Abstract
THERE is a possibility of explosions under a wide variety of conditions1–6 when liquids are rapidly mixed. When molten tin is poured from a crucible into water in defined conditions, a rapid explosive interaction takes place producing a sponge-like mass of debris7–9. We have repeated these experiments using an apparatus which provides small (∼ 0.25 g) and reproducible single drops of molten tin, and have been able to determine quantitatively the dynamics of the interaction by a photographic technique. Using a metal temperature of ∼ 570 K and water at room temperature metal drops were produced which entered the water in a straight vertical line but were then observed to deviate suddenly and sharply from their course without losing their pear-like shape. This metal temperature was just below that necessary to produce explosive interactions for the given water temperature.
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KONURAY, M., MEAD, H. & PAGE, F. Fall of liquid metal into water. Nature 254, 321–322 (1975). https://doi.org/10.1038/254321a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/254321a0
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