A punk is a smoldering stick used for lighting firework fuses. [1] It is safer than a match or a lighter because it can be used from a greater distance and does not use an open flame. They are made of bamboo and a brown coating of compressed sawdust. [2] Punks often resemble sticks of incense, and in some countries actual incense sticks are used in a similar fashion. Punks are sold at nearly all firework stands and many stands will include them for free with a purchase. [3]
Fireworks are a class of low explosive pyrotechnic devices used for aesthetic and entertainment purposes. They are most commonly used in fireworks displays, combining a large number of devices in an outdoor setting. Such displays are the focal point of many cultural and religious celebrations, though mismanagement could lead to fireworks accidents.
Incense is an aromatic biotic material that releases fragrant smoke when burnt. The term is used for either the material or the aroma. Incense is used for aesthetic reasons, religious worship, aromatherapy, meditation, and ceremony. It may also be used as a simple deodorant or insect repellent.
A thermal lance, thermic lance, oxygen lance, or burning bar is a tool that heats and melts steel in the presence of pressurized oxygen to create very high temperatures for cutting. It consists of a long steel tube packed with alloy steel rods, which serve as fuel; these are sometimes mixed with aluminum rods to increase the heat output.
In pyrotechnics a salute is a device primarily designed to make a loud report (bang), rather than have a visual effect, although most salutes also have a bright flash. They most commonly consist of a 70:30 mixture of potassium perchlorate and dark aluminium powder and may have titanium added for a cloud of sparks. The salute may be fired on the ground or launched from a mortar as a shell. Due to the nature of the effect, large salutes are some of the more hazardous fireworks.
Meal powder is the fine dust left over when black powder (gunpowder) is corned and screened to separate it into different grain sizes. It is used extensively in various pyrotechnic procedures, usually to prime other compositions. It can also be used in many fireworks to add power and substantially increasing the height of the firework. The powder has occasionally been used as a synonym for Serpentine powder, which it physically resembles.
Armstrong's mixture is a highly shock and friction sensitive primary explosive. Formulations vary, but one consists of 67% potassium chlorate, 27% red phosphorus, 3% sulfur, and 3% calcium carbonate. It is named for Sir William Armstrong, who invented it sometime prior to 1872 for use in explosive shells.
A cake firework, also known as a multiple tube device, is a firework comprising a series of Roman candles, small aerial shells, or a combination of both, connected together by a high-speed fuse. Typically, the internal fusing is set to fire each tube in series, or to fire several tubes at the same time, or a combination of these. Typically a cake will resemble from the outside a simple cube or other rectangular covered shape; after firing, a large number of cardboard tubes will be visible in the top of the firework. In a traditional cake, all the candles point upwards; a variant is called the fan or angle cake.
A pyrotechnic colorant is a chemical compound which causes a flame to burn with a particular color. These are used to create the colors in pyrotechnic compositions like fireworks and colored fires. The color-producing species are usually created from other chemicals during the reaction. Metal salts are commonly used; elemental metals are used rarely.
Magnalium is an aluminium alloy with 5% magnesium and 95% aluminum.
India is the world's main incense producing country, and is a major exporter to other countries. In India, incense sticks, called Agarbatti (Agar: from Dravidian probably Tamil அகில், அகிர் ., Sanskrit varti, meaning "stick" An older term "Dhūpavarti" is more commonly used in ancient and medieval texts which encompasses various types of stick incense recipes. Incense is part of the cottage industry in India and important part of many religions in the region since ancient times. The method of incense making with a bamboo stick as a core originated in India at the end of the 19th century, largely replacing the rolled, extruded or shaped method which is still used in India for dhoop.
Religious use of incense has its origins in antiquity. The burned incense may be intended as a symbolic or sacrificial offering to various deities or spirits, or to serve as an aid in prayer.
The British Firework Championships or National Firework Championships is an annual competition held in Plymouth, Devon, England, every August where judges review fireworks displays from professional fireworks companies and select the best examples.
A powder boy or powder monkey manned naval artillery guns as a member of a warship's crew, primarily during the Age of Sail. His chief role was to ferry gunpowder from the powder magazine in the ship's hold to the artillery pieces, either in bulk or as cartridges, to minimize the risk of fires and explosions. The function was usually fulfilled by boy seamen of 12 to 14 years of age. Powder monkeys were usually boys or young teens, selected for the job for their speed and height: they were short and could move more easily in the limited space between decks and would also be hidden behind the ship's gunwale, keeping them from being shot by enemy ships' sharpshooters. These powder monkeys held no official naval rank on the ships that they sailed on. Some women and older men also worked as powder monkeys.
Ejection charge, also called expelling charge, is a pyrotechnic composition, a type of a pyrotechnic gas generator designed to produce a small short-term amount of thrust to burst open a container and eject its content.
In pyrotechnics, a flame projector is a special effects device that projects a column of flame upwards, for a short, determined and controllable, period, usually on the order of a few seconds. The simplest form of flame projector is simply a vertical tube mounted on a base, containing powder and a hole for an electric match.
Leptadenia pyrotechnica is the botanical name of a desert herb of the family Apocynaceae. It is widespread from Senegal to India. It is known as khimp in Hindi and Urdu, and khipp in Punjabi.
A spark is an incandescent particle. Sparks may be produced by pyrotechnics, by metalworking or as a by-product of fires, especially when burning wood.
Strontium oxalate is a compound with the chemical formula SrC2O4. Strontium oxalate can exist either in a hydrated form or as the acidic salt of strontium oxalate.
Copper(II) chlorate is a chemical compound of the transition metal copper and the chlorate anion with basic formula Cu(ClO3)2. Copper chlorate is an oxidiser. It commonly forms the tetrahydrate, Cu(ClO3)2·4H2O.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art has a pair of 17th-century Japanese lacquered wood incense boxes in the shape of mandarin ducks in its collection.