How to make your first Robot

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Gunpowder Facts and History

Gunpowder or black powder is of great historical importance in chemistry. Although it can explode, its principal use is as a propellant. Gunpowder was invented by Chinese alchemists in the 9th century. Originally, it was made by mixing elemental sulfur, charcoal, and saltpeter (potassium nitrate). The charcoal traditionally came from the willow tree, but grapevine, hazel, elder, laurel, and pine cones have all been used. Charcoal is not the only fuel that can be used. Sugar is used instead in many pyrotechnic applications.
When the ingredients were carefully ground together, the end result was a powder that was called 'serpentine.' The ingredients tended to require remixing prior to use, so making gunpowder was very dangerous. People who made gunpowder would sometimes add water, wine, or another liquid to reduce this hazard, since a single spark could result in a smoky fire. Once the serpentine was mixed with a liquid, it could be pushed through a screen to make small pellets, which were then allowed to dry.
How Gunpowder Works
To summarize, black powder consists of a fuel (charcoal or sugar) and an oxidizer (saltpeter or niter), and sulfur, to allow for a stable reaction. The carbon from the charcoal plus oxygen forms carbon dioxide and energy. The reaction would be slow, like a wood fire, except for the oxidizing agent. Carbon in a fire must draw oxygen from the air. Saltpeter provides extra oxygen. Potassium nitrate, sulfur, and carbon react together to form nitrogen and carbon dioxide gases and potassium sulfide. The expanding gases, nitrogen and carbon dioxide, provide the propelling action.
Gunpowder tends to produce a lot of smoke, which can impair vision on a battlefield or reduce the visibility of fireworks. Changing the ratio of the ingredients affects the rate at which the gunpowder burns and the amount of smoke that is produced.

Ultimate Colored Smoke Bomb

The classic smoke bomb is a great project for the home or lab, producing lots of safe smoke, with purple flames. If you get dye and consider the shape of your creation, you can make a smoke bomb that billows clouds of brightly-colored smoke. This project is easy and safe enough to at home. Adult supervision is required.
Colored Smoke Bomb Materials

• 60 g (3 tablespoons) potassium nitrate (sold as saltpeter in garden supply shops)
• 40 g (2 tablespoons) sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 60 g (3 tablespoons) powdered organic dye (such as synthetic indigo or an aniline-based dye, found in some craft & hobby shops; not common water-based dye)
• cardboard tube (best is an iced push-pop tube (eat the treat first), or you could use a toilet paper roll or section of paper towel tube, or even a rolled/taped paper tube)
• duct tape
• pen or pencil
• firework fuse (hardware, rocketry, construction, or hobby shops, or scavenge it from a firework)
• cotton balls
• saucepan

Make the Colored Smoke Bomb Mixture

1. Mix 60 g potassium nitrate with 40 g sugar in a saucepan over low heat. It's a 3:2 ratio, so if you don't have grams, use three large spoonfuls of potassium nitrate and two large spoonfuls of sugar (3 tablespoons and 2 tablespoons, if you feel the need to be precise).
2. The sugar will carmelize and brown. Stir the mixture continuously until it resembles smooth peanut butter.
3. Remove the mixture from heat.
4. Stir in a spoonful of baking soda (rounded teaspoon is fine). The baking soda is added to slow down the combustion when the smoke bomb is ignited.
5. Add three large spoonfuls (3 tablespoons) of powdered organic dye. Blue dye and orange dye are said to produce better results than the other colors. Stir to mix well.
6. Construct the smoke bomb while the mixture is still hot and pliable.

Assemble the Smoke Bomb

1. Fill a cardboard tube with the warm smoke bomb mixture.
2. Push a pen or pencil down into the center of the mix (doesn't have to be all the way to the bottom but should be enough that the pen stands in the mixture). You could use a different shape, but the cylinder works really well.
3. Let the mixture harden (about an hour).
4. Remove the pen.
5. Insert a firework fuse. Push pieces of cotton balls into the hole to tamp the fuse securely inside the smoke bomb. Be sure there is fuse left outside of the tube so that you will be able to light your smoke bomb.
6. Wrap the smoke bomb with duct tape. Cover the top and bottom of the tube, too, but leave the hole area with the cotton and fuse uncovered.
7. Go outside and light your smoke bomb!

How to Make a Smoke Bomb

Smoke Bomb Materials

The smoke bomb you would purchase from a fireworks store usually is made from potassium chlorate (KClO₃ - oxidizer), sugar (sucrose or dextrin - fuel), sodium bicarbonate (otherwise known as baking soda - to moderate the rate of the reaction and keep it from getting too hot), and a powdered organic dye (for colored smoke). When a commercial smoke bomb is burned, the reaction makes white smoke and the heat evaporates the organic dye. Commercial smoke bombs have small holes through which the smoke and dye are ejected, to create a jet of finely dispersed particles. Crafting this type of smoke bomb is beyond most of us, but you can make an effective smoke bomb quite easily. There are even colorants you can add if you want to make colored smoke. Let's start out with instructions for the easiest/safest type of smoke bomb you can make:
Smoke Bomb Materials

• sugar (sucrose or table sugar)
• potassium nitrate, KNO₃, also known as saltpeter (buy it online or you can find this at some garden supply stores in the fertilizer section, some pharmacies carry it too)
• skillet or pan
• aluminum foil

Once you've gathered your smoke bomb materials, it's easy to make the smoke bomb...