Recreating Old Alchemy Explosives

Поділитися
Вставка
  • Опубліковано 2 січ 2025

КОМЕНТАРІ • 2 тис.

  • @punkey0
    @punkey0 4 роки тому +4807

    next video: *who* is an explosive, where Tom walks around hitting people with a hammer

    • @ExplosionsAndFire
      @ExplosionsAndFire  4 роки тому +1236

      You can never tell!!!

    • @PMVault
      @PMVault 4 роки тому +73

      I’m crying 😂

    • @kenny5676
      @kenny5676 4 роки тому +197

      He can try hit people but he'll miss half the time

    • @PMVault
      @PMVault 4 роки тому +23

      Kenny That’s a risk he’ll have to take

    • @e2rqey
      @e2rqey 4 роки тому +8

      For some reason he avoids Asian people................🤔

  • @VaradMahashabde
    @VaradMahashabde 4 роки тому +1327

    Imagine Basil Valentine taking a break from his monk stuff, walking into a room and saying, "Hello everyone, welcome back to Fulminations&Pyres"

  • @marshmallowblaster
    @marshmallowblaster 2 роки тому +1557

    You know you're reading an old paper when it discusses the *taste of mercury salts*

    • @Flesh_Wizard
      @Flesh_Wizard 2 роки тому +95

      I do love my steak with mercury salt😋

    • @Mister_Clean
      @Mister_Clean Рік тому +62

      I have no idea how our ancestors survived to pass on their knowledge.

    • @josephdavison4189
      @josephdavison4189 Рік тому +132

      @@Mister_Clean step 1:
      Don’t die of the plague at the age of 3
      Step 2:
      Marry at the age of 13
      Step 3:
      have babys at like 19 (preferably 6 or so)
      Step 4:
      spend the rest of your life (30 years) doing insane crap until you die of a disease people didn’t know exist

    • @texivani
      @texivani Рік тому +27

      ​@@josephdavison4189 oh my god they were actually geniuses

    • @buggsy5
      @buggsy5 Рік тому +14

      Look up calomel as a medical treatment. It was used until the mid 1900's for teething problems in children, even though the harmful side effects were well known long before that. Any taste from a dose of calomel would be due to impurities, not the compound itself.

  • @xm-1-24-b4
    @xm-1-24-b4 4 роки тому +543

    As an engineer, everything you chemists do seems like devil magic

    • @andrewmcreynolds3692
      @andrewmcreynolds3692 2 роки тому +50

      And then some of us want to engineer the devil magic.

    • @lanceadams5107
      @lanceadams5107 2 роки тому +57

      @@andrewmcreynolds3692 dummy, engines dont have ears

    • @robwoodring9437
      @robwoodring9437 2 роки тому +69

      To paraphrase The Martian: "chemistry on paper is neat & tidy math. Chemistry in the real world is a sloppy bitch"

    • @runed0s86
      @runed0s86 2 роки тому +2

      It's microscopic engineering

    • @Flesh_Wizard
      @Flesh_Wizard 2 роки тому

      To be fair, Mercury is some evil shit. Especially when it's Dimethylmercury

  • @mickeydee9069
    @mickeydee9069 3 роки тому +84

    Standing in the footprints of giants and yelling obscenities at them is the most chad move ever

  • @bwub1
    @bwub1 4 роки тому +3375

    As a guy who did his PhD in plasmonics, I can confirm, it's probably ghosts

    • @ExplosionsAndFire
      @ExplosionsAndFire  4 роки тому +1069

      yeah right! it's the most logical explanation. don't start talking to me about this goddamn 'electron' mumbo jumbo

    • @cezarcatalin1406
      @cezarcatalin1406 4 роки тому +216

      Explosions&Fire
      Sir, your electronophobia demands that you shall get protonated directly inside your nucleation site !
      Call me a radical but at least I am a free one that can last for more than a couple of seconds in a bed solution - unlike the energetic kind who splatter all over the place instantly.

    • @tadferd4340
      @tadferd4340 4 роки тому +249

      @@ExplosionsAndFire Any real chemist knows that electrons are just some trash the physicists forced into chemistry because they were jealous of chemists not needing to study ghosts and other complete nonsense.

    • @vaibhav1618
      @vaibhav1618 4 роки тому +120

      @@ExplosionsAndFire I mean electrons are spooky clouds right? Aren't ghosts all cloudy and spooky too? COINCIDENCE?

    • @aggrogator4045
      @aggrogator4045 4 роки тому +21

      Were your lectures before or after underwater basket weaving?

  • @commanderarto3841
    @commanderarto3841 4 роки тому +1110

    I am watching the mental decline of a chemist haunted by the colour yellow.

    • @techpriestsalok8119
      @techpriestsalok8119 4 роки тому +27

      And it’s amazing

    • @TheArm97
      @TheArm97 4 роки тому +46

      And fulminating platinum

    • @TrapperAaron
      @TrapperAaron 4 роки тому +24

      Yellow is not just feared by chemists. Check out the book chrome yellow by aldus huxley

    • @conormcguire4306
      @conormcguire4306 3 роки тому +7

      Have you seen the yellow sign?

    • @gman332
      @gman332 3 роки тому

      @@TheArm97 oui iiiijiijjjji+

  • @AlexBesogonov
    @AlexBesogonov 4 роки тому +8532

    Be careful. Your videos are getting dangerously educational. A bit more and you might become a legitimate educational channel.

