h a l f b a k e r yThe phrase 'crumpled heap' comes to mind.
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OK, because this is a visual joke only, and not a technical invention, he'd also have to draw a bundle of dynamite sticks, or similar, on the post-it. |
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Just after 0:00, the hand-written timer is replaced by a
cartoon explosion and the word BOOM! |
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Actually, this doesn't have to be just a joke. What we're
talking about is either one of two things: |
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A) a timed-release corrosive agent with volatile properties,
contained in a thin strip with adhesive backing, or |
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B) a paper-thin thermite grenade, again with adhesive
backing. |
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Either could incorporate an LCD timer display (with
'handwriting' font, to satisfy the gag). The halfbake here is
in how to make it thin enough to carry around a 'pad' of
them. |
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Pretty sure you could get the thermite, detanator and clock thin enough. It wouldn't quite be paper thin, but definitely no more than a milimeter, and flexible. I'd say the halfbake is trusting handwriting recognition that far. |
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It would be activated by the sharp, sustained pressure of
the pencil. Actually writing the number is just for
cinematic
purposes. |
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The writing pad could be electronic, like an e-paper refrigerator board (these exist) and a small circuit could be programmed to recognize handwritten numbers, then display a countdown based on those numbers. The whole thing could be adhesive backed thermite or maybe just a thin sheet of plastic explosive with a detonator. Expensive and slightly thicker than paper, but probably doable. |
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// huge container having inflammable material ... it
creates a hole on the container and creates a small spark
which engulfs the whole place... // |
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This detail of the scenario is why I suggested thermite,
especially because it is already available in paper-thin-
strip form;
conventional explosives are the obvious choice, though. |
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// definitely no more than a milimeter, // |
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Even in a millimetre-thick sheet, the explosive will have to sacrifice brisance for mechanical properties; there will need to be substantial proportions of binders and other compounds which will reduce the NEQ. |
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Laminar explosives have some interesting properties, but producing their major effect at right angles to the plane would require them to be initiated simultaneously at many points around the perimeter. Given propagation delays, that means that the corners have to fire first, then the centres of the sides. It's like the implosion "squeeze" in a fission weapon, only without lensing. |
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That means that multiple electrically-linked and sequenced initiators need to be distributed right round the edge of the sheet, with no mechanical protection from friction or impact. Lead Azide is acceptably insensetive for a primary, but even so, leaving little particles of it to flap in the breeze like that, unprotected from heat, friction, static or impact, is not a good idea, particularly when it's attached to a sheet of high explosive. |
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Not merely halfbaked, totally impossible. |
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Even thermite or corrosives? |
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[8th] You'll notice I referenced thermite, not explosive. That is effective in a "burn through" format rather than a sequenced explosion. Admittedly, it would probably only work on a thin walled tank, but it could work. |
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Especially if placed on top of the tank, where it wouldn't
run. On the side, it would probably just leave a long scorch
mark. |
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... on an empty aluminium beercan. |
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Thermite is either a powder or a dense solid. To make it conformable, you'd need to combine it with a plastic matrix, reducing the payload and changing the stoichiometry; because of the large surface area, at least 50% of the heat energy would be immediately lost to the atmosphere on the outboard side. And you still need a high-yield thermal initiator which is sufficiently compact and insensetive. |
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Thermite devices tend to have form factors that minimise the volume to surface area ratio; cones, cylinders, ovoids, frusta. |
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My knowledge* of thermite is strictly practical: how
to make it, how to use it, and how to misuse it. |
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*by this I mean 'what I learned while working for the
railroad', so 'knowledge' may not be the most appropriate
term. |
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Since you are apparently still not dead, you have clearly grasped the most salient facts about handling thermite. |
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I have. I've even manufactured my own, and for legitimate
uses, at that. That I have yet to severely incinerate myself
is a testimony of the skill of the trackside chemist from
whom I learned. |
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Or, and this is far more likely in your case, pure dumb luck... |
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"Build a man a fire, and he'll be warm for a day; but set a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life." |
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Ah, that legendary Borg diplomacy! |
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//... on an empty aluminium beercan. // |
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That's still working. And if the plot requires that the Bond Villian keeps his highly volatile experimental chemical in an empty beer can, then so be it. |
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(Pretty sure you could do a little better than that with the proper shape, choice of binders, and possibly an ultrathin mylar front side. Sure it would burn out quickly, but for a fraction of a second it would direct more heat to the rear) |
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I was toying with a related idea:
A post-it soaked in Nitrogen Triiodide with excess Ammonia- becoming unstable when it finally dries. When someone tries to remove the post-it, it changes into a cloud of yellow confetti. |
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When the timer reaches "0:00", the text gets
replaced with "BOOM!" |
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// Just after 0:00, the hand-written timer is
replaced by a cartoon explosion and the word BOOM!
// |
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--[The Alterother], Aug 23 2011 |
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//then for some reason he feels even a minute is not needed for his escape...so takes an eraser from his pocket...rubs off the time..writes again as '0:20'// |
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He'd have to be careful when editing the time so as never to leave it blank or zero; perhaps changing "1:00" to "1:20" and then changing the minutes digit from "1" to "0". |
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[+] scripting options would include drawing 'start' 'stop' and 'password' buttons. |
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A typical post-it note is about 60mm x 60mm; that's .0036 of a square metre. At (generously) 120gsm weight, each sheet weighs about 0.4 of a gram. |
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Even with a primary explosive (which is not the best thing to be carrying loose in a trouser pocket), that .4g is going to make a loud noise, but not much else. And applying pressure to a 1.1A compound with a ballpoint pen is an excellent recipe for "Goodbye, Fingertips !" |
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Given the physical, chemical and mechanical constraints of conventional explosives, it's a non-starter. Even some of the newer and more exotic ones don't begin to come close. |
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Maybe he doesn't use a single sheet at a time.
Take the 1mm thickness I mentioned above. That
is 3.6cm^3. Assume .6 cm^3 is detonator, timer,
OLED screen, whatever. |
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Assuming HMX explosive, it is equivalent to more
than 10 grams of black powder or 5.8 grams TNT.
While still not super impressive, it's approximately
the force of two 12 gauge shotgun loads, which
will punch a hole through most sheet metals at
point blank range (even without a slug).
Admittedly, this may be slightly less directed, but
I still think it's possible. |
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But the shotgun loads are contained within the barrel. Without
a tamper, most of the energy is wasted; and you're basing your
calculations on pure HMX which is a brittle, crystalline solid, not
a flexible laminar structure. |
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Let us once again draw your attention to the isue of simultaneous
peripheral initiation… if the detonation propagates from a single
point, then the pressure wave will be at its peak in the axis of
propagation, not normal to it as this idea requires for effect. |
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A device to fulfill the specification would need to look like a yo-
yo, or half a ping-pong ball. Post-its don't tend to lie perfectly
flat, either, and any air-gap or curvature would significantly
compromise performance. |
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Multiple layers. Ignite the outermost layer first, it
provides a back stop for the detonation of the
remaining layers. If the detonator for this layer is
in the center, it triggers the inner layers when it
reaches the edge. |
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Deliberately shape the material to form a concave
on the underside for a minimal shaped charge
effect. |
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As far as binder, C4 is 94% RDX, I don't know what
is possible with HMX, but I assume something
similar, I figured that as part of the .6cm^3. |
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I'm not saying this is going to produce a massive
explosion, but enough to punch through a
propane tank, or knock the valve off a compressed
gas cylinder? I think it's possible. |
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