Fuel values of chlorine donors?

[bubba153]

Hi. I'm new to the forum and relatively new to pyro. I haven't been able to find much info on my question, and hopefully it isn't one that's been hashed here that my poor search efforts simply haven't found.

 

Are there any published (or personal) data for relative (or absolute) fuel values for the commonly used (or referenced) chlorine donors? I was specifically looking for saran, PVC, parlon, chlorowax, HCE, HCB, and dechlorane. Basically, I want to try some substitutions in some color compositions, mainly in an effort to modify burn rate. I realize that nothing is going to substitute for experimentation, but thought if there was some existing info, it might save on chemicals.

 

Thanks..

[Pyrodood]

From a Skylighter article I saved,

 

In the following table, percentages of chlorine are given from either the calculated maximum by molecular weight or from the manufacturers own data when the molecular structure is irregular (such as Parlon).

Ammonium Chloride 66 Chlorowax 30-70 Dechlorane 78 HCB 75 HCE 90 Lead chloride

25 Lindane 73 Mercurous chloride 15 Parlon 64-68 PVC 57 PVDC (Saran) 73

 

If you want more data, there's more where that came from. (skylighter.com)

[bubba153]

Yes, those are the percentages for available chlorine. I already have those. What I am looking for is the fuel value as it would pertain to oxidizer consumption.

[Pyrodood]

Sorry, my mistake.

[Mumbles]

This thread goes through some of the info you're looking for including a calculation for PVC. I wasn't sure if you'd normally balance to HCl or Chlorine gas. These are all rough approximations anyway.

 

http://www.amateurpy...756-fuel-value/

 

PVC:

[C₂H₃Cl]_n + 2.5 O₂ -> 2 CO₂ + H₂O + HCl

=62.5 g PVC / 80g oxygen

= 0,78g per gram oxygen

 

Saran:

[C₂H₂Cl₂]_n + 2O₂ -> CO₂ + 2 HCl

= 97g Saran / 64g oxygen

= 1.51g per gram oxygen

 

Hexachloroethane:

C₂Cl₆ + 2 O₂ -> 2 CO₂ + 3 Cl₂

= 236.7 HCE / 64g oxygen

=3.70g per gram oxygen

 

Hexachlorobenzene:

C₆Cl₆ + 6 CO₂ -> 6 CO₂ + 3 Cl₂

= 284.8g HCB / 192g oxygen

=1.48g per gram oxygen

 

Those are all I know the formulas for off hand. I'll have to look up things for Parlon and chlorowax. Dechlorane might be trickier, as there are several different things sold as dechlorane, some of which are actually partly brominated.

[AirCowPeacock]

Parlon is chlorinated isoprene rubber. So based on that and its chlorine mass percentage I can determine that the formula is approximately (C5H4Cl4)n. I thought chlorowax was just offbrand parlon? Maybe not..

[Mumbles]

You might be thinking of Chlororub. Chlorowax is a chlorinated paraffin. The formula should be easy to estimate as well based on the chlorine content. The rest can be approximated as one long chain of CH2. Upon thinking about it, it should have an almost identical fuel value as saran.

 

http://www.doverchem...tals/0/C700.pdf

[Potassiumchlorate]

I think chlorowax is best with potassium chlorate. 5% is enough.

[AirCowPeacock]

Oh yes, I was thinking of Chlororub.

[bubba153]

Thanks Mumbles,

 

For some reason I thought the fuel values might be a little more complicated than simple stoichiometry. I probably got that idea from observing the apparently incompletely reacted "ash" I sometimes see with parlon-bound stars. If nothing else, using this method should get me closer to the ballpark when trying substitutions and should save some chemicals in the process. Dechlorane and chlorowax will be trickier, unless one has the actual formula for the variant they have. As you say, dechlorane has at least a couple of variants, and my understanding is that chlorowax can have variable amounts of chlorination, as well.

 

 

This thread goes through some of the info you're looking for including a calculation for PVC. I wasn't sure if you'd normally balance to HCl or Chlorine gas. These are all rough approximations anyway.

 

http://www.amateurpy...756-fuel-value/

 

PVC:

[C₂H₃Cl]_n + 2.5 O₂ -> 2 CO₂ + H₂O + HCl

=62.5 g PVC / 80g oxygen

= 0,78g per gram oxygen

 

Saran:

[C₂H₂Cl₂]_n + 2O₂ -> CO₂ + 2 HCl

= 97g Saran / 64g oxygen

= 1.51g per gram oxygen

 

Hexachloroethane:

C₂Cl₆ + 2 O₂ -> 2 CO₂ + 3 Cl₂

= 236.7 HCE / 64g oxygen

=3.70g per gram oxygen

 

Hexachlorobenzene:

C₆Cl₆ + 6 CO₂ -> 6 CO₂ + 3 Cl₂

= 284.8g HCB / 192g oxygen

=1.48g per gram oxygen

 

Those are all I know the formulas for off hand. I'll have to look up things for Parlon and chlorowax. Dechlorane might be trickier, as there are several different things sold as dechlorane, some of which are actually partly brominated.

[Mumbles]

Chlorowax does have a number of different chlorination levels. However, in the US really only 1 type is available, Chlorez 700 from Dover Chemical. Another nice thing about chlorowax is that it doesn't become solid until around 65 or 70% chlorine, so it's easy to tell what level you have. 70-75% seems to be around the maximum chlorine content that is commercially available, so if it's solid it has a pretty narrow range. You can make a decent estimate based on this actually. It turns out, it has approximately the same overall formula as saran resin.

[Potassiumchlorate]

Chlorowax does have a number of different chlorination levels. However, in the US really only 1 type is available, Chlorez 700 from Dover Chemical. Another nice thing about chlorowax is that it doesn't become solid until around 65 or 70% chlorine, so it's easy to tell what level you have. 70-75% seems to be around the maximum chlorine content that is commercially available, so if it's solid it has a pretty narrow range. You can make a decent estimate based on this actually. It turns out, it has approximately the same overall formula as saran resin.

 

I bought a kilo in 2010. It is light yellow powder, that smells a bit like hydrochloric acid. If you handle it with your bare hands, the skin will get irritated.

 

I have gotten the idea that chlorowax is best with Paris Green and copper oxychloride, though it's just an instinctive feeling with no scientific proof behind