Firework Types & Explosives & how they work Part 3

High Explosives

Alfred Nobel showed that by careful adjustment of the grain size of gunpowder and suitable confinement of the reaction, that a detonation wave could be produced. The speed of combustion has been so accelerated that it has broken the sound barrier and gone super sonic. You are now in the realms of high explosive.

Deflagatory explosives decompose energetically by a process of chemical combustion; high explosives decompose energetically by a process of physical destruction. A detonator produces a super- sonic shock wave which scythes through the inter-atomic bonds that hold the molecules of the high explosive together. The released energy from these broken bonds then travels out to propagate the reaction.

The force of the high explosives is not dependent on the production of hot gases, but by the creation of a physical shock wave.

Basic high explosives are single substances and, since oxidising agents do not play a part in their decomposition, many can be quite safely ignited and they will burn like wood or paper.

High explosives can of course be mixed together, Lyddite, Gelignite are examples of mixed explosives.

It should be noted that Aluminium Nitrate can be used as an oxidising agent as well as a high explosive and is used in the manufacture of Amatol to get rid of the clouds of black smoke produced by the detonation of TNT.

Nuclear

Whereas high explosives involve the breaking down of molecules into atoms, nuclear explosions involve breaking down atoms into their sub-atomic particles

Nuclear explosions are Matter/Anti-matter reactions in which the Matter (Electrons, Protons, Neutrons etc.) are destroyed to produce Anti- matter (pure energy).

Fire precautions involving nuclear explosions are beyond the scope of this course.

The Keeping and Storage of Explosives

It is likely that Operators will at some stage need to keep explosives in temporary storage before a display, or after it in the case of unused items-

Explosives Act requirements

The Act requires explosives, including fireworks, to be kept in a factory or magazine licensed by the HSE, or in premises registered with the Local Authority. The quantities and types that may be kept will depend on the particulars of the licence.

Exceptions to this are where explosives are delivered to a site for use on that day, or where they are stored privately in accordance with the Control of Explosives Regulations 1991, as below.

Control of Explosives Regulations 1991

These Regulations allow, among other things, the storage of an unlimited quantity of fireworks on private premises for up to fourteen days before private use. This concession is however of no value to Operators who are giving commercial public displays.

Special Requirements for Fireworks

Operators are likely to require licensed or registered storage. In the latter case, the quantities that may be stored will vary according to the authorisation, and may range from a few kilos up to several tonnes.

The storage will need to be within easy road reach site, so that the items can be delivered and set up within the day.

MSER

Now in force took many of the older and less known explosives regulations (some of them listed) and wrapped them up into one all encompassing piece of legislation. It governs every aspect of Firework Storage, Manufacture & Use. Storage is determined by Hazard Type, Distance and an assessment of the pros and cons of any one site, the ACOP that accompanies the legislation is designed to help you interpret and put into place safe working practices.

Manufacture of Fireworks

Wherever they are manufactured, only fireworks designed and manufactured with care should be used for displays-

Main sources of Supply

Fireworks factories were set up in European countries and in the United States during the last few hundred years, producing fireworks for private and public use, and for the manufacture of other pyrotechnic articles such as signal flares, line-throwing rockets, etc.

However, after the Second World War, labour costs in the industrialised world raised to the point where the manufacture of fireworks in many cases became uneconomic, and a large proportion of the activity shifted to areas of the world where labour costs are low.

Imports into the UK

Imported fireworks have to be authorised and classified by the HSE, and this represents some restriction to ensure that fireworks of unknown or unsatisfactory composition and performance cannot legally be held or used.

The Art of Fireworks New & Old

I personally have now been involved since I was Nine years old that sounds madness in this day and age, especially in the almighty Health & Safety Days that we live in, the blame culture has got us all diving for cover behind administration and Risk Assessments

Of course the art of Fireworks Displays and making Fireworks is centuries old, it’s a form of grand entertainment that has been around longer than most things and its time proven fascination that keeps the industry going despite the enormous changes that have happened recently.

