Fireworks Lab Rainbow Chemistry Demonstration

Make a rainbow of colored fire by burning a row of chemicals. Place small piles of the colored fire powder onto a fire-safe surface and connect them to each other by running a strip of paper through the piles of chemicals. When you are ready to perform the project, light one end of the paper and allow it to sequentially burn the piles of chemicals in a colored fire rainbow. Prepare the Paper Fuse Soak a piece of filter paper or coffee filter in a concentrated potassium nitrate solution. Allow it to dry completely before use. Preparing the Color Chemicals This project uses the same metal salts that produce the colors seen in fireworks. Each chemical used as an ingredient should be in finely ground form. If you need to grind a chemical, do it separately from any other chemical (in other words: dont grind the mixture together). Mix the ingredients for each pile by placing them together on a large sheet of paper and rocking the paper back and forth until the pile has a uniform appearance. Dump the pile of chemicals onto the fireproof surface. Use a clean sheet of paper for each mixture so that the colors wont be contaminated. The ingredients are listed as ratios, to be measured in powdered form. Its a good idea to use a small measuring spoon, both to avoid wasting chemicals and to keep the fire manageable. White Fire 7 parts potassium nitrate1 part sulfur1 part antimony sulfide Purple Fire 1 part copper sulfate1 part sulfur1 part potassium chlorate Blue Fire 8 parts potassium chlorate4 parts sulfur2 parts copper sulfide2 parts mercurous chloride1 part copper oxide1 part charcoal Green Fire 12 parts barium nitrate3 parts potassium chlorate2 parts sulfur Yellow Fire 6 parts potassium chlorate2 parts sodium oxalate2 parts charcoal1 part sulfur Red Fire 4 parts strontium nitrate4 parts potassium chlorate2 parts charcoal1 part sulfur Safety Its a good idea to wear a mask when mixing the chemicals to avoid inhaling them. Also, wear gloves to avoid unnecessary skin contact. For the most part, these chemicals are relatively non-toxic. The notable exception is the mercurous chloride. This chemical may be omitted; the resulting flame will still be blue. This project is best performed by persons with chemistry expertise or pyrotechnics experience. Source: Chemical Magic, 2nd Ed., Leonard A. Ford (1993) Dover Publications. Disclaimer: Please be advised that the content provided by our website is for EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. Fireworks and the chemicals contained within them are dangerous and should always be handled with care and used with common sense. By using this website you acknowledge that ThoughtCo., its parent About, Inc. (a/k/a Dotdash), and IAC/InterActive Corp. shall have no liability for any damages, injuries, or other legal matters caused by your use of fireworks or the knowledge or application of the information on this website. The providers of this content specifically do not condone using fireworks for disruptive, unsafe, illegal, or destructive purposes. You are responsible for following all applicable laws before using or applying the information provided on this website.