    • @Brokkoli7hun
      @Brokkoli7hun 4 роки тому +536

      *and get demonitized.

    • @theSILKROAD210
      @theSILKROAD210 4 роки тому +470

      NileRed has a bad influence on him...

    • @ExplosionsAndFire
      @ExplosionsAndFire  4 роки тому +3871

      I sincerely apologise to anyone who may have learnt something in this video. That was not my intention and I didn't mean it, I swear

    • @fubar55676
      @fubar55676 4 роки тому +225

      @@ExplosionsAndFire I blame you for giving me all this knowledge that I forget stuff like passwords I hope you're proud of yourself

    • @thescout6063
      @thescout6063 4 роки тому +201

      Explosions&Fire I expect an unfocused, snot-filled and teary-eyed apology video filmed in front of a white background

  • @seanmessick9330
    @seanmessick9330 2 роки тому +91

    Fulminating silver is actually commonly used in those little bang snap firecrackers that explode when thrown

    • @Jaydee8652
      @Jaydee8652 Рік тому +6

      “Face me, Sekiro!”

    • @Raidon484
      @Raidon484 Рік тому +5

      *pulls out a glock*

    • @CrabGodOfLegand
      @CrabGodOfLegand 6 місяців тому +16

      That is silver fulminate. It's stupid, but it's a different chemical(AgCNO, not Ag3N)

    • @gabrielmaisonet7485
      @gabrielmaisonet7485 5 місяців тому +4

      @@CrabGodOfLegandi appreciate your correction especially since chemistry is confusing enough already! thanks 🙏

    • @Ornithopter470
      @Ornithopter470 3 місяці тому

      ​@@CrabGodOfLegandsilver fulminate /= fulminating silver.

  • @RobertSmith-km6gi
    @RobertSmith-km6gi Рік тому +16

    Was part of my job many years ago. Starting with 160 troy ounces in a reaction flask and converted to the fulminate as an intermediate to the final product. Had to make sure it didn’t get dry or the covering liquor get too alkaline. The first time I ran this process the guy who was training me said if it turns brown run and when it did he took off! I didn’t know what to do but when I stood fast he came back and clapped me on the shoulder and said you’ll do.

  • @alexhaywood3139
    @alexhaywood3139 4 роки тому +2043

    We've definitely asked when is an explosive. The answer was the 60's

    • @godfreypoon5148
      @godfreypoon5148 4 роки тому +9

      @Marcos Filho Ruthenium sucks, bleach sucks, olefins suck (and you suck too!!!!

    • @sixstringedthing
      @sixstringedthing 4 роки тому +102

      The precise date that the Australian Army asked "when is an explosive" was July 18, 1963.
      It was called Operation Blowdown and it involved 50 short tons of TNT and a rainforest on the Cape York peninsula.

    • @notabagel
      @notabagel 4 роки тому +61

      The fuckin 60s, the fuckin 60s mate

    • @riograndedosulball248
      @riograndedosulball248 4 роки тому +16

      I could guess that 1918 was another good compound

    • @juangonzalez9848
      @juangonzalez9848 4 роки тому +6

      60s? I though the 1800s in general had some good stuff.

  • @thomasking4692
    @thomasking4692 4 роки тому +588

    Tom has reached a level of chaotic neutrality so far above our mortal understanding he can now comprehend when for explosives

    • @piranha031091
      @piranha031091 4 роки тому +15

      @Marcos Filho Why are you posting this everywhere?

    • @robinderoos1166
      @robinderoos1166 4 роки тому +4

      He doesn't look like he walks the eightfold path though...

    • @XVIIstarPt_
      @XVIIstarPt_ 4 роки тому +1

      @Marcos Filho stfu

    • @tomlynmathewsjr7514
      @tomlynmathewsjr7514 4 роки тому +4

      @@robinderoos1166 Fool. The eightfold path is a lie. Tom as ascended past this point, into an entirely different realm. He has become a god among men. We must fear, for he is armed with explosives and mental instability.

  • @jack1701e
    @jack1701e 4 роки тому +288

    "Large scale manufacturing with only the loss of some life"
    Perfect!

    • @ExplosionsAndFire
      @ExplosionsAndFire  4 роки тому +77

      It's the 1800s way!

    • @Patrick-857
      @Patrick-857 Рік тому +3

      I don't know how to tell you this but essentially nothing has changed in the modern era.

    • @vincedibona4687
      @vincedibona4687 8 місяців тому +1

      @Patrick-857 Sausage has far less human in it now than it did back the.

  • @LeCharles07
    @LeCharles07 3 роки тому +94

    They were truly some madlads. I'm sure they would be mind-blown to know that you need the forces of a collapsing star to make gold out of other stuff.

    • @handlesarefeckinstupid
      @handlesarefeckinstupid 2 роки тому

      Or a nuclear reactor.

    • @anonymousanonymous6214
      @anonymousanonymous6214 2 місяці тому +1

      ​@@handlesarefeckinstupid we are unable to do nuclear fusion to that level currently, We can only do nuclear fission efficiently (which makes lighter elements not heavy)

  • @nicoschadjidemetriou4373
    @nicoschadjidemetriou4373 4 роки тому +24

    I remember I was making 50 years ago fulminating mercury in a simple way: You put in a test tube Hg and pure alcohol (99.9) to absorb the water produced, then you drop slowly concentrate HNO3 while cooling the test tube.It was produced a white crystallic powder. You wash it with alcohol and dry it.You finished.

