Thermite vs Car!
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 95
From:
RE: Thermite vs Car!
I did this experiment in high school after nagging the chemistry teacher for years. Once we were on the topic of exothermic reactions, well... the rest is history. We used a chemical reaction as the catalyst to start the thermite, and used a ceramic bowl in a large bucket of sand to contain it. Needless to say, the bowl easily cracked into pieces and a large column of glass formed in the bucket of sand as the thermite melted relentlessly into the sand.
Good fun, not recommended to do on a large scale - they reaction tends to burn very hot by nature and spews chunks out in all directions.
Good fun, not recommended to do on a large scale - they reaction tends to burn very hot by nature and spews chunks out in all directions.
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RE: Thermite vs Car!
ORIGINAL: jhowkins
I did this experiment in high school after nagging the chemistry teacher for years. Once we were on the topic of exothermic reactions, well... the rest is history. We used a chemical reaction as the catalyst to start the thermite, and used a ceramic bowl in a large bucket of sand to contain it. Needless to say, the bowl easily cracked into pieces and a large column of glass formed in the bucket of sand as the thermite melted relentlessly into the sand.
Good fun, not recommended to do on a large scale - they reaction tends to burn very hot by nature and spews chunks out in all directions.
I did this experiment in high school after nagging the chemistry teacher for years. Once we were on the topic of exothermic reactions, well... the rest is history. We used a chemical reaction as the catalyst to start the thermite, and used a ceramic bowl in a large bucket of sand to contain it. Needless to say, the bowl easily cracked into pieces and a large column of glass formed in the bucket of sand as the thermite melted relentlessly into the sand.
Good fun, not recommended to do on a large scale - they reaction tends to burn very hot by nature and spews chunks out in all directions.
Been Around A Long Time Member
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 1,110
From:
RE: Thermite vs Car!
go to wally world, find the cheapest, biggest etch-a-sketch there, and buy a couple of em. Crack em open, the powder inside is powdered aluminum. Theres one ingredient. As far as rust goes, well who doesnt know how to get a nail rusty. file the rust, or grind it, and mix the two together. light it with a sparker in a flowerpot, and put the flowerpot on something that it can burn through, a few feet in the air. keep rocks AWAY FROM THE THERMITE. NEVER PUT ROCKS BENEATH OR AROUND IT. they can heat up and explode like hand grenades. Never use anything that can start on fire, like wood. if you MUST, dig a small hole in the earth, clear away any grass, leaves, etc and light it there. thermite does NOT need oxygen to combust. in other words, fire extinguishers, water, and anything you would normally use to put out a fire will do nothing, and most likely make it worse. Esp water, like 00 said^. (well it does need oxygen, but the iron oxide supplies the oxy to the al) Assume that once its started, your putting it out till its done burning.
with that said, have some fun!
with that said, have some fun!
Been Around A Long Time Member
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 999
RE: Thermite vs Car!
hahah.. the shadow...
yeah we used to make this stuff at home in highschool and melt all kinds of crap....
this one kid said he used it on a payphone to steal all the quarters.. but i kinda doubt it. seems like you could ruin the quarters too.
yeah we used to make this stuff at home in highschool and melt all kinds of crap....
this one kid said he used it on a payphone to steal all the quarters.. but i kinda doubt it. seems like you could ruin the quarters too.
