however, you`ll also need to add a little Ammonium Chloride to this also.

kobayakawa - 13-3-2007 at 01:29

is it safe to use Ammonium nitrate?
somebody told me that one bag of Ammonium nitrate blown up a building in USA

Levi - 13-3-2007 at 01:38

Ammonium nitrate was the main ingredient of the Oklahoma City bombing but it is not an explosive unless specially prepared with another ingredient and even then you won't be able to set it off by accident.
Anyhow, I'm not sure how vigorous zinc will react with it... best to try in very small quantities with eye protection. Sunglasses under your goggles may be a good idea as flash powders can be extremely bright.

EDIT: I believe it was a hell of a lot more than one bag also.

[Edited on 13-3-2007 by Levi]

12AX7 - 13-3-2007 at 01:40

It may not go quickly, but Zn metal will reduce nitrate, as KNO3 + 3Zn + 2H2O = KOH + NH4ZnO2 + 2Zn(OH)2 (well, that's almost balanced). Once the reaction is started, the ammonia and freed potassium will corrode the zinc faster (forming zincate ions), causing a runaway reaction. This reaction is more significant with magnesium and aluminum powders, especially in pyrotechnic compositions; zinc is less reactive and may not in fact react.

Certainly, reactive zinc metal displaces less reactive silver metal in the case of silver nitrate.

Tim

kobayakawa - 13-3-2007 at 02:14

Can you provide me the equation of between water, zinc, ammonium nitrate and ammonium chloride?
and what mass ratio are they mixed with?

BCPneumatics - 13-3-2007 at 03:26

Ammonium Nitrate mixed with diesel fuel is a very common explosive, but needs to be set off by something like TNT to be effective. It is used a lot when there is a lot of rock to destroy (Mining ore, building foundations, etc), and the US government even uses it in some bombs. (With a few additives, such as AL powder) I believe they call it GX Slurry.
Don't worry though, it is no more harmful than the KNO3 you mentioned earlier.

S.C. Wack - 13-3-2007 at 03:56

IIRC I tried both (unactivated) Zn and Mg on conc. solutions sometime in the past;, the only reaction was on heating, and was feeble and unimpressive. I got the impression that only traces of nitrite were formed, but then it was freely exposed to air. Much more of the nitrate was converted to ammonia.

Why not do instead of ask?

YT2095 - 13-3-2007 at 10:10

http://www.unitednuclear.com/negx.htm

and, "Ammonium nitrate is used in survival kits mixed with zinc dust and ammonium chloride because it will ignite on contact with water."
taken from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ammonium_nitrate

UnintentionalChaos - 13-3-2007 at 10:49

Sheriff, your formula for ammonium nitrate is incorrect. It should be NH4NO3

unionised - 13-3-2007 at 11:01

From Sheriff "When it is not anhydrous it is NH4NH3

NH3NO3 + H2O = NH4NO3 + -OH"

Pardon?

UnintentionalChaos - 13-3-2007 at 11:13

What the..... ?

Ammonia is NH3, the ammonium cation is (NH4)+
The nitrate anion is (NO3)-
Hence ammonium nitrate is NH4NO3
Please go read a chemistry textbook.

[Edited on 3-13-07 by UnintentionalChaos]

guy - 13-3-2007 at 11:52

Quote:
Originally posted by Sheriff
A chemistry textbook? What for? If you took the ammonium cation and reacted with an alkaline Nitrate and Muraric Acid you would get

NH4 + KNO3 + HCl = KCl + H2 + NH3NO3

I think you need a lesson of chemistry theory

If you added alkaline hydroxide prior to the acid you would get :

KOH + KNO3 + NH4 + 2 HCl = 2 KCl + H2 + [OH-] + NH4NO3

As you can see my chemistry is quite perfect as there is an anhydrous reaction and a nonanhydrous reaction.

Please dont argue who is right and who is wrong as half the stuff in a highschool chemistry is incorrect which is why they dont teach half the stuff in the textbook. The teachers avoid specific topics that are in textbooks by eductaional plans submitted to schoolboards. It is all propoganda to weed out people who dont know what they are talking about.


ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

Your equations are impossible! NH3NO3?! H2? There is no reaction in your first equation.

THe second equation should only be KOH +NH4(+) --> NH3 + H2O + K(+)

Excuse me, but you are the one that needs a lesson in chemistry.

Fleaker - 13-3-2007 at 13:06

This thread doesn't belong in Chemistry in General, rather in beginnings if that with some of the post quality. Sheriff, let me be nice and say: NO. I'm not going to bother trying to correct someone who is obviously so correct...
;)

kobayakawa - 16-3-2007 at 07:03

is the mixture Ammonium nitrate+Zinc powder+Ammonium Chloride have enough heat to ignite kerosene or naptha?

12AX7 - 16-3-2007 at 07:59

I should hope so.

kobayakawa - 16-3-2007 at 08:01

but large amount of water is used, so i would like to know about the temp to ignite kerosene