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Author: Subject: Ammonium Nitrate and detonation
Beanspike
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[*] posted on 4-4-2003 at 16:57


I see it mentioned on here sometimes... what is E&W?



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Skean Dhu
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[*] posted on 6-4-2003 at 11:32


its the Explosives & Weapons(roguesci) forum, I'd venture to say that about 30% of the members here are also members at teh E&W forum
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[*] posted on 6-4-2003 at 21:19


Quote:
Originally posted by Beanspike
I see it mentioned on here sometimes... what is E&W?


http://roguesci.org then click "the forum"
N.P.
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[*] posted on 7-6-2003 at 06:37


Just going through old stuff(nothing better to do)but you all seem rather paranoid.No offense but AP is'nt nearly as sensitive as you make it ou to be.Maybe it's because of the crapy precursers I have to use(like 6% h2h02 and h2so4 based toilet cleaner as catalyt).Anyway just to clear it up AN and charcoal make a sort of blackpowder.

A while ago(few months)I heard some rumors about ANFO being set of by a few 100 grams of NC!Suposedly this was because after a few weks of soaking it get's sensitive enough for that to hapen.I seriosly doubt this unles the NC was like a kilo so can anyone confirm this?
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madscientist
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[*] posted on 7-6-2003 at 09:31


Whether or not an explosive compound will detonate upon being struck (or spontaneously) is a matter of chance. Acetone peroxide is unstable enough (thanks to those weak peroxide bonds) that it can sometimes detonate spontaneously.



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[*] posted on 8-6-2003 at 02:50


Ofcourse it's possible in theory but I've never heard of it hapening.Whatever AP we make at BS(used to I should as it seems permanently down)is/was probably too impure.
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madscientist
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[*] posted on 8-6-2003 at 11:21


Plasma had cleaned acetone peroxide detonate when he placed it in a beaker of water.

Even with the more statistically common sensitivity, acetone peroxide is extremely dangerous. And bombshock never was an authority on these matters.




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[*] posted on 8-6-2003 at 23:07


In that I guess it's due to the sheer impurety just about everyone had(3-6% peroxide solvent grade acetone,etc).Either that or the spontanious detonation killed them.

[Edited on 9-6-2003 by Iv4]
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wink.gif posted on 17-6-2003 at 07:10
Lot ado with AN


You can detonate AN with any pyrotechnic mixture in a confined space. Even with a thermite. Heat detonates AN easily when in a confined space. Molten AN is nicely sensitized by combustible liquids.
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wink.gif posted on 17-6-2003 at 07:25
Lot ado with AN (continued).


Melt some AN, but control the temperature, soit doesn't decompose. Then take some copper wire or a copper coin (but please make sure it's not steel coated with copper) and put it in. It will entertain all of your five senses. It will fizz vigorously, giving off lovely hot ammonia, water vapour, nitrogen, oxygen and nitrogen oxides. Not all of the copper nitrate thus produced will decompose, and your liquid will turn a lovely blue colour ( if you turn off the heat as soon as you drop in the coin).
It's all theory, as I deducted the above from the equation of the reaction.
Also, put two inert electrodes in molten AN
and watch as on one electrode, ammonia and water vapour is discharged, and nitrogen oxides and oxygen on the other.
Yee-haw! The fertilizer strikes back!
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[*] posted on 18-6-2003 at 06:22


Well NH4NO3 is said to detonate at 500C.The fielemnt in an incadesent lightbulb is at 1200 when white hot.
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[*] posted on 18-6-2003 at 06:43
AN detonation


So... you can take a small, 2.5V (or something like that) electric bulb, carefully break the glass and use the rest with the filament for detonation (in a confined space!).
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[*] posted on 18-6-2003 at 07:25


I supose so yes.Though their is the problem wheter or not the AN in the light bulb will be able to set of the rest of the charge.
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[*] posted on 19-6-2003 at 00:06


There's no way AN will detonate from the heat of a lightbulb! Search this forum and roguesci and you'll see that there are many who claim it can be done but never succeeded.

AN decomposes into H2O and N2O before the detonation reaction can even commence.




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[*] posted on 19-6-2003 at 04:01


Yeah that's what my chemistry book says.But it also says that when heated the last of it explodes.
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[*] posted on 19-6-2003 at 11:15


AN heat detonation only happens in VERY large amounts when the decomposition gases have caused an enormous pressure rise. I am talking about amounts of 10 000kg and higher in a confined space with combustible material.



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[*] posted on 21-6-2003 at 02:08


So it's still due to presure?
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[*] posted on 21-6-2003 at 03:06


Yes. Very high temperatures and very high pressures and it is possible. There are some stories on the net about that ship that exploded in texas quite some time ago. It burnt for days IIRC before it finally exploded.