    • @jesscorbin5981
      @jesscorbin5981 Рік тому

      Is utility alcohol nonreactive with surfactants?

    • @vincedibona4687
      @vincedibona4687 8 місяців тому +1

      @jesscorbin5981 Meh, just wing it whatever you have. Chuck that in a vial, you’re good to go.

  • @kalrbaum
    @kalrbaum 4 роки тому +631

    When i first saw the smoke i thought: "hey that must be gold nanoparticles. Wait, has anobody published this as a method for solvent- and ligand-free synthesis of Au-NPs?" If you get a somewhat uniform size distribution or special kind of shape this is absolutely publishable work! Maybe you could even form some kind of high entropy alloy by this kind of reaction?...

    • @ExplosionsAndFire
      @ExplosionsAndFire  4 роки тому +357

      Was looking for someone to take some TEM images, would be very interested to see if there is any uniformity or it's a complete mess!

    • @theterribleanimator1793
      @theterribleanimator1793 4 роки тому +31

      @@ExplosionsAndFire guaranteed to be a mess, if it was possible someone would've already done it.

    • @theterribleanimator1793
      @theterribleanimator1793 4 роки тому +23

      @Benjamin McCann oh come on, something as useful as gold nano-particles being made by the detonation of a salt so easily made.
      If it was possible someone would've done it for how long this salt has being in circulation.

    • @Tomartyr
      @Tomartyr 4 роки тому +145

      @@theterribleanimator1793 People have been doing it for sure, but you shouldn't assume that they knew everything about what they were looking at, could accurately measure/describe it, and then went on to publish it.

    • @theterribleanimator1793
      @theterribleanimator1793 4 роки тому +5

      @@Tomartyr yeah but again, how old is this coumpound. If it was possible it would've already been done.

  • @ChaosPootato
    @ChaosPootato 4 роки тому +467

    *POP*
    "Eh?!"
    Now that's science

    • @sixstringedthing
      @sixstringedthing 4 роки тому +35

      *B A N G*
      "Jeeee-zuz".
      Now that's how you find God.

    • @loveblowsbad
      @loveblowsbad 4 роки тому +1

      @@sixstringedthing Yes, yes, speaking the lords name in vain is a sign of divine inspiration... Keep up the good work... Ave Satana...

    • @elloo98
      @elloo98 4 роки тому +6

      More or less my experience in the electronics laboratory.

    • @necrobynerton7384
      @necrobynerton7384 4 роки тому +2

      @@elloo98 OOF
      some dumb idiot short circuited a fuking 240V mains socket
      Glad it wasn't a big enough wire to melt the plastic coating and fry the dude and it just did a little bang

    • @vikramkrishnan6414
      @vikramkrishnan6414 3 роки тому +1

      @@necrobynerton7384 When I was in the 2nd year of my engineering, forgot to connect the AC-DC adapter before my circuit. That combined with exceeding the rating of the capacitor caused it to go boom causing shrapnel everywhere

  • @noalear
    @noalear 4 роки тому +358

    This intro is more effective than coffee, because I immediately emptied my bowels. Very funny shit the whole way through! Love the mic!

    • @acronus
      @acronus 4 роки тому +7

      Call it the "max VU maneuver"

    • @doggonemess1
      @doggonemess1 4 роки тому +2

      @Marcos Filho Why do you keep saying that? And it's spelled olefin.

  • @martinivers489
    @martinivers489 3 роки тому +16

    The German "Feuerwerkbuch" from 1420 mentions a substance called "Schießwasser", a liquid propellant for firearms. It has been concluded to likely have been methyl nitrate.

    • @robinvanderpal372
      @robinvanderpal372 4 місяці тому +1

      Calling it "Schießwasser" is such a German thing to do lol

  • @drnojtm2598
    @drnojtm2598 3 роки тому +13

    every so often i find myself back watching all of these videos because struggling through a degree without comedic relief and good chemistry which is basically impossible. Thank you for these videos :)

  • @PijiPlays
    @PijiPlays 4 роки тому +1483

    "Can't get excited unless the explosive has tentacles or some shit." Ah I see you also are a man of culture.

    • @bakeurstew1434
      @bakeurstew1434 4 роки тому +109

      I thought I was the only one that heard that, @Explosions&Fire are a also a degenerate?

    • @ExplosionsAndFire
      @ExplosionsAndFire  4 роки тому +617

      @@bakeurstew1434 just trying to reach the fans u know, relating to them on the things i know they like

    • @bakeurstew1434
      @bakeurstew1434 4 роки тому +47

      @@ExplosionsAndFire lmao

    • @ExplosionsAndFire
      @ExplosionsAndFire  4 роки тому +205

      @TenOndra uhhhhhhh, sure yeah

    • @keziahdelaney5156
      @keziahdelaney5156 4 роки тому +40

      I feel like any man of science eventually becomes bored without tentacles.dont know what that means but we all wind up there

  • @Mp57navy
    @Mp57navy 4 роки тому +637

    Alchemy: Immortal Life
    Chemistry: Killing people with explosives.

    • @sealpiercing8476
      @sealpiercing8476 4 роки тому +65

      Alchemy: immortal life, but it doesn't work
      Chemistry: Killing people with explosives very reliably. Also the Haber process. Which was then used to make more explosives.

