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Zinc = black smoke?


bum

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Tried finding a way to produce black smoke-- I read in the Composite Fuels thread that adding 20-40% zinc creates massive amounts of black smoke...

 

So my first question is, are there special conditions in which zinc produces black smoke? IE, hot temperature? Could I just combine zinc with an oxidizer and expect black smoke? How hot should it be? What mesh size should I use?

 

Are there any other chemicals that produce black smoke?

 

 

Thanks!!

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Well I assume your composite propellant would consist of something like an oxidizer, fuel binder (Hydrocarbon), and zinc. The zinc is a fairly strong reducing agent so any CO2 that is formed will probably be reduced to elemental carbon. The black smoke is most likely elemental carbon. I am pretty certain if you overfuel anything with enough metal powder (al/mg/zn) you should get a black smoke.

 

Or you could use polystyrene and (per)chlorate. Polystyrene burns with a pretty smokey flame.

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Zinc oxide is white... and if Zn reduces CO2 to carbon you might get a greyish smoke with ZnO and C present... I really don't know.

 

Nasties like tar, asphalt, naphthalene, anthracene, etc. will give off black smoke when mixed with smoke mixes like KNSU... Don't know about proportions...Or how much black smoke for that matter.

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All the zinc based smokes I've seen were white to grey.

 

Donald Haarmann posted a nice list on PML a week or so ago. Like Asilentbob said, the most traditional methods use naphthalene, anthracene, and the like. One other thing mentioned, be careful with compositions of naphthalene/anthracene with potassium chlorate and Sb2S3. The naphthalene/anthracene will sublime over time increasing sensitivity.

 

When making stars it's possible to make it sublime much more slowly and waterproof by using about 4% "Caster oil". Note that Caster is not a mispelling. Caster is not Castor. Caster oil is a 50:50 mix of boiled linseed oil and grape seed oil.

 

 

This question came up in rec.pyro a month or so back. These from my DB.

 

Smoke HC black MK 3 MOD 1

Ellern #130 OP2793

Magnesium 19%

HCE 62

Anthracene 19

 

Smoke HC black MK 2 MOD 1+2

ELLERN #130 OP2793

Magnesium 19%

HCE 55

Anthracene 26

 

Smoke Black

OP2793

HCB 50.0

Anthracene 4.1

A- Napthol 16.7

Magnesium 10.7

Potassium/Nitrate 9.4

Charcoal 5.7

Sulphur 3.1

Dextrin 0.5

 

Smoke star black

Allen

Potassium/chlorate 20 pts

Antimony/sulphide 7

Naphthalene 12

Charcoal 2

Gum/arabic 2

 

Smoke dragon black

Allen

Potassium/chlorate 20 pts

Charcoal fine 2

Antimony/sulphide 7

Naphthalene 12

Gum/arabic 2

 

Smoke black with Flame

Allen [Jap]

Potassium/chlorate 20 pts

Charcoal fine 2

Antimony/sulphide 7

Naphthalene 12

Gum/arabic 2

 

Smoke black

Allen [Jap]

Potassium/chlorate 20 pts

Rosin 1

Antimony/sulphide 7

Naphthalene 11

Dextrin 16

 

Smoke black

Allen [Jap]

Potassium/chlorate 20 pts

Charcoal fine 4

Rosin 3

Naphthalene 14

 

Smoke pot black

Allen [Hitt]

Potassium/nitrate 7 pts

Barium/nitrate 1

Stearin 1

Red/gum 3

 

Smoke black bulk

Allen [Hitt]

Aluminum fine 3 pts

HCE 48

Anthracene 16

 

Smoke black bulk

Allen [Hitt]

Aluminum fine 5 pts

HCE 24

Anthracene 2

Nitro napthelene scl

A dust substitute 6

 

Smoke black

Allen

Aluminum 6 pts

Anthracene 8

HCE 24

 

Smoke black

Lancaster 3 pg324

HCE 60%

Anthracene 20

Magnesium fine 20

 

Smoke black anthracene I

Lancaster 3 pg375

Potassium/perchlorate 56%

Anthracene 33

Sulphur 11

 

Smoke black Napthelene I

Lancaster 3 pg376

Potassium/chlorate 44% This may have been I

was referring to, except

Antimony/sulphide 24 using dextrin.

Worked very well but beware of

Napthelene 26 of short shelf

life and danger mentioned.

Glutinous rice starch 6

 

Smoke black Anthracene

Lancaster 3 pg376

Potassium/perchlorate 57%

Anthracene 40

Hemp coal 3

Glutnous rice starch 7+

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I don't mean to say that mubles is wrong and mubles may have posted some of these already but here the are

 

http://i2.tinypic.com/6gwzrd3.jpg

 

And I got this from thegreenman.me.uk they have some good stuff like coloreds smokes to if thats your thing so check it out.

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