I think its in so many of us, the fascination of Fire and Light, Noise and Explosions, it gets the senses going, the Vision, The Hearing, The sense of touch ands the Fireworks Vibrate through the floor and our bodies. Its this part of it that’s old and part of our very being that makes fireworks interesting, emotional and exciting.

I was once told by my Father that when the audience clap they are applauding the fireworks and not the person who let them off. Now looking back at this, and baring in mind I know how personally my Dad felt about the displays he provided I know he didn’t really truly believe in that sentence. What I take from it and more so in the last couple of years is that its to easy to simply rely on manufactured fireworks, to lay them out and just put a match to them, that leads to complacency and that can lead to a number of things, not least safety concerns and customer dissatisfaction.

Now I have thought long and hard about what he said and as an artist (well kind of) and certainly a person, although slightly shy, one who does enjoy creating attention, and finally and most significantly someone who is very very competitive…mostly with myself! I am striving to be one of the best, and part of this has meant embracing (which we have found pretty easy and a natural step) and investing in some of the latest and best Firework Firing Technology and Computer Software.

This has lead our team to create some pretty awesome displays, you can view one at YouTube . I / We are now forever looking forward at Fireworks and Effects and are pushing to make ourselves one of the best. This will take years for sure, but hey can you imagine a better way of spending your time!

We use the Pyromate Smarthawk, Nighthawk and P45 units as well as our own Wireless small systems and DMX controllers for our flame projectors. As we are aiming to take part in some European Firework Competitions over the next few years we will be extending our hardware and pushing our learning to the limit so we can evolve, educate ourselves and hopefully make our Firework Displays more exciting, more innovative and better to watch.

Fireworks from around the World – Valencia Part 3

Of the Four shows put on each night you notice that as you go from one day to the next the Firework Displays get much bigger, containing far more Fireworks than the previous nights. Many More Mortar Tubes and Shells can be seen along with loads more Roman Candles and Flying Saucers.

This particular show is from the Firing Site of the 2005 Las Fallas celebration and the site is courtesy of Ricardo Caballier from near Valencia. They are without doubt or at least in my opinion one of the best Firework Display Companies in the world. They have a whole cupboard full of international trophies and medals.

Whats even more impressive to me is the fact that they make and manufacture virtually every Firework which is on the site. My own company have imported Fireworks from them before and we have used a good number and variety of Spanish Fireworks over the last 14 years and they are certainly the best we have used. They are so reliable, spot on with timings and the quality of the compositions are also really on the mark.

The show that night in 2005 still sticks out in my mind, the Spanish companies really go in for colour coordination as well as coordination of colours with effects. The themes are really noticeable and you can see that both audience and operator get excited by being able to see these themes as they happen. They also make great use of firing rhythm which helps make the show exciting.

The part that really made an impression on me were the skill and timing used to take effectively small individual fireworks and create symmetrical patterns and firing rhythms’ that really got the hairs on end. It appealed to everyone, even someone who knows absolutely nothing about fireworks, and let’s face it that is the aim to simply entertain and entertain well!.

I brought back to Britannia Fireworks that day a vision that we would use rhythm and skill to create the shows we provided as well as just good quality material. That way the audience are clapping you and not just the Fireworks (as my Father would tell me!)

Fireworks from around the World – Valencia Part 2

Now as with the Day Light shows the large night time Fireworks Displays all start with a set of Three Massive Maroons.

Aching a bit as you tend to have to stand around for an hour or so you find yourself clock watching waiting for 1am to arrive. Now while you wait there’s no shortage of entertainment, and the level of entertainment depends entirely on where you stand. It’s well known locally that the kids and youths and firework nutters hang around in or near the dry riverbed and enjoy hurling fireworks around at each other! Now I suppose to the un initiated it sounds terrifying and to a certain extent it is a little scary and you definitely need to be on your guard.