    • @theSILKROAD210
      @theSILKROAD210 4 роки тому +13

      @@sealpiercing8476 The Haber-Bosch process is only the synthesis of Ammonia, the Ostwald Process (oxidation of Ammonia to Nitric Acid) was developed to produce Nitrates and make Germany independent from Nitrates obtained from Guano "Chile-Salpeter" and was unfortunately a contributing factor to the length and severity of WW I.

    • @sealpiercing8476
      @sealpiercing8476 4 роки тому +4

      @@theSILKROAD210 I omitted the oxidation step for punchiness of the joke. The ammonia came from the Haber process, which I'm under the impression is more widely known by name.

    • @godfreypoon5148
      @godfreypoon5148 4 роки тому +1

      @Marcos Filho Ruthenium sucks, bleach sucks, olefins suck (and you suck too!!!!

    • @rnedisc
      @rnedisc 4 роки тому +5

      @@sealpiercing8476 " Also the Haber process. Which was then used to make more explosives. "
      And more people!

  • @gl1500ctv
    @gl1500ctv 4 роки тому +434

    "Just because you can do something doesn't mean you should."
    Since when? Is this even the same channel?!?

    • @godfreypoon5148
      @godfreypoon5148 4 роки тому +1

      @Marcos Filho Ruthenium sucks, bleach sucks, olefins suck (and you suck too!!!!

    • @loadeddice4696
      @loadeddice4696 4 роки тому +14

      @Marcos Filho mate stop

    • @SollowP
      @SollowP 4 роки тому +8

      Isn't that basically Science 101?
      "It's not a question about 'Why? It's about Why not?!'"

    • @necrobynerton7384
      @necrobynerton7384 4 роки тому +7

      @@SollowP
      "Science isn't about why? It's about why not! WHY is so much of our science dangerous? Why not Merry safe science if you love it so much? In fact why not invent a special safety door that won't hit you on the butt on the way out? Because YOU ARE FIRED!" -Cave Johnson, firing a box

  • @gianlucatartaro1335
    @gianlucatartaro1335 Рік тому +26

    3:31 I love how, despite NileRed having so much educational and professional content on it, Nigel is still best known for using pee, lube, and just making stinky things in general 😂

    • @andreaskav7124
      @andreaskav7124 Рік тому

      nile is the scientist. nigel is the redneck

  • @sviatoslaviigorevich7360
    @sviatoslaviigorevich7360 4 роки тому +10

    Really man, I'm a physics guy but secretly love chemistry. I love the language you use, nobody talks science in such lovably raunchy terms like you do. I fucking love it.

  • @SeiberGraff
    @SeiberGraff 4 роки тому +219

    "involves too much human urine"
    *excited nilered noise
    -i dont think urine was actually used
    *sad nilered noise

    • @DoingDennis
      @DoingDennis 3 роки тому +1

      In abouts hes near the bottom of patreon list

    • @unknowunknown9096
      @unknowunknown9096 3 роки тому +2

      Add it to urination in n web

  • @JuliaC-sp5qk
    @JuliaC-sp5qk 4 роки тому +168

    Chemists now: I'm gonna make sure I don't eat or drink in the lab in case I accidentally ingest something dangerous
    Chemists in the 1800s: mmm this mercury explosive is salty :)

    • @talong1588
      @talong1588 Рік тому +30

      How do you think we found out that nitroglycerine is a good heart medication

    • @halomika4973
      @halomika4973 Рік тому +8

      ​@@talong1588The *what*

    • @vincedibona4687
      @vincedibona4687 8 місяців тому +2

      NileRed: *makes cookies, freeze-dried Chinese, sodas, candy, and hot sauce in his lab*

  • @bushhawk5460
    @bushhawk5460 4 роки тому +1113

    The real question is: Can you make Fulminating Fulminate?

    • @finerz321
      @finerz321 4 роки тому +149

      Bushhawk “exploding explosive”

    • @TheBackyardChemist
      @TheBackyardChemist 4 роки тому +60

      How about ammonium fulminate? Or hydrazine fulminate?

    • @Maharani1991
      @Maharani1991 4 роки тому +2

      +

    • @californium-2526
      @californium-2526 4 роки тому +30

      @@TheBackyardChemist I don't think ammonium or hydrazinium would make stable fulminates... :P
      K+ -CNO is known - potassium fulminate. Not that explosive since Hg-C bond is a weak covalent bond. K-C bond is a pure ionic bond, allowing for more stability.

    • @bladdnun3016
      @bladdnun3016 4 роки тому +15

      @@californium-2526 Well, both ammonium cyanate and ammonium azide exist. As far as I know, ammonium azide is not that sensitive, comparable to sodium azide, and ammonium cyanate is not even really explosive at all. The hydrazinium compounds probably exist too, but I wouldn't want to be near the azide.

  • @captainj7522
    @captainj7522 4 роки тому +4

    I vaguely remembered your channel about 2 months ago and I just found it tonight again I’ve never been happier to have a video recommended

  • @robmckennie4203
    @robmckennie4203 4 роки тому +33

    "no, it's safer to work at a small scale!" is what i tell the women i sleep with

  • @zockertwins
    @zockertwins 4 роки тому +219

    I got an ad for tuna right when you started talking about mercury...

