On Mar 13, 2009, at 5:48 PM, Dave Joyce wrote:
>
>> I recommend a "paint" containing nitrocellulose lacquer, powdered
>> Aluminum, and Iron Oxide.  A similar composition kept the Hindenberg
>> nearly gas-tight!
>
> isn't nitro cellulose an explosive?

Pretty much.  It depends rather strongly on the degree of nitration.   
Most varieties are merely "flammable" to a greater or lesser degree.   
"NC Lacquer" is a real finish though; you can buy gallon cans in most   
paint stores (I think it's a wood floor finish.)  It's also the  
traditional  "dope" for "dope and tissue" covering of model airplanes,  
and the major  component of most nail polish.

Nitrocellulose, as "colloidin" or "celluloid" was one of the first  
"plastics" to see widespread commercial use.  Once you get a polymer  
like cellulose modified so that it's both soluble and meltable, all  
sorts of possibilities open up.

The aluminum/iron oxide mix is thermite, too.  :-)

There have been serious suggestions (now that hydrogen is being touted  
as a cure-all energy solution) that the Hindenberg disaster had more  
to do with the paint than with the hydrogen... ( http://www.hydrogennow.org/Facts/Safety-1.htm 
  )

BillW

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