Setting Powder Afire

R

RC20

New member
In a fit of stupidy I got two powders crossed in the dispenser. Ok, no harm as it was caught but......

Hmm, I have ice on the step out front, lets see what it will do (if I have done this I had forgotten)

Took the powder laid it out in a 1 ft run, carefully lit it off with a torch.

Hmm, nice fizzle, very slow, had expected a faster burn. Just slowly ate its way down the length. Cool. Didn't melt the ice much. Didn't jump down to the end and come back the side or over top of ice, just nice slow steady burn. I guess if I want to have a fuse black powder is the way to go (no I don't want to do a fuse I am just pondering)

And then the torch won't turn off, the throttle knob is jammed. Ok, screw the torch off the bottle.

It was interesting it kep burning for 5 seconds or so, more gas and pressure held in the head than I would have thought.
 
Throw old odds and ends of powder in a 14 oz soup can. Throw in a match and set back. It will create a jet of flame like a rocket engine. Do at night for more fun. Make sure it is in a safe place and not pointed towards anything but the sky.
 
You guys must have gotten reminded as a kid daily ... "You'll shoot your eye out". :D

I just sprinkle powder out in the yard before or during a good rain storm. Matter of fact, I have about 1/4 pound of 20+ year old Bullseye I need to feed to the grass.
 
It's definitely more fun to light it off in a safe and responsible manner but feeding the grass will work too. You just don't want to try this with black powder which is more explosive than smokeless from what I understand. Powder burning in open air where it can vent is not very dangerous if you know what you are doing. I never do more than a few table spoons worth at a time. I don't think I would light off 1/4 pound all at once.
 
You have the right idea with burning smaller amounts. I lit a cup full, all dumped in one pile. While it still burned slower as you described, the heat that came of of it was intense.

And there is no stopping it unless your standing there with a water hose waiting for it.
If you burn it, burn it out where there are no combustibles around.
 
ice belongs in a glass with tea or bourbon , not on steps.
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That is why I figured I would try turning it to the sky for a re-run and catch it in the ice tray!

I sure was not going go put in a container as I had no personnel knowledge of how fast the reaction was. I put an M-80 in a can when I was a kid, threw it out into a lake. The lid came screaming back and clipped my left hand, I still have a scar there!

This seemed like a safe and interesting test (and yes it was dark so really cool)

Not sure on the lawn thing, its all over the map advice wise. Doesn't someone store powder under water and pulls out a sample and dry it out and test it? If it never breaks down.............
 
Mike38 said:
You guys must have gotten reminded as a kid daily ... "You'll shoot your eye out". :D

I just sprinkle powder out in the yard before or during a good rain storm. Matter of fact, I have about 1/4 pound of 20+ year old Bullseye I need to feed to the grass.
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Hell will freeze over before the nitrogen is usable by plants. Smokeless powder as fertilizer is an old wives tale.
 
Hell will freeze over before the nitrogen is usable by plants. Smokeless powder as fertilizer is an old wives tale.
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Yep.
It is also not a legal means of disposal.
At least in the US, the only approved smokeless powder disposal methods are recycling (can't do that unless you're a manufacturer) or a controlled burn. Who doesn't like a controlled burn? ;)

Aside from not being beneficial to your lawn at all, smokeless powder can contain some chemicals that are highly toxic to aquatic species in very low concentrations.
When the format changed from MSDSs to SDSs, a lot of the environmental toxicity and disposal information was removed from them, instead making you reference the individual chemical indexes for specifics. So the severity is not obvious if you look at the sheets today. But dumping it on your lawn is illegal dumping of hazardous waste.

As mentioned, the old MSDSs had a lot more information.
This is an example of the little bit of information found in current SDSs; this one for St Marks powders distributed by Hodgdon:
12. ECOLOGOCAL INFORMATION
Ecotoxicity
Toxic to aquatic life with long lasting effects
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13. DISPOSAL CONSIDERATIONS
Disposal instructions

If material becomes a waste, it may be treated by controlled burning in small quantities if permissible by
relevant regulatory agencies (such as in a RCRA permitted open burn unit or incinerator). Material should
be spread into thin layers and ignited from a safe distance. Dispose of in accordance with applicable
federal, state, and local regulations. Do not discharge into drains, water courses or onto the ground.

Local disposal regulations
Dispose of in accordance with local regulations.

Waste from residues/unused products
Care must be taken to prevent environmental contamination from the use of this material.
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Good info.

I came across some of the same and no disagreement, so I did the right thing for different reason!

Now I am sorry I don't have 100 lbs to play with burning various combo and patterns.
 
Strange, it had no effect on potted flowers.
I did not expect it to, the nitrogen in nitrocellulose and nitroglycerine is not soluble for plant uptake and I doubt there are soil microbes adapted to convert it.

The approved method of disposal is not over one pound at a time in a train an inch wide, lit only at one end.
 
I got about 200 rounds of mil surplus 30-40 ammo with my Krag rifle a few years ago. The brass had no neck tension and the powder was funky smelling. So, I pulled down all the components and ended up with roughly a pound of powder.
We lit up in an outdoor firepit one night. It burned very hot and brightly for about 5 seconds- almost like a road flare. It was hot enough to permanently scorch and pit the bottom of the metal fire pit.
 
Ahh good analogy. That is what mine did

The approved method of disposal is not over one pound at a time in a train an inch wide, lit only at one end.
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Have yet to see that in print!

Me thinks you can do it however you want, helpful not to burn something down whilst doing so. The Pit sounds like a ideal solution.

Mine was kind of a hammer head and handle the second time. The split at the hammer head as it spread wide and went faster and was pretty cool and I recommend it!
 
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