what burns a very pretty red

[leonvios]

i was wondering if anyone knows about a sticky paste type fuel that will burn red( a pretty red )and will not burn too vigorously cause i will be using it to show a non piro (female) for a certain date feb 14th although it is early i am going to make a lot preperation for this day? Any ideas?

<small>[ October 07, 2002, 02:00 PM: Message edited by: leonvios ]</small>

[mr.evil]

well i guess an alcohol or aceton soluble strontium or lithium salt, like SrCl or LiCl.

Or maybe you are looking for green? You can make a very deep green color with Boric acid dissolved in ethanol or methanol.

[leonvios]

No i am making a heart shape in an aluminium 2mm thick and it must be red and PRETTY and won't burn through it ive looked around and first thought of flares but that would make to much smoke and probably burn straight through.

[leonvios]

thanx mr.evil if there are anymore please post them. Also where can i get these chemicals i am willing to travel all the way south to france as well any information i will be thankful for.

<small>[ October 07, 2002, 03:23 PM: Message edited by: leonvios ]</small>

[Flying Dutchman]

I want to add one to the post of Mr. Evil.
You also can take a Calcium salt.
CaCl would be giving a colour of stone-red.
Strontium and Lithium have to be wine-red.

-FD

<small>[ October 07, 2002, 04:29 PM: Message edited by: Flying Dutchman ]</small>

[leonvios]

where do you get this from?

[Flying Dutchman]

I don't know what you do for living,
but I'm still a student and I can get it from school.
I guess it's pretty available in the UK.
but good luck with your girl! don't set the house on fire;)

-FD

[leonvios]

what is it sold as i mean. or a synth would be nice anyone.p.s i am also a student but no chemicals like that have ever been used where i am at.p.s.s thanx alot dutchman

<small>[ October 07, 2002, 04:44 PM: Message edited by: leonvios ]</small>

[Mr Cool]

Hmmm... somehow I don't think making a pretty red heart for Valentine's Day fits well into the theme of an Explosives and Weapons Forum...
But I am in a good mood, and I suppose it is related to pyrotechnics, a little bit.
You need a lithium or strontium salt, mixed into a hot, low-smoke LE. A good, easy to make base for your colour would be a KClO3/sugar mixture, a little low on the KClO3. K+ gives a weak lilac colour, so won't affect the flame colour much, and won't affect it very negatively even if it does. Don't use a calcium salt as the colouring agent, or your girlfriend will simply say "That's very nice, but why is the heart orange?" You need the DEEP red from a lithium or strontium salt, calcium gives a shitty brick red which isn't suitable.
You could probably also mix the colouring salt into a gelled fuel, but make sure you don't have more than three or four carbon atoms in the fuel or you'll start to get a yellow incandescent flame. Ethanol would work well. I don't know what you'd gell it with though. Also if the heart is too big the flame will lose its shape because of convection currents, you have to keep the flames fairly short in length or they'll get blown all over the place and it won't look as good. But this will be quite hard to do with a large area on fire.

You should have plenty of info to be getting on with, now it's up to you to do some experimentation to get it to work.