Timeline for answer to Difference between "detonate" and "explode" by ILEM World
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| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Jan 6, 2023 at 12:13 | comment | added | SusanW | @MichaelHarvey "I wouldn't call nuclear fission a 'chemical' process." - I probably wouldn't generally either (I think I'd just call it a 'nuclear' process) but nuclear chemistry is a branch of chemistry - a specialist branch, for sure, but then aren't they all! So I wouldn't consider it wrong to call it that. | |
| Jan 5, 2023 at 11:52 | comment | added | Michael Harvey | Dear @fertilizerspike - thank you for your recommendations, which I shall bear in mind. | |
| Jan 5, 2023 at 8:24 | comment | added | Toby Speight | @iBug Not just bombs - explosive charges are routinely detonated in mining, quarrying and demolition work. | |
| Jan 4, 2023 at 19:02 | comment | added | iBug | Even though they explode, you don't detonate a pie or an egg in a microwave. You only detonate bombs. | |
| Jan 4, 2023 at 18:39 | comment | added | Fattie | This is a great answer. | |
| Jan 4, 2023 at 15:25 | comment | added | user3067860 | @Lambie Pies definitely explode in the microwave--especially if you have a closed crust. The liquid in the filling turns into steam which expands until the crust gives and the whole thing goes all over the inside of your microwave. | |
| Jan 4, 2023 at 14:07 | comment | added | Michael Harvey | @MikeB - I wouldn't call nuclear fission a 'chemical' process. The HE 'explosive lenses' made of Baratol created a converging spherical shockwave which compressed the plutonium pit to make it critical. The initiator provided a supply of extra neutrons at the right instant. Once the Baratol had done its job, the remainder was physical/nuclear. | |
| Jan 4, 2023 at 13:40 | comment | added | MikeB | @MichaelHarvey You mean a Nuclear bomb? That's a little complex, but as far as I know, every nuke requires a large amount of conventional explosive to initiate the nuclear reaction, so that part is a detonation. The remainder is still a chemical process, even if at a scale normally considered to be the realm of physicists. It cannot be regarded as a mechanical explosion, as there is no stored pressure. | |
| Jan 4, 2023 at 11:11 | comment | added | Michael Harvey | @MikeB -- what about the event near Alamagordo in 1945? | |
| Jan 4, 2023 at 10:45 | comment | added | MikeB | To clarify - there are two possible classes of explosion: mechanical or chemical. Mechanical explosions result from an excess of pressure, such as a steam boiler, or a balloon. Only a chemical explosion would normally be referred to as a detonation. | |
| Jan 4, 2023 at 5:25 | comment | added | mcalex | Possibly worth knowing that eggs explode in a microwave | |
| Jan 4, 2023 at 4:54 | comment | added | Tim Pederick | I liked the pie example better than the balloon. I say balloons “pop” or “burst”, not explode. But I will definitely say my food exploded in the microwave if heating caused it to erupt and spray all over the inside of the appliance! | |
| Jan 3, 2023 at 20:27 | history | edited | ILEM World | CC BY-SA 4.0 |
added 6 characters in body
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| Jan 3, 2023 at 20:24 | comment | added | Lambie | How funny. A pie normally does not explode in a microwave.... | |
| Jan 3, 2023 at 20:22 | history | answered | ILEM World | CC BY-SA 4.0 |