An Aussie paper reports that there was 2750 tons of ammonium nitrate stored next to that grain elevator and a welders spark set it all off.
“An Aussie paper reports that there was 2750 tons of ammonium nitrate stored next to that grain elevator and a welders spark set it all off.”
If there were a relatively small fire taking place and munitions (or even fireworks) going off, I’d get the hell out of there, rather than risking setting off the ammonium nitrate. Nice try, Lebanon.
Ammonium nitrate alone wouldn’t do that, and its deflagration (burning) would have produced ash-colored smoke. The smoke plume from Beirut was reddish brown like you’d see from a High Melting Explosive (HMX) like Octogen, a high-grade rocket fuel of which ammonium nitrate is one of four ingredients (along with hexamine, nitric acid and acetic acid). More likely what blew yesterday was an Iranian ammunition warehouse, or even an Iranian HMX production facility. Where do we think all those rockets fired against Israel come from, or what fuels them? Imminent war delayed.
Ahh, the missing component.
Grain elevator dust supplied the combustible.
Ammonium Nitrate supplied the oxidizer.
Spark created the heat.
Boom!