| English term or phrase: This bomb, made from materials which are legally sold (except to minor) and easi | This bomb, made from materials which are legally sold (except to minor) and easily available (though they are illegal when combined to make a bomb) is almost ideal for anarchits who have little technical sophistication. Unfortunately, the unpredicatibility of the bomb and the timing of the explosion are significant drawbacks, but drawbacks thatare not so insignificant that they totally discount this weapon.
Dry ice is frozen carbon dioxide. When exposed to temperature above about -70 degrees centigrade (the temperature of dry ice) the ice evaporates into carbon dioxide gas. the gaseous carbon dioxide, when contained, causes a buildup in pressure which evntually leads to a significant explosion. Also, when carbon dioxide builds up in the atmopshere to about one part in ten it makes air unbreathable by human standards.
The standard dry ice bomb is manufactured from dry ice in a plastic container. This type of device is generally non-lethal and is somewhat unpredictable in it seffectiveness. It does, however, make a big bang noise and spew out a cloud of scary gas.
To manufacture this device, you must first acquire enough dry ice to fill a two lite rbottle to about one to two inches. You chop the ice up, drop it into thje bottle, place the bottle in the place you want it to detonate, and then add hot water. When the white gas starts to smnoke out, you cap the bottle and run. The time to explode can be anything from seconds to an hour, depending on how well ground the ice is (the smaller the pieces, the quicker the explosion, because thegreater the surfacearea.)
The key to making this an effective anti-personell device is fragmentation. it's the thrown piecves of container that willinjure people, and not the explosion or the noise. With a plastic bottle, fragmentation is not generated -- often the bottle simply bursts or a chunk of top or bottom flies off. This is also true for stronger containers, like reinforced plastic or metal. Plastic fragments are also non lethal except at very closre ranges, and even then only rarely. Some people have reporterd having this device, with plastic casing, explode in their hands with no injurous effects (though there is always the surprise of being too close to an explosion.)
The bestway to add lethality to this device is to use a glass (or porcelain or relatively brittle material) casing, though this is much more dangerous. As a number of factors, including air pressure and temperature, total surfacearea of the exposed dry ice (very hard to control), and the specific container, go into determining timing for the explosion, it is very easy to set down a device like this and have it go off before you're able to get out of the blast range of the flying fragments. At the very least, a good degree of practice with plastic dvices and some kind of protective clothing and cove ris recommended.
Also, when handling dry ice, it is important to use gloves and tongs, as the ice is very cold and will freze your hands. Dry ice should neevr contact exposed skin or living tissue.
Lastly, dry ice devices can be used to poison air and make it unbreathable for human beings, though only in large quantities in relatively poor ventilated areas is this effective. Air containing sufficient amounts of carbon dioxide (evaporated dry ice) mpumped into, say a ventilation system, can potentially suffocate an entire building. This is also why there should be proper ventil;ation in any area where dry ice is prepared. |
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