Woman brings highly explosive chemical used back in WW1 to a police station in Brisbane because she - Polidicks

[IMG]http://resources1.news.com.au/images/2014/08/18/1227028/399477-8c65f55e-26a3-11e4-8345-5834e4b1ef5c.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://resources1.news.com.au/images/2014/08/18/1227028/398337-89c2e0fa-26a3-11e4-8345-5834e4b1ef5c.jpg[/IMG] [QUOTE]A HIGHLY volatile chemical taken to a suburban Brisbane police station could have detonated in transit, officers have warned. Regional duty officer for the Brisbane Region Inspector Steve Flori said an elderly resident of The Gap in Brisbane’s northwest discovered the substance at a home after her ex-husband - a former chemist - was admitted to hospital. She later handed the chemical, believed to be about 150ml and held in a small glass container, over to police at about 11am. “We believe the material had been there for decades, potentially, and analysis of the material revealed it was a substance called picric acid,” Insp Flori said The sensitive chemical could be activated by friction and movement and was used as an explosive in World War I. “That wasn’t its current application in relation to this couple at The Gap,” Insp Flori said. “But in its current state that we had it, it was highly explosive and the safest option for us was to dispose of that substance via a controlled explosion.” Members of the bomb squad detonated the chemical in a park next to The Gap police station about 3.30pm. Insp Flori said further examinations of the woman’s property and another residence had not uncovered any other chemicals of concern. “What we’d ask people though is not to put it in your car and bring it to the police station,” he said. “If you have something suspicious, call us and we’ll come and look at it and apply the appropriate response.” The chemical had earlier caused police to evacuate their station on Waterworks Rd and declare an “emergent situation” within the area of Waterworks Rd, Nigel St, Lochinvar Lane, Bennetts Rd and Fish Creek.[/QUOTE] [url]http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/explosive-substance-sparks-lockdown-at-the-gap/story-fnihsrf2-1227028209811?nk=c3a4c24a56f806320e7f0f64df73cc09[/url]

Good fucking job, you should have called the fucking police, not brought them it.

Better in the hands of the police than the criminal gangs I suppose

Good intentions but holy shit lady, just call them next time.

good intent, bad execution. good thing no one was hurt. i've never heard of that type of explosive before.

[QUOTE=Slippery-Q;45725696]good intent, bad execution. good thing no one was hurt. i've never heard of that type of explosive before.[/QUOTE] That's because no one uses it anymore, mainly because it's a more powerful, less stable TNT, which is so unstable that it has to be stored wet, and even then there's been times where it exploded anyway because it decided it didn't want you to live that day.

[QUOTE=Crimor;45725661]Good fucking job, you should have called the fucking police, not brought them it.[/QUOTE] what do you expect an elderly lady to do, they generally consider themselves a nuisance to everyone so they're not gonna call the cops on a vial of liquid when they dont even know what it precisely is

Picric acid was one of the chemicals that caused Halifax to get blown up.

[QUOTE=Crimor;45725784]That's because no one uses it anymore, mainly because it's a more powerful, less stable TNT, which is so unstable that it has to be stored wet, and even then there's been times where it exploded anyway because it decided it didn't want you to live that day.[/QUOTE] Stored [i]wet[/i]? u wot most explosives react violently and virtually all explosive containment facilities are kept extremely dry. No wonder it's fucking unstable :v:

I am so surprised her upper torso wasn't reduced to a old-woman scented bloody pulp the moment she looked at that jar/beaker funny. [i]Decades[/i] of sitting there? I don't think I can fully articulate how fucking lucky everyone is, this shit was abandoned for a reason. [QUOTE=ForgottenKane;45726315]Stored [i]wet[/i]? u wot most explosives react violently and virtually all explosive containment facilities are kept extremely dry. No wonder it's fucking unstable :v:[/QUOTE]Uh, that's because most explosives corrode into highly unstable molecules when exposed to moisture, some even steal the oxygen out of water molecules which basically means that they have all the ingredients to detonate all by themselves just whenever. When "store wet" is used when referring to explosives it means 99% of the time to store in an inert liquid, like mineral oil, because whatever your storing does not behave itself in the presence of anything found in open air. This instance is an exception, picric acid can be stored in water and is one of the few explosives that behaves with water, but it sure as [i]fuck[/i] doesn't like metal and if you store it in a metal container it will shit all over your day. [editline]18th August 2014[/editline] Oh and I just thought of something. Fumes from this gem of a substance can cause metal salts to form on any metal surface they touch. So... yeah, I hope that container wasn't open for however long it had been sitting there.

[QUOTE=fruxodaily;45725654][IMG]http://resources1.news.com.au/images/2014/08/18/1227028/399477-8c65f55e-26a3-11e4-8345-5834e4b1ef5c.jpg[/IMG] [/QUOTE] Those helmets look pretty badass

Wasn't there a movie, can't remember what, but they were "playing around" with a liquid and a small drip would fall off the guys finger and explode. Then they started tossing drips of it at each other. Still, she had good intentions though. Calling them might've just not been the first thing she thought about though.

