Is an M-80 really equivalent to a quarter stick of dynamite? What does the
degnisation "M-80" stand for? Anyway, not being an explosives expert and
with all of this dangerous fireworks hipe from the media, I am just curious.
-Thanks, Tim
All rise the WiZard speaks.
"the M80 firecracker mixture had an
equivalency of approximately 80%."
NB — For AIR BLAST.
Accession Number : ADA096248
Title : A Compilation of Hazard and Test Data for Pyrotechnic Compositions
Descriptive Note : Final rept. Jan 69-Mar 79
Corporate Author : COMPUTER SCIENCES CORP STENNIS SPACE CENTER MS
Personal Author(s) : McIntyre, Fred L ; Rindner, Richard M
Report Date : Oct 1980
Pagination or Media Count : 384
Full Text : http://www.dtic.mil/get-tr-doc/pdf?AD=ADA096248
As the late Big Bruce noted in American Fireworks News Chemical explosives many years ago ... you cannot blow bank vault doors w/ M80's. Chemical compositions lack Brisance.
Brisance /brɪˈzɑːns/ is the shattering capability of a high explosive, determined mainly by its detonation pressure. The term can be traced from the French verb "briser" (to break or shatter) ultimately derived from the Celtic word "brissim" (to break).
PLEASE the word is French and is not pronounced bristant. The eponymous Fresnel light house lens is also French and is not pronounced as spelled. The the eponymous SI unit of work or energy the Joule is also French and not pronounced Jowel.
Practice on this isochronous (a technology that buttered my bread for many years.)
Hint it is from the Greek. Hint two — for reasons not given to me to understand in English we use a hard C rather than a K, e.g. zinc (German/French zinK.)
The TNT equivalency is for the original border line suicidal potassium perchorate/sulphur/antimony trisulphide/aluminium mixture. This comp was replaced w/ the standard potassium perchlorate/aluminium comp.
The current comp used is black powder/aluminium I would posit the same comps used in the Air Burst Simulator Projectile Mixture 91% black powder 9% aluminium.
I explained this more detail in my American Fireworks News article. I am tempted to post it, however, I am currently hiding form the County Pervert Posse, my laptop does not have this file on its HD.
Suggestion too .... when disusing explosive do not use the term "power" used w/explosives it has a v/ technical meaning. I am sure 99% of the great unwashed masses here do not know the details.
At Dr Conklin's first summer course on the Chemistry of Explosives many years I meet the late Fred McIntyre.
Unkl Sap gave him a SL of M80's to experiment w/. Said he some of the results were worthy of HE's.