    • @ExplosionsAndFire
      @ExplosionsAndFire  4 роки тому +153

      product placement. for the mercury. placed into the tuna product

    • @sixstringedthing
      @sixstringedthing 4 роки тому +42

      "...and now with our revolutionary bioaccumulation farming technology, you get orders of magnitude more mercury for your dollar!"

    • @howiedewin3688
      @howiedewin3688 4 роки тому +16

      I wonder if he could try making fulminating tuna?

    • @marcussmart3275
      @marcussmart3275 3 роки тому +1

      @@ExplosionsAndFire it's the great circle of life mate haha

    • @marcussmart3275
      @marcussmart3275 3 роки тому

      @@howiedewin3688 can you imagine the stench from that one...I dont think smell has ever seen that many levels of stank.

  • @dwaynezilla
    @dwaynezilla 4 роки тому +396

    I feel like physics at this point is a hundred year stretch of guys going "well that doesn't make _any_ sense, and *also I hate it*. Let me see how I can disprove it" while then accidentally adding proof for it and furthering the absurdity of it all.

    • @Kylemsguy
      @Kylemsguy 4 роки тому +34

      So accurate. Relativity already feels wacky enough, but then you get into quantum mechanics and.......

    • @drdca8263
      @drdca8263 4 роки тому +17

      Kylemsguy so I’ve only watched one online course on QM, and without like, doing any assignments (wasn’t enrolled, just watched the videos), but, honestly,
      Is QM really all that weird? Like ok, sure, there’s the “how do we interpret measurements?” , but besides that, like,
      from what I’ve seen so far of it, the math all makes sense?
      I guess I’ll admit that spin seems kinda weird. But not that weird?
      There were parts that were *impressive*,
      but it isn’t so much “no fair, it shouldn’t work that way” and more “I didn’t expect that to simplify out or factor in that way”.
      Maybe all the popsci I saw first made me sufficiently used to the entry-level weird parts that I no longer was bothered by them when I watched the actual classes?

    • @lemon93
      @lemon93 4 роки тому +19

      @@drdca8263 qm isn't that bad people just have a hard time thinking of a particle as wave.

    • @shrimpfry880
      @shrimpfry880 3 роки тому +2

      i didn't have physics in high school because of all the extra biology lessons

    • @allenhonaker4107
      @allenhonaker4107 2 роки тому +3

      Maths physics and chemistry are the religion of obsessive compulsive bean counters.😎😎

  • @franglish9265
    @franglish9265 4 роки тому +236

    In really wonder if that guy who "made" fulminating platinum, just fudged his results by adding other metal fulminates to it, or accidentally made an azide of sodium or potassium that inadvertently ended up in his final "culminating platinum"

    • @ExplosionsAndFire
      @ExplosionsAndFire  4 роки тому +138

      Who knows, it could be the case, but it's strange to not be able to replicate it then anyway, because he gave pretty detailed steps.... But then again I was guessing at the meaning of most of the steps so anything could have easily gone wrong hm

    • @Nixeu42
      @Nixeu42 4 роки тому +66

      @@ExplosionsAndFire It's fairly likely you misidentified one of the compounds in question. This has been brought up in the comments section of that vid, in that the "potash" mentioned was likely short for caustic potash, or potassium hydroxide. I think I managed to confirm that by looking at a couple of contemporary books that collected the known reactions for various metals, which recorded the reaction in different terms than Davy used, though I might be misremembering. By the by, I know those sources said that the acid used was plain old nitric acid, so it's possible that using red fuming nitric acid caused problems (or not, I'm not sure, I'm still a chem student).
      While we're here, I might also want to mention (again) that the synthesis supposedly makes platinum sulfate at some stage, which hasn't been synthesized in modern laboratory conditions. There are recent-ish theoretical chemistry papers speculating on the properties of the compound. The paper exclusively uses the formula Pt(SO4), rather than "platinum sulfate", and thus only comes up when you search for the chemical formula. So even if you can't replicate the entire process, you could still be making something worthy of a paper with this procedure.

    • @the_n3ve
      @the_n3ve 4 роки тому +13

      @@ExplosionsAndFire should come back to that couple of years later as with S4N4 and have another episode dedicated to Personal Growth ™

    • @JohnDobak
      @JohnDobak 4 роки тому +9

      @@ExplosionsAndFire I remember seeing you respond to the poster who detailed the classical definition of potash but never following up with another attempt using the knowledge gained. For shame Tom.

    • @JohnDobak
      @JohnDobak 4 роки тому +3

      @@Nixeu42 Forget it, he's scared of the potential for success.

  • @tzook4080
    @tzook4080 11 місяців тому +1

    This is the first video I have ever seen of yours. I am, at this moment; 1 minute and 3 seconds in. And you're my favorite channel now. Thanks.

  • @Lthies20
    @Lthies20 2 роки тому +40

    The more often I come back to this the more I'm amazed that Walter White made such massive crystals of fulminating mercury.

    • @krazedferret
      @krazedferret 3 місяці тому +2

      Well you see, the thing about that is that it's a TV show and not a 100% accurate reflection of reality. Especially since the crystals were huge and would have detonated under their own weight, were all in a larger bag (a pound I think?) together rubbing against even more of itself, and the explosion from a single crystal was powerful enough to blow out the side of the building yet somehow did not simultaneously detonate the rest of the compound in the bag that was sitting on Tucos desk which Walter then picked up to use as a "shield" so they wouldn't shoot him.
      But it's also implied in the show that what he made wasn't regular mercury fulminate. When Tuco asks him what it is he replies "Fulminated mercury, with a little tweak of chemistry."
      But it still doesn't really make sense that it could be sensitive enough to detonate from being thrown but not detonate from the other reasons I listed.
      Oh well, still a great scene and a great show regardless!

