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Abstract: Historic battle flags and uniforms are collected by museums, and many have significance as icons representative of their owners as well as historic context. The effects of battle, both mechanical and chemical, have an impact on the projected lifetimes of these objects in museums. Modern air quality, as well as the type of display, is important. Pyrotechnic displays using Black Powder can also produce considerable amounts of particulates and gases and, if near museums, may be a significant source of damage to a museum’s collection.

Keywords: gunshot residue, explosive residue, silk flag, Black Powder

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Abstract: The morphology (size, shape and surface features) of the constituent particles in a pyrotechnic composition affects its performance. While this is particularly true for high melting point fuels and oxidizers in the composition, to a lesser extent it is also true for those with low melting points. Particle morphology also constitutes an important part of establishing the likelihood of a forensic match between evidence and materials of known origin. This article catalogs and briefly discusses some morphologic features often associated with some of the most commonly used low melting point oxidizers in pyrotechnic compositions.

Keywords: morphology, oxidizer, forensics, pyrotechnics, potassium nitrate

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Abstract: Practical analytical techniques which have been found to be useful in explosion investigation include timeline analysis, experimental data comparisons, thermochemical code analysis, TNT and other air blast equivalency techniques, ground shock analysis, dynamic gas concentration estimates, simple fuel/air explosion codes, damage pattern analysis and system safety analysis methods. An example application of existing analytical tools to an explosion investigation is presented. Exotic analytical techniques are available but are not justi­fied unless the loss is very large. Methodology is reviewed for completing a reasonable explosion investigation, including essential items from NFPA 921. Needs are addressed for desired technology advancements.

Keywords: explosion investigation, thermochemical equilibrium, blast equivalency, system safety analysis, ground shock

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Abstract: This is the second in a series of articles, prepared at the request of the publisher of this Journal, presenting an introductory outline of chemical thermodynamics and chemical kinetics, with emphasis on those aspects of particular relevance to pyrotechnics. The First Law of Thermodynamics, which was the subject of the first article, cannot explain the direction of change in the physical world. The Second Law of Thermodynamics states that spontaneous change is always associated with an increase in the entropy of the universe. The universe is simply the system of interest plus its surroundings, assumed to be isolated from external influences, while the entropy is a thermodynamic state function. Much of this article is taken up by a discussion of entropy. The relationship between entropy and spontaneous change is clarified when entropy is interpreted as a measure of molecular disorder. The Gibbs Free Energy is a thermodynamic state function that allows the entropy change in the system and its surroundings to be predicted from the thermodynamic properties of the system alone. It provides the basis for predicting the direction of change in chemical systems. Finally, the Third Law of Thermodynamics states that the molar entropy of a pure substance is zero at the absolute zero of temperature. This is developed from Boltzmann’s relationship between entropy and the number of molecular arrangements consistent with the properties of a system. It is shown how the Third Law permits the calculation of absolute values for the molar entropies of pure substances.

Keywords: thermodynamics, entropy, free energy

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The sulfur/chlorate initiation reaction was examined and the mixture was shown to produce sulfur dioxide on heating. Once formed, the sulfur dioxide quickly causes potassium chlorate to decompose and pyrotechnic mixtures containing potassium chlorate to ignite.

Keywords: chlorate, sulfur, sensitiveness, thermal stability, ignition temperature

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A capillary extrusion rheometer is essentially a laboratory-scale extrusion press that is highly instrumented and accurately controlled. As such, it provides an ideal tool for studying and quantifying the properties of the materials as they flow under conditions likely to be encountered in practice. Additionally, the extruded output from the instrument may be subjected to further testing such as for mechanical and ballistic properties to relate changes in processing conditions to product properties

Keywords: processing, extrusion, filling, analysis, rheology, rheometry, flow, viscosity

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The infrared emissions detected by the spectroradiometer included: the water vapor band at 2.7 µm, hydrogen chloride band at 3.5 µm, and carbon dioxide band at 4.4 µm.

Keywords: IR Radiometer, Rocket Plume Monitoring, PbSe Detector, Engine Health, Combustion Diagnostics, Infrared Spectroscopy, IR Emission

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