Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Pressure Cooker Bombs??

Trotsky - 16-4-2013 at 15:35

I saw reports today that the bombs used to attack the Boston Marathon were built from pressure cookers. It seems so absurd!

I can imagine millions of fun things to do with explosives, I wish that whoever was responsible for this attack would have pursued other activities instead of engaging in the worst use science has ever been put to.

I do not understand the use of pressure cookers, though. I mean, I understand the desire for containment, but a pressure cooker? Why not a pipe or something smaller and easier to handle?

I cannot understand the mind of someone who wants to hurt another person. I love my children and all of humanity- though individual humans I'm lukewarm on. I understand targeted bombings to kill high value targets, if we had used targeted explosives instead of sending troops into Iraq perhaps things would have been different, I don't know. I do know that the women and children and average guys who were running yesterday didn't deserve to have ball bearings sent through their legs and arms.

Back to the pressure cooker- why? Do they somehow have the thing heating so that the heat detonates a primary which triggers the detonation of less sensitive explosives?

Yesterday they were talking about how if this was a "hydrogen peroxide bomb" (TATP, MEK or HMTD) they would assume that it was an Al Qaeada-oriented group and if it was gun powder or some sort of grey market military explosive they would assume right-wing paramilitary folks.

That seemed strange to me. Surely all of these groups have the internet and are capable of coming up with all of the things any other group is (does Al Qaeada hate their bomb makers so much that they'd make them use TATP?? LOL)

I really don't understand the pressure cooker thing though, it seems out of left field.

When I first read it i thought they were talking about the sort of carbon dioxide "bombs" the IRA used- (dry ice in a tightly sealed paint can to spray red paint everywhere when it "detonated") but this clearly wasn't a paint bomb.

neptunium - 16-4-2013 at 16:06

no the preassure cooker is just to contain the nails, screws, and other shrapnel and the explosives long enough and to provide extra resistence when the cooker gives it rupture all at once and all the preassure is released along with all the nasty things inside to cause as much damage to the immidiate surrounding ...
it might have been black powder or any fast burning chemical ..

and you right so many informations are availlable an the net we cant tell which crazies did it based on the explosive used or the technic anymore

violet sin - 16-4-2013 at 16:19

I remember one of the old references from like 1995 or so, anarchist cook-b or poor mans james bond etc. had a device they called the hellhound or something. well it was a pressure cooker with gasoline in it and a thermite pipe bomb that had a rupture charge at one end.

basically it was supposed to be lit through the pressure relief spout on the lid, directly to one end of the thermite. super heating the pressure cooker and gasoline in it. after most the thermite had burned it got to the rupture charge which popped it all open releasing the superheated gasoline/molten iron(and pressure cooker shrapnel).

under the description it said something like " before you do it, ask your self if you really want to deal with this level of devastation " or something similar, like I said it was yearsss ago. this is different of course as I didn't read the boston marathon reports, but was similar enough to mention

edit* just checked out the boston marathon thing. that is super lame. I also noticed it had no giant flaming fireball so it really doesn't look like they used any flammable liquid. = nothing like the thing I mentioned. sorry for the pointless post

[Edited on 17-4-2013 by violet sin]

Fantasma4500 - 19-4-2013 at 14:30

sounds strange, they had a bag tho..
judging by the bang i would say it was AN based by the heavy dull sound, didnt sound very brisant..
in the range of 10kg by smoke and shockwave
without taking too much politics in it i doubt it was just 2 random guys thinking hey lets blow up something at the marathon because why not..

anyways whoever did it its a sick thing to do, be it planned by many high ranked or few low in society

Bot0nist - 19-4-2013 at 15:16

I am sorry, but I do not feel discussion of the manufacture, funcionality, or effectivness of "infernal devices" (aka "bombs") has any place in the EM subforum. An energetic material only becomes a bomb when it is designed or utilized in such a way to cause harm to persons or destruction to property. I may be wrong on this one, and if so, I apologize.

violet sin - 19-4-2013 at 17:02

I realize that after commenting, just don't know how to erase it.

Fantasma4500 - 20-4-2013 at 01:39

Quote: Originally posted by Bot0nist  
I am sorry, but I do not feel discussion of the manufacture, funcionality, or effectivness of "infernal devices" (aka "bombs") has any place in the EM subforum. An energetic material only becomes a bomb when it is designed or utilized in such a way to cause harm to persons or destruction to property. I may be wrong on this one, and if so, I apologize.


i agree on that.. you shouldnt call devices made to create sound mainly a bomb as it will become confusing, bomb also have a pretty negative meaning and puts so many pictures in the head of people
i dont think theres really discussion on how to make the full devices, but rather the compounds that have interesting properties..

hissingnoise - 20-4-2013 at 03:46

Quote: Originally posted by violet sin  
I realize that after commenting, just don't know how to erase it.

Just hit 'delete" on the "edit page . . .

woelen - 20-4-2013 at 10:52

No need to discuss bombs over here. Thread closed.