Roadflare crystals

[Methodicalman]

While futily trying to boil with H2o,a red signal flare,the pot,with all the original ingredients of flare,still in the pot,It is forgotten in the corner for 2 weeks,when found again,all liquid evapt.,But Bluish/purple crystals cover the mix,....first time seen this,anyone know what the crystals be ??Nothing but the inside of a road flare and h2o,boiled for 45 minutes and thensit for two weeks,....Nitro crystalsmaybe''need toknow ,afraid to touch pot too much,,BaBOOM

[ApprenticeCook]

Look up what is in road flares, more specifically your type of road flare. How are we supposed to know, some are different.

And why did you do this anyway?
-AC

[Xaja]

Man, I got no idea if the stuff really is in them but it has def been discussed before, at least on the old board (pre-2000) and I'm pretty sure it would have come again since, so before someone else says it, UTFSE!

[Methodicalman]

Did this because of suggested way,by a friend,to seperate the sulphur from the phos.,used to have a connect for chem grade P,,then went to ani., for a bit, then went with strikers,..that got old quick,...never did flares,..and that way he suggest,dont work,so pot gets tossed aside and spaced off,....Flares, Red, ae: RED phos(on striker,and mixed with black powder to make cap.(these are really old flares) and then sand ,saw dust pieces,and yellow sulphur`,.Dont know if it has small trace of red mixed with the later 3 throughout flare.?.The

[Methodicalman]

Yes it's in them,the old ones at least,and it's easy enough to get out.but cleaning it is a ---ch.The sulphur is agreeable to the same solvents as phos. But thats not an issue,...The blue purple crystals that formed from cooking the ingredients together is the Question,and the search engine aint no good for something I have no name for.Read the whole post before replying,please..cause I'm pretty damn sure aint no-one ran into this[purple]I'm a 20 year vet at this ,and I havent, till now.

[ApprenticeCook]

The RP would not be used to produce colour so it would not be part of the chemicals inside the flare, ie with the sulphur and colour agent (transition metal salt of some kind usually).

ie-->

http://www.ledlinc.com/safetyproducts/turboflare/data.htm

this is one i found containing strontium nitrate which produces the colour (blue?) and other crap....

are you following a totse method (oh dear....)

http://www.totse.com/en/drugs/speedy_drugs/162384.html

talks about road flares... the flares it talks about are still sourcing the RP from a striker on the flare, ie same as matchbooks... so it proves no easier but you would get more RP per flare rather than MB, which is obvious...

But it sounds ok provided you can get the type of flare you still have to bang on the ground (ie use a striker mechanism of some kind) to start it, and provided also you can take it apart without setting it off (oh oh!).

As for your mixture.... oh dear.... well if you tipped the contents of the flare into water and left it... the RP may not even be there... check the body of the flare for some kind of striker pad as with MB's thats where it may be...

What your mix is would possibly be a crystaline aqua complex of whatever transition metal (maybe) or something.... other than that you would have sulphur and misc crap... prob ok to dispose of it.... down the drain should be ok.

-AC

[geezmeister]

The red phosphorous found with the road flare is found on a striker on the cap of the flare and not inside the flare. There is about a tenth of a gram of red phos per striker. If there was very much red phos in a flare the smoke would be so thick you couldn't see the flare.

I once figured the cost of an ounce of red phos from flares, including solvents and sales tax. The cost was right at $300 an ounce. Matchbooks are cheaper.

[Methodicalman]

Thanks for all the help Bees.,,I think you got it on the nose A.C.,I had already pulled the plug and striker off.So I dont know why I was thinkin phos had a hand in the blue/purple mix. I was not aware of the Metallic color ingredient.So, while we are on that (round about way) I have another Ques' for The knowledgable. In the Black Powder part of those "Spark Shower" type fireworks,there are little pebbles or balls of a mettallic grainy look/feel,,What are They,...Magnesium ??

[Lestat]

I think magnesium MAY be used sometimes, a lot of the time, any tiny metal specks will most likely be Fe, try seperating with a magnet, that will tell if it's Fe or not.

If it's largish balls of material you have, its gunpowder, sometimes with colorants made of aforementioned transition metal salts.

[ApprenticeCook]

Please dont say your making a habit of taking apart pyrotechnics....

use google and find pages with info on them... transition metal compounds are used in small amounts for colour agents, group 1&2 metals give bright tones but no colour, so you may have magnesium, but as its said you may well have iron....

I would make a practice of taking them apart anymore, just look on the net.... your too prone to losing your hands in these excersizes....

-AC

[Lestat]

[Drug_Phreak]