  • @maxb.5905
    @maxb.5905 4 роки тому +115

    Dude you really stepped up your editing game! Nice job.

  • @koolaidman007
    @koolaidman007 4 роки тому +70

    The perfect synthesis of education, chemistry, and shit posting. Leave it to the Aussies.

  • @timurtheterrible4062
    @timurtheterrible4062 4 роки тому +227

    So Nile is now known as the piss guy?

    • @jamsheeddevotee7588
      @jamsheeddevotee7588 4 роки тому +16

      *R Kelly wants to know your location*

    • @piranha031091
      @piranha031091 4 роки тому +7

      I mean... didn't chemplayer make nitrourea from their own piss too?

    • @edgeeffect
      @edgeeffect 4 роки тому +4

      Prof. Andrea Sella was "the piss guy" for me a good few years before Nile Red got into it.

    • @RyanMan767
      @RyanMan767 4 роки тому +19

      nah, Cody is definitely the piss guy.

    • @cezarcatalin1406
      @cezarcatalin1406 4 роки тому +3

      Hi comrade !

  • @ndac6324
    @ndac6324 4 роки тому +4

    I’m glad your channel is catching on man. I’ve watched you put so much work into these vids for a while now. Easily one of the most entertaining science channels on yt 👍

  • @5minutehacks989
    @5minutehacks989 3 роки тому +12

    i've heard much about the allusive gold fulminate from Nile Red on the Safety Third podcast. It's nice to have an indepth history on the substance and to finally see the reaction!

  • @petermc_grann4192
    @petermc_grann4192 4 роки тому +35

    I came here for the laughs and the rants on yellow- I stayed for the learning. Man, good video.

    • @mauz791
      @mauz791 4 роки тому +1

      Agreed. The man's a fun chemistry teacher now

  • @Thomas-vn6cr
    @Thomas-vn6cr 4 роки тому +34

    I suck at chemistry, but adore your memes/editing, and am starting to think that these videos are an insight into what a typical Australian class is like.

  • @alexdoescrazystuff
    @alexdoescrazystuff 4 роки тому +41

    I have finally been early, wanted to say your channel is my favorite channel, and wish you good luck with the cubane project.

    • @ExplosionsAndFire
      @ExplosionsAndFire  4 роки тому +27

      Thanks mate! We're going to need all the luck we can get I think

    • @robinderoos1166
      @robinderoos1166 4 роки тому

      I wonder where the tentacles explode our of?

  • @diggah
    @diggah 4 роки тому +11

    Is it wrong that I’ve watched this vid over 10 times now? I’m no chemist (I got a D in gcse chemistry in 1994) but your voice is very relaxing and oh boy do we need a lot of more of that right now. Cheers chap.

  • @berrodude
    @berrodude Рік тому +4

    Interesting note about mercury fulminate; It was the original compound used in the primer caps for early firearm ammunition. It was used in this way as opposed to replacing gunpowder as the excessive explosive power made it impractical as a propellant but ideal for an ignition primer.

    • @francisbrewster4948
      @francisbrewster4948 Рік тому

      VERY GOOD information there .... thanks very interesting, useful as understanding history & firearms
      .... thanks to you !!

  • @Chiovarie
    @Chiovarie 4 роки тому +104

    SCUFFED NILE RED RISES ONCE MORE

  • @chaboii
    @chaboii 4 роки тому +72

    Science: here's a cool compound, blows up like freakin nuts
    Britain: hey Afghanistan, come here, i wanna show you something

    • @Darasilverdragon
      @Darasilverdragon 4 роки тому +16

      any time britain, france, spain, the netherlands, or portugal wants to show your country something, just fucking leave it. Make a new country somewhere else. You're better off.

    • @azertyuiop432
      @azertyuiop432 4 роки тому +5

      @@Darasilverdragon Now it's 'Murica

    • @robmckennie4203
      @robmckennie4203 3 роки тому +1

      And they still get owned 😂

  • @mokatwenty
    @mokatwenty 4 роки тому +24

    What's with the Melbourne Bitter on the speaker. You need to store dangerous chemicals better than that...

  • @taiwanluthiers
    @taiwanluthiers 3 роки тому +2

    Silver fulminate is used in those snap pop kids play with. It's sensitive stuff. Basically if you open it up, it's a bunch of pebbles with a tiny amount of silver fulminate. Even just sifting through it will cause it to go off. I have no idea how they even manufacture the stuff. I mean all those toy contact explosives are dangerous as hell to manufacture because they often involve stuff like armstrong's mix and the like.

  • @ryancraft2890
    @ryancraft2890 4 роки тому +1

    I've watched this video many times now. It's fun every single time.
    The energy is great and the edits a perfectly chaotic. Like, I just love this guy.

  • @gamingmarcus
    @gamingmarcus 4 роки тому +23

    Thanks for reminding me that I once learned about surface plasmon resonance. I'm 100% siding with ghosts.

  • @p0ptop
    @p0ptop 4 роки тому +11

    This is the first time one of your vids has come up in my feed on its own. Every single other one I've had to go lookin fer.

