Page 31 - How It Works - Book of Amazing Answers To Curious Questions, 12

l. Fuse
The first fuse sets everything in
motion. After the shell is in the
mortar, the fuse is lit and the flame
makes rts way to the lifting charge.
3. Time-delayed fuse
While the shell soars up into the air,
the time-delayed fuse continues to
burn, buying enough time to get the
shell at its highest point before
reaching the bursting charge.
4. Bursting charge
The bursting charge is more black
powder, stored higher up the shell.
Once the time-delayed fuse
reaches the bursting charge, the
combustion sets off the stars.
5. Stars
The stars begin their heat-induced
chemical reactions. The shell can
no longer contain the power of the
combustion, and the stars are sent
flying, creating the traditional
fireworks shapes.
2. Lifting charge
Italian-style shell Black powder (also called Orie-sty shell
gunpowder) is ignited by the fuse,
and the explosion can send a shell
Creates more elaborate bursts
up to 1,000 feet into the air. Produces spherical bursts
How do fireworl<s

These bright and festive chemistry experiments
explode? have been delighting people for hundreds of years

espite their different colours, shapes, fuse and listen to the popping sound. The Stars are balls made up of fuels, oxidisers,
speeds and sounds, all fireworks have bursting charge is another round of black powder colour-creating combinations of different kinds of
D the same basic components. Aerial with its own time-delayed fuse higher up in the metals, and a binder to hold everything together.
fireworks consist of a shell made of heavy paper shell. The bursting charge creates the heat to The stars can be arranged within the firework
that holds the 'lift charge', the 'bursting charge', activate the stars that surround it and explode shell to create shapes. The shapes can be things
and the 'stars'. All of these glittery spectacles them outward from the shell. Thestarsarewhere like hearts, stars, and circles. Hundreds of stars
come from good old-fashioned combustion. the magic happens. can be used in a single firework shell.
Combustion is a chemical reaction between More complex fireworks- ones that produce a
two substances (a fuel and an oxidant) that shape like a smiley face, have multiple phases of
produces light and heat. The heat causes gasses What make the mlou different colours, or rna ke extra sounds like
to expand rapidly, building pressure. The shells whistles, for example-have shells with a more
l"olours involve different measurements and combinations of
are tightly wrapped cylinders, which provide \..toxygen producers, fuels, binders, and colour producers. You intricate infrastructure. In these types of
good resistance to this pressure, giving ita short can make colour through incandescence - light created through fireworks, there are more time-delayed fuses
heat (orange, red, white), or luminescence - light created from a
time to build in intensity. Then, when the linked to various bursting charges with their own
chemical reaction without extreme heat (blue, green). It's all
reaction overpowers the shell, you get the about temperature control and balance. surrounding stars. Each of these may sit in its
explosive firework effect. own individual interior shell. These are called
!tall starts when the shell is placed into a I Orange- Calcium 'multi-break shells'.
mortar (a cylinder the same size as the shell, Red- Strontium and lithium While a sight to behold, fireworks are
which holds the firework in place while the fuse Gold - Incandescence of iron, charcoal or lampblack individually wrapped chemistry experiments.
burns). The lift charge, at the bottom of the shell, Yellow- Sodium Tapping one too hard or creating a static
is basically concentrated black powder (charcoal, Electric white -Magnesium or aluminium electricity shock with your synthetic-material
sulphur, and potassium nitrate). I Green -Barium plus a chlorine producer clothing could be deadly and one exploding near
When lit by the dangling fuse, the lift charge I Blue- Copper plus a chlorine producer to your face could result in horrific burns and
sends the shell into the air. Basic firecrackers are I Purple-Strontium plus copper even blindness. They don't have the word 'fire' in
just paper-covered black powder: you light the I Silver-Aluminium, titanium or magnesium powder/flakes them for nothing.

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