[QUOTE=ForgottenKane;45726315]Stored [i]wet[/i]? u wot most explosives react violently and virtually all explosive containment facilities are kept extremely dry. No wonder it's fucking unstable :v:[/QUOTE] Stored wet can also mean stored in a diluted form. Once it starts concentrating/crystallising out then the real fun begins.

Well at least she didn't go redneck and try to blow something up with it

[QUOTE=Crimor;45725784]That's because no one uses it anymore, mainly because it's a more powerful, less stable TNT, which is so unstable that it has to be stored wet, and even then there's been times where it exploded anyway because it decided it didn't want you to live that day.[/QUOTE] TNT is extremely stable and doesnt even absorb water. Generally you cant even detonate it without another charge to use as a detonator.

[QUOTE=BurningPlayd0h;45738829]TNT is extremely stable and doesnt even absorb water. Generally you cant even detonate it without another charge to use as a detonator.[/QUOTE] He is probably thinking of dynamite. They are commonly thought (incorrectly) to be the same thing.

[QUOTE=GunFox;45739214]He is probably thinking of dynamite. They are commonly thought (incorrectly) to be the same thing.[/QUOTE]Easy way to remember the difference: TNT = that nice turtle (who doesn't like turtles?) ... and dynamite doesn't get anything, because dynamite has nothing to do with turtles Unless you hate turtles, but if that's the case you shouldn't be messing with any of this because you're an asshole.

[QUOTE=BurningPlayd0h;45738829]TNT is extremely stable and doesnt even absorb water. Generally you cant even detonate it without another charge to use as a detonator.[/QUOTE] If you store it long enough it starts to produce nitroglycerin. And that is not stable

[QUOTE=rewkasu;45740572]If you store it long enough it starts to produce nitroglycerin. And that is not stable[/QUOTE] [t]http://img4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120921180501/playstationallstarsbattleroyale/images/2/2d/Crash_bandicoot_s_nitro_crate_by_metafedx-d4zg1gs.gif[/t] Don't touch the nitro boxes!

[QUOTE=Slippery-Q;45725696]good intent, bad execution. good thing no one was hurt. i've never heard of that type of explosive before.[/QUOTE] Never heard of this particular one but Nitro Glycerin is really well known for being able to act just like this.

[QUOTE=rewkasu;45740572]If you store it long enough it starts to produce nitroglycerin. And that is not stable[/QUOTE]No, it doesn't produce nitroglycerin if you store it for too long and that doesn't even make any sense anyway. Dynamite is nitroglycerin mixed with diatomaceous earth, and if you store it in a hot environment the nitroglycerin will weep out of the sticks. Again, TNT and dynamite are two entirely different explosives that are often mistaken for one another, your post being a good example of that. [editline]19th August 2014[/editline] Also, since nitroglycerin can be impact-detonated, sticks of dynamite weeping nitroglycerin have often been the cause of spontaneous explosions. In fact, back in the 60's during a time when you could buy dynamite at the hardware store, my garage was literally blown up by that very thing. (before my time, the guy who owned the property wasn't a safety-first kinda guy) On occasion I'll find random partially buried truck parts from the truck the dynamite was sitting in when it exploded. I hit a camshaft with my lawnmower last year, which was not fun.

[QUOTE=NoobieWafer223;45727882]Wasn't there a movie, can't remember what, but they were "playing around" with a liquid and a small drip would fall off the guys finger and explode. Then they started tossing drips of it at each other. Still, she had good intentions though. Calling them might've just not been the first thing she thought about though.[/QUOTE] It was Van Helsing I think

You know what explosive material I've always liked? Gelignite

[QUOTE=JumpinJackFlash;45743560]No, it doesn't produce nitroglycerin if you store it for too long and that doesn't even make any sense anyway. Dynamite is nitroglycerin mixed with diatomaceous earth, and if you store it in a hot environment the nitroglycerin will weep out of the sticks. Again, TNT and dynamite are two entirely different explosives that are often mistaken for one another, your post being a good example of that. [editline]19th August 2014[/editline] Sounds like the people who would try to scrap old bangalore torpedoes (I think thats what they were?) for the metal. Mustve thought it was dirt or something filling them so theyd smack them on the groumd to get it out. Well after sitting for years you can imagine how that went for at least one unlucky (and unintelligent) soul. Also, since nitroglycerin can be impact-detonated, sticks of dynamite weeping nitroglycerin have often been the cause of spontaneous explosions. In fact, back in the 60's during a time when you could buy dynamite at the hardware store, my garage was literally blown up by that very thing. (before my time, the guy who owned the property wasn't a safety-first kinda guy) On occasion I'll find random partially buried truck parts from the truck the dynamite was sitting in when it exploded. I hit a camshaft with my lawnmower last year, which was not fun.[/QUOTE]