So long as you don’t walk through the middle and keep a few steps away you’ll be fine, its incredible to hear and see the fireworks going off, huge thunder maroons exploding on the floor and also Barrettas (Tourbillions) flying all over the place. It seems to me that your king of the group if you can catch under your foot a Barretta thrown by the opponents and pick it up and throw if back to them. To clarify this it means catching a rocket without a stick that’s hurtling around randomly, grasp it in the hand and throw it back, whilst all the time avoid being quite seriously burnt or hit by it.

BANG, the first of the three maroons goes off…there is now just ten minutes remaining until the show starts. By now people are really cramming in all around the dry river bed to see the Fireworks. You needed to have made your mind up earlier on in the day where you intended to view from as with 10 minutes to go there is absolutely no chance of changing you mind as many Roads were closed off well over an hour ago. My best advice is ensuring you’re up wind of the show, or at least definitely no downwind. The smoke can get very thick and blot out many of the gorgeous fireworks in the show.

BANG, the second maroon thunders across the city, the crowd are now starting to get excited, standing to their feet and getting themselves into a final viewing position. Many turning on cameras and video cameras so they can capture the mood. Looking around there are so many people, stretching far back into the streets off the main roads either side of the dry river bed, some lucky viewers are in the properties either side of the roads, with ringside seats up high on some balcony’s. Although these positions come with a small amount of risk as we have seen fireworks land in the balcony’s before now.

BANG the final Maroon shakes the ground and the Fireworks roar into life…..

Look out for Part Three as Lee will write down some snippets from his favourite display of 2008.

you can check out more info at our website www.britanniafireworks.co.uk.

Fireworks From Around The World - Valencia

What really impresses me about my trips to Valencia is the spirit of the locals and just how stylish and relaxed they all seem to be. The whole outdoor eating culture and Tapas eaten over a 2 hour Lunch is just perfect for me. This attitude is no more prominent than in the organisation of the Evening Fireworks Displays which take place on the Dry River Bed that cuts through Valencia. I say in the evening it is actually around 1am in the morning! This alone amazes me, you would never see anything like that in Britain, and the Local Authorities would never dare.

The City itself is Gorgeous and there is so much to do, the Dry River Bed where the large Night time Firework Display happen is actually a park open to the public, there are areas of grass, orange trees and open water areas where people laze the lovely sunny days away. The Firing Site is located in-between two bridges and is on what looks like a purpose created area. It is football pitch sized and is just gritty sand, probably made up from the hundreds of sandbags used, broken and left there after each show. Next to the firing area which is all fenced off is a café and you can be sure that each day for late lunch there is a whole host of international Anoraks gathered chewing their food and discussing the contents of the looming show which is set up ready to go just 50 metres away from them.

The set ups alone are quite impressive, no doubt even to those who do not have a clue what it is all for. Rows and rows of neatly laid racks and mortar tubes, Roman Candles, Cake Barrages and Flying Saucers litter the site in an orderly set up. Usually there is also a healthy compliment of computerised sequencer boxes and single shot arrangements, simply put this enables the Fireworks Operators to control via computer each and every single pyrotechnic effect. Now usually a firework is lit electrically and from that point on the rest of the fireworks timing Is controlled by the internal or external fusing. Now this fusing can be fairly accurate but some can also be fairly inaccurate, so it’s the done thing these days in large scale events to create real controlled design through electrical ignition of single effects. This means we can lay hundreds of cables, connections and igniters, even 1000’s and just for a few seconds of fireworks, massive effort for only a small amount of time. However its well worth it because for those few seconds you can create precisely what your imagination dreams of.

Once we have scanned the firing site we all try to have a guess at what is coming in the show that Night, second guessing what the layout will achieve in the Air, and of course we can see the total amount of stuff to be used and interestingly as the days and nights roll by the shows grow in size and by the last Night the Tennis Court sized firing area is bulging with around £100.000 worth of Fireworks.

Lee and the team from Britannia Fireworks will report on one of the shows seen and the carnival atmosphere in a future Blog