  • @migarsormrapophis2755
    @migarsormrapophis2755 4 роки тому +29

    "Explosives are entirely a human invention"
    The Bombardier Beetle and the Sun: "Allow us to introduce ourselves"

    • @francisbrewster4948
      @francisbrewster4948 Рік тому +1

      Yes i thiught about bombardier beetles .... perhaps its not an explosion, it is a fast reaction of liquids contained in a vessel
      ---- Even gunpowder is a slow or "low" explosive ---- as he says here

  • @chewy560
    @chewy560 3 роки тому +3

    Made a half beaker full of fulminating gold or something similar (we also has H2O2 in our solution) by mistake. Work colleague was in process of drying it in oven when the small sample he had dried on the end of his spatula exploded. We suddenly knew we had a problem.

  • @TheBoshy
    @TheBoshy 4 роки тому +45

    Will it Fulminate?
    UA-cam's hottest new show

  • @Kanitoxx
    @Kanitoxx 4 роки тому +47

    I once made like 5g of silver fulminate, while drying it, it exploded due to too much of it piled in one place, I was working in a ceramic plate and plastic utensils to reduce the explosion risk hahaha I failed at that and ended up with 2 weeks without hearing well and a damn buzzing sound...

  • @evilferris
    @evilferris 4 роки тому +52

    Ex&F: Man, I wish Mercury wasn’t so toxic…
    Gallium: Hi!

    • @AlexBesogonov
      @AlexBesogonov 4 роки тому +21

      Gallium is nowhere near as fun. It's not that heavy and it wets pretty much everything (skin, glass, metals).

    • @durshurrikun150
      @durshurrikun150 3 роки тому +1

      Galium and cesium are solid at room temperature though.

    • @ivantheterrible7696
      @ivantheterrible7696 3 роки тому

      @@durshurrikun150 only because the dipshits in charge decided the range for "room temperature" to be based on their homes in cold-temperate climates, which isn't really reasonable.

    • @durshurrikun150
      @durshurrikun150 3 роки тому

      @@ivantheterrible7696 At standard conditions, aka 1 bar 298,15K Cesium and gallium are solid.
      So only mercury and possibly francium are liquid in standard conditions.

    • @ivantheterrible7696
      @ivantheterrible7696 3 роки тому +1

      @@durshurrikun150 not the point. I'm complaining about 25 C° being the "standard" to begin with.

  • @useazebra
    @useazebra 2 роки тому +9

    You turned gold into expletives. Well done.

  • @mrhassell
    @mrhassell 7 місяців тому +1

    The first explosion, was antimatter. When an antiproton, meets a proton, they anhilate each other on a quantum scale. This works, regardless of the big bang, so it's really the oldest explosion to have ever occurred and its completely natural.

  • @deoris5778
    @deoris5778 4 роки тому +19

    Me trying to wacth a video at 2am
    *EXPLOSIONS AND FIRE*

  • @gabeverk
    @gabeverk 4 роки тому +59

    Love this channel. It brings good memories of the "fun" chemistry

    • @Slathos1
      @Slathos1 4 роки тому +8

      not fun chemistry is part of why I am a software developer now :

    • @gabeverk
      @gabeverk 4 роки тому +2

      @@Slathos1 awwww

  • @VAbel03
    @VAbel03 4 роки тому +13

    8:37
    solution: *explodes and goes everywhere*
    E&F: *hentai noise*

  • @japanime555
    @japanime555 4 роки тому +29

    -Amazing content
    -bizarre upload schedule
    -Australian
    You are canonically the Maxmoefoe of chemistry and I absolutely love it

  • @battletommy8918
    @battletommy8918 2 роки тому +1

    I just love how you just put science and comedy into one video.

  • @bomb4r719
    @bomb4r719 4 роки тому +51

    *Holy God I wish public education was like this*
    Explosives are just sexy

    • @privateger
      @privateger 4 роки тому +6

      Of course you have a Megumin profile picture.

    • @bomb4r719
      @bomb4r719 4 роки тому +1

      Look, I'm a weeb shitposter, what more do you expect from me

    • @theSILKROAD210
      @theSILKROAD210 4 роки тому +2

      a man of culture !

    • @bakeurstew1434
      @bakeurstew1434 4 роки тому +1

      I fucking love this guy, explosion Loli best loli

    • @TheRAMBO9191
      @TheRAMBO9191 4 роки тому

      Ahh yes, school bombings are just so fun. No. We do not need people to learn how to do bombs.

  • @SomeKidsAtHomes
    @SomeKidsAtHomes 4 роки тому +4

    i remember this channel a few years ago when it only had a few hundred subs and I always hoped that you get enough subscribers so you could continue to produce cool content and not stop :) Thank guys, love ya!

  • @iNerdier
    @iNerdier 4 роки тому +16

    Tom is going to die of jaundice one day isn’t he.

    • @toastpoint
      @toastpoint 4 роки тому

      Nah, but his kidneys are just going to say "peace out" one day

    • @iNerdier
      @iNerdier 4 роки тому +5

      Toast Point but it’s the yellowest way to go!

  • @peanutsveryepicchannel8699
    @peanutsveryepicchannel8699 Рік тому +1

    Low explosive = detonates somewhat randomly
    High explosive = detonates controllably

  • @daniellarson-h3q
    @daniellarson-h3q 4 роки тому +1

    I love this channel found it last night, very good find

  • @hank_911
    @hank_911 4 роки тому +34

    Honestly if you tried to apply for a grant claiming you'd make someone immortal, you'd still get turned down

  • @flyingshards595
    @flyingshards595 4 роки тому +11

    When life gives you yellow chemistry... Really enjoyed the video, great intro!

