If your kids love fireworks, you can harness that interest to teach them some basic lessons about chemistry. Kids often think that chemistry involves liquids, but understanding how solid materials can be formed into compounds is also part of chemical science.
What's that Smell?
Ever notice the dry, sour smell that fills the air around fireworks displays? That odor is caused by burning sulfur, one of the ingredients used to make gunpowder.
Gunpowder is one of the earliest chemical compounds discovered by man. It was invented by the Chinese during the ninth century to create fireworks for formal events. When sulfur burns, it pops and crackles. Saltpeter (postassium nitrate) burns in a quick flash, while charcoal burns very slowly. Combining these three materials in different formulas creates different types of gunpowder, some slow-burning and some that burn almost immediately. If you wrap gunpowder tightly in paper and light it from one end, the rapid release of heat and gas causes the paper to explode. Adding a vent gives the heat and energy a way to escape, creating a rocket.
When you look at fireworks in the sky, pay attention to how long they last. If there's a quick burst that fades almost immediately, you know there's more saltpeter in the powder mix. If you see long-lasting effects, that means there's more charcoal. If there's a lot of glitter in a firework, it's a sign of more sulfur in the formula.
Adding Colors
Plain gunpowder only burns in one color: an intense, hot white. So how do fireworks makers create shades of red, green, blue and lavender? The answer lies in chemistry.
Elements all burn differently, and pure elements burn with a specific color. For example, when pure sodium is burned, it produces a yellow flame. Fireworks makers blend pure elements with plain gunpowder to create the colors we see in the sky. The exact formulas are closely guarded secrets, but there are some elements that are commonly used to create them. Adding more or less of particular elements can make a color more intense.
Here are some of the elements used to create different colors. Keep in mind that you can't simply mix red and yellow to create orange when you're making fireworks. To get a particular shade, you need to find an element that burns at the color you want, although in some cases it is possible to create a compound that burns with a certain color, as in the case of purple.
The next time you look at fireworks, think about the chemistry that's involved in every burst. See if you can remember which elements are used to produce your favorite colors.
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