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Ice Bomb
Materials
- 1 liter ice water
- Lots of dry-ice chunks
- Ethanol - enough to cover cast-iron ice bomb
- 1 liter beaker
- cast-iron ice bomb with plug
- safety shield
- unbreakable pan (metal or plastic)
- something to cover pan with - old ceiling tile works well
- stirring rod
- tongs - to pick up fragments of the bomb to display to the class
Procedure
- Fill the ice bomb with ice water by imersing it in a 1 liter beaker filled with ice water. Screw the plug loosely into the immersed opening of the bomb.
- Prepare a safety shield with wich to cover the bomb during the presentation. (I used the safety shield, and then a small piece of ceiling tile to cover the pan. A heavy cloth would work as well).
- Fill the unbreakable pan to a depth of about 5cm with small chunks of dry ice. Pour in the Ethanol and make a slush.
Presentation
- Wear Safety goggles!!!!
- Remove the bomb from the ice bath and tighten its plug. Quickly place the bomb in the pan with the ethanol-dry ice slush, and cover the box with the heavy cloth (or ceiling tile) and stand back. In about 1 minute the bomb will rupture into several large pieces of shrapnel. Throwing the cover up to a height of about 50cm. Display the cast-iron fragments, which are about 8 mm thick.
Hazards
Do not use a glass vessel to hold the dry ice slush. When the bomb ruptures, it will break the glass.Caution! If the bomb does not detonate within a minute, DO NOT immediately uncover it to see what has happened. Allow the whole assembly (dry ice bath, bomb, and cover) to warm to room temperature before touching.
Ethanol is flammable so keep away from open flames.