    • @edgeeffect
      @edgeeffect 4 роки тому +1

      When life gives you yellow chemistry... you just distill your own pee.

  • @TheBoshy
    @TheBoshy 4 роки тому +10

    Can't wait for the fulminating platin-

  • @simekon80085
    @simekon80085 3 роки тому +1

    Ah yes fulminating silver a.k.a. funny boom crystal you can make with trash from your school lab cabinet.

  • @creditsunknown7974
    @creditsunknown7974 2 роки тому +1

    "Chemical explosive" Don't do mah man the bombardier beetle dirty like that, come on

  • @Dirkietje8
    @Dirkietje8 4 роки тому +17

    6:45 Postdoc life

  • @barretprivateer8768
    @barretprivateer8768 3 роки тому +3

    The biggest explosion in the video was my eardrums turning to mist as the drivers in my headphones slam into my skull at 0:10

  • @fritz5448
    @fritz5448 4 роки тому +9

    0:37 sad Bombardier beetle noises

  • @shotgunjackalQ
    @shotgunjackalQ 2 роки тому +1

    I love this episode so God damn much. It'll come on while I'm gaming and every damn time I end up picking up my phone and just watching this episode. With other episodes I'll watch parts of it but this episode always makes me stop and pay attention.

  • @knpark2025
    @knpark2025 Рік тому +1

    after 3 yrs in grad school, I finally realized the first 60 seconds of this video is organized like an academic paper where you list all researches that preceded you and then raise a fucking research gap

  • @troymorgan3346
    @troymorgan3346 2 роки тому +3

    I found this via a rabbit hole on the internet.. but I've not watched this guy for 3 hours straight.. not for the chemistry.. but bc of how freaking excited he is..

  • @pvtbadtouch6540
    @pvtbadtouch6540 Рік тому +3

    Big ups to this citated piece of research

  • @MattB1792
    @MattB1792 4 роки тому +8

    0:38 Well, there are not primary eplosives in the nature, but secondary explosives exist. Look here:
    en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombardier_beetle

    • @CatboyChemicalSociety
      @CatboyChemicalSociety 4 роки тому +10

      thats not even an explosive.
      thats just a hypergolic mixture of peroxide and a catalyst!

  • @Add_Infinitum
    @Add_Infinitum 2 роки тому +1

    I think this is one of his best videos, the humor is so on point

  • @micahphilson
    @micahphilson Рік тому +1

    6:14 "I don't believe physics is real"
    _gets his PhD in physics_
    Ah, the scientific process!

  • @privateger
    @privateger 4 роки тому +12

    Michael Reeves hasn't uploaded in a while.
    You haven't either.
    I really missed my crazy scientist dosage.

  • @PorkpieJohnny
    @PorkpieJohnny 4 роки тому +9

    1:00 EW MATLAB

  • @SolarSeeker45
    @SolarSeeker45 2 роки тому +8

    As a modern alchemist I can tell you that they use a LOT of metaphor. When they say Sulphur of gold. They mean a compound made of gold which has similar properties to sulfur. Mostly a low melting point and the ability to exhibit the colors yellow,red, black ,white, and red in that order.

  • @v7bp25aq
    @v7bp25aq 2 роки тому +1

    I love this channel! I am a programming student and I wish there was a channel like this but for programming.

  • @Dunkster74
    @Dunkster74 2 роки тому +1

    That fulminating silver has got to be one of the angriest explosives I've seen, jesus.

  • @SuperSqwiggy
    @SuperSqwiggy 4 роки тому +6

    Wait, so you've just been doing alchemy this whole time? That's why you don't have papers dude.

  • @eertikrux666
    @eertikrux666 4 роки тому +7

    Nilered: *Singlet oxygen video*
    Me: *Watch later but haven’t watched until a year later*
    F&E: *This*
    Me: N O W

  • @ataphelicopter5734
    @ataphelicopter5734 4 роки тому +7

    Patreon people here 18 hours ago...

  • @apaleslimghost
    @apaleslimghost 2 роки тому

    the "eh???" at the exploding silver nitride off-camera at 8:28 is absolutely sending me

  • @TheWittyGeek
    @TheWittyGeek 2 роки тому +1

    This is the best upside down channel on UA-cam.

  • @RationallySkeptical
    @RationallySkeptical 4 роки тому +4

    0:09 You should have just started the video here.

  • @LinkinPark4Ever1996
    @LinkinPark4Ever1996 4 роки тому +1

    Actually there is an insect that makes its butt explode super violently as a self defense mechanism, I think it's considered an explosion

  • @dane1382
    @dane1382 3 роки тому +1

    hell yeah! i learned about fulminations and how they practically founded modern chemistry in high school chem, and its still interesting

  • @aperturescienceguy2737
    @aperturescienceguy2737 3 роки тому +1

    "Somewhere between, idunno, like, the big bang and, yesterday"
    This is now my go-to for when someone asks me when something happened

  • @davidrobertson5700
    @davidrobertson5700 4 місяці тому

    This guy has the best personality on you tube , i wish teach was like you .

  • @RaglansElectricBaboon
    @RaglansElectricBaboon 2 роки тому +1

    You are a genuinely entertaining and informative nutter. Thank you.