But ofcourse, with flammable material, the oxidizing gasses coming from the AN might initiate a FAE explosion which then triggers the AN det.




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[*] posted on 21-6-2003 at 04:05


I assume it would have to be fairly large?
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[*] posted on 21-6-2003 at 11:10


It's the largest non-nuclear explosion in history isn't it?



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[*] posted on 22-6-2003 at 02:26


I guess it would be, considering the blast wave damaged property up to 20 miles away :o

I wonder if there was any soul left in Texas city with proper hearing after that blast. Bwah, blast is a word too weak to describe it....




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[*] posted on 1-7-2003 at 10:13


00Buckshot, this could help you.

A good way to spot if AN is in a fertiliser, is to look at the back of the box. You are seeking a fertiliser that contains equal portions of nitric nitrogen, and ammonical nitrogem. So if the back says

17.5% nitric nitrogen
17.5% ammonical nitrogen

you are right on. AN is present in the fertiliser. Oh, and DO NOT get ammonical and nitric nitrogen confused with ureic nitrogen, as urea is not what we're after.
The ammonium nitrate products I have access to in the UK come in the form of 'Gem Nitrate Chalk' fertiliser, or calcium ammonium nitrate. It is a mix of ammonium nitrate and calcium carbonate. Of course, not every brand of fertiliser containing impure AN will have calcium carbonate as the contaminant, but due to AN's great solubility in water, it is usually possible to purify fertiliser by dissolving, filtering, and then evaporating off excess water to obtain pure AN.

It is easy to remove the impurities from most fertiliser to produce pure AN, because the contaminants are not water soluble as AN certainly is. All I do is pour the crude fertiliser (little brownish prills) into a pan, and add hot water to it, and stir a little while to give the AN time to dissolve. Now, simply filter the AN solution. You don't need posh filters to do this, kitchen roll works fine. Just fold it over a few times to ensure it doesn't break up under the weight of the AN solution it is filtering.

It is wise to filter multiple times until no visible residue of the impurity is present on the filter. Once you are satisfied the insoluble impurutues are removed, allow the pan to boil for a good while until most of the water is gone. Do not boil the pan dry expecting to see AN crystals precipitating though, as the AN will maintain a liquid form under high temperatures, and evaporate off, creating some nasty fumes, and going to waste. It takes some practice to be able to tell when to stop boiling the water off, but here is a way you can tell.

Dip a metal spoon into the solution and then remove it. If white crystals form quickly, you should stop heating. If not, keep boiling.

When the water has been sufficiently boiled down, pour the contents of the pan into a different container and give the solution a minute to cool down. During this period, you will see the formation of solid AN, as materials are much less soluble at low temperatures than higer ones.

It will look like a yellow liquid at first, kinda like piss, then as more and more crystals precipitate, the solution will become thicker and thicker.

Next, drive off all remaining water from the AN by heating it with a hairdryer. Fix one in position over the AN container and just let it do its work. Don't put it on max setting though or it could burn out.

You will get a white, slighly yellowish tinted solid then. Store it in an airtight container (as AN absorbs water from the air), until ready for use.

Would you be interested in me adding pics to my process there?

Here is the product I extract my AN from.




I don't think ANAP mixes are that suicidal. ANAP performs well with only 8% AP, cap sensetive but not horribly dangerous as some people seem to think. I have heard of people using 20% AP for ANAP mixes. This is easier to detonate but one would assume more dangerous.

(I know buckshot's question is from a while back, but the info may as well go here as anywhere else)



[Edited on 1-7-2003 by Twed The Terrible]




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[*] posted on 2-7-2003 at 14:30


In case anyone was wondering, the NPK (nitrogen:phosphorus:potassium) numbers for ammonium nitrate are 34:0:0. This might be useful for anyone looking for AN fertilizer.



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[*] posted on 2-7-2003 at 15:45


with APAN, theres a problem with the AN being slightly acidic with the presence of water. obviously not too good, dont store it.

also, i wouldnt have too high a percentage of AP, sience with a lower percentage a shockwave going through the whole thing nicely is required to detonate, a small section could be detonated with a shitty messy shockwave(like a bullet hit) but it wont spread too well sience its not nice shockwave for self sustaining.

obviously, this means it is best to use round containers with a det in the middle.

i apologise if this post is repeated information




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[*] posted on 8-7-2003 at 06:45


Is it true that mixing Al powder, charcoal, fuel oil or the like reducing agent, you can increase its explosive power 3 times?:o
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