Pyrotechnics

A collection of pyrotechnic compositions

Contents:

Introduction, disclaimer and notes on this document.

Chapter 1.........................................Rocket propellants

Chapter 2.........................................Fountain, gerb and bengal fire compositions

Chapter 3.........................................Colored fire compositions, flares and torches

Chapter 4.........................................Sparkler compositions

Chapter 5.........................................Smoke Compositions

Chapter 6.........................................Flash, burst charges and whistle mix

Chapter 7.........................................Miscellaneous compositions

Chapter 8.........................................colored stars

Chapter 9.........................................effect stars

Chapter 10....................................... strobe stars

Chapter 11...................................... .smoke stars

Literature references

Number of Compositions: 299

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Introduction, disclaimer, credits and notes on this document

Introduction

This book is a compilation of all the compositions I could gather from the net. I have copied them from various sources retaining as much of the original comments and tips, but have not tested them. Hence, I cannot provide much information on the performance, sensitivity, etc of the actual mixture. While the list contains several excellent compositions from reputed sources, it also contains several dangerous, outdated compositions. Please experiment cautiously and on a very small scale when testing any of the compositions in this database and test them thoroughly before using them in actual projects. If you find anything that you feel should be added, changed, deleted or properly credited, please let me know. I can be reached at wfvisser@dds.nl.

Disclaimer

This document may be freely distributed, provided that the document is unchanged and nothing has been left out or added. This document is provided for informational purposes only. The authors, contributors, and editors do not advocate the use of anything described in this document, and accept no responsibility for any harm that might occur as a result of acting on any of the information contained herein. Although good faith effort has been made to ensure the validity of the information contained in this document, no guarantees or assurances of accuracy are provided by anyone.

Credits

Many people on the net have provided, knowingly or not, much of the information that went into making this document. Whenever possible, I tried to include the name and address of the poster of the composition and a short reference to the literature it originated from. It was not always possible for me to trace a composition back to its original source, and if you feel anything should be more properly credited or removed or if your address

or name is spelled incorrectly or is outdated, please let me know.

Important note

Note that I have tried to give a short comment on the most obvious safety aspects of these mixtures, but have been inconsistent in doing so. I also left out most of the details and the standard precautions that should be taken during preparation

and handling of the mixture or its components. Procedures for safe mixing and other operations are considered known, and so is knowledge of combinations of chemicals that should never be used. The list does contain several dangerously sensitive mixtures. It is a must to obtain additonal information from reliable sources on the safety of any of these compositions before experimenting with any of them.

General notes

All parts are by weight. The abbreviation \\\'qs\\\', which is sometimes used, stands for \\\'quantity sufficient\\\'. In these cases the required amount is not very critical, and with some experience it is not hard to guess how much should be used. Additional percentages are given as \\\'+x%\\\', where the x% is a percentage of the total weight of the other chemicals. Sometimes compostions must be stabilised: Magnesium or magnalium must always be treated with potassium dichromate. Iron must always be coated with tung- or linseed oil. To all compositions containing both nitrates and aluminum an additional +1% boric acid must be added. Compositions containing both sulfur and chlorates or copperammonium complex salts in combination with nitrates or chlorates are extremely sensitive and should never be used. Compositions containing aluminium or magnesium incombination with nitrates and chlorates should also never be used.

Last updated: august, 1998

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Chapter 1: Rocket propellants

Rocket propellant #1 (\\\'Candy Propellant\\\')

Source: rec.pyrotechnics

Comments: This propellant is often refferred to as \\\"candy propellant\\\".

Preparation: It is best prepared by melting the potassium nitrate and sugar together, but this is a dangerous operation and could result in accidential ignition during preparation

. Dry mixing is possible and much safer but produces lower quality propellant.

Potassium nitrate.................................74.5

Sugar.............................................25.5

Rocket propellant #2

Source: