First you need to decide what smoke is. Scientifically, it's an aerosol. It can be solid or liquid. Aerosols have their own properties. For example, if the smoke particles are too large, then its constituent particles stick together (this process is called flocculation) and it quickly settles. And they can increase in size depending on the presence of the same electric charge on them or the absence of a film of adsorbed gases. According to their composition, the prepared mixtures are divided into two large groups. One of them contains in its composition a ready-made smoke-forming agent, and in the second, this smoke-forming substance is obtained in the combustion process. But since our task is to learn how to make a smoke bomb with our own hands, then, therefore, we need to use those reagents that are available, or they are generally easy to get.
First of all, let's deal with simple options that allow you to get white and black smoke. A very simple way to produce white smoke is with a cooked ammonium nitrate smoke bomb. It is necessary to soak two or three newspapers in a strong solution of ammonium nitrate, dry them and roll them into a tighthandset.
The resulting cylinder must be wrapped in several layers of foil and a wick inserted, which can be made from the same paper. After ignition, the product will quickly burn out, emitting a sufficient amount of white smoke. In order for a do-it-yourself smoke bomb to give more smoke and burn more slowly, it is necessary to pour ammonium chloride (ammonia) and baking soda in an even layer between the layers of the dried newspaper. The amount of additives is known empirically. And the role of these additives is as follows. When heated, soda will release carbon dioxide and slow down combustion, and ammonia sublimes very easily, and after it enters the atmosphere, it condenses and turns into white smoke.
A do-it-yourself smoke bomb is also made to produce black smoke. In this case, the smoke-generating substance will be formed as a result of combustion. Aromatic hydrocarbons are best suited for producing black smoke. To obtain an acceptable composition, potassium nitrate, naphthalene and charcoal in a ratio of 2: 2: 1 will be required. All this is thoroughly mixed, the resulting powder is poured into a tin and a wick is inserted. During combustion, incomplete oxidation of naphthalene will occur. The resulting soot will fly out of the hole in the form of black smoke. If the combustion is too fast, but more naphthalene should be added to the composition, and if the smoke is not black, but gray, then the amount of charcoal will need to be increased.
However, the already described smoke bomb can be used to obtain colored smoke. It is unlikely that it will be possible to synthesize a dye suitable for coloring smoke with your own hands. But there is a very simple way out. You can use those dyes that are on hand. For example, to obtain blue smoke, indigo or, at worst, blue is suitable. The composition is as follows: potassium nitrate, milk sugar and indigo in a ratio of 1.5:1:2. Produced in the same way as the previous composition.
In general, this method is very interesting because there is a huge field for experiments in order to obtain smoke of different colors. Colored toners for laser printers are well suited for coloring smoke, and food coloring is even better. In practice, the following smoke bomb has proven itself well.
At home, you can sprinkle sifted sheets of newspaper with turmeric powder or pour a few packets of Yupi. The packaging of the product has already been described.
In conclusion, the following recipe can be used as a joke. Take one tablet of analgin and hydroperite. Crush them and mix the powders. The rate at which smoke begins to form depends on the degree of crushing of the tablets.
