The temporary enjoyment of fireworks releases a host of contaminants that affect air quality and can contribute to climate change, including carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen, sulphur dioxide, and particulate matter.ĭuring the five-day celebration of Diwali in India – the world-famous festival of lights – about 50,000 tons, or 100 million pounds, of fireworks explode, causing a toxic haze to cover cities. This chemical reaction produces two results: Short-lived entertainment and toxic atmospheric pollutants. When burned and exposed to oxygen, substances undergo a chemical reaction called combustion. Still Up in the Air: The Environmental Impact of FireworksĬhemicals from fireworks do not just disappear into thin air. So now what? Fireworks explode, but where do all these chemicals go? One thing is for sure: what goes up must come down. After everything is neatly calculated and wrapped together in a shell, a fuse is attached to the shell, and when lit, the chemical mixture reacts with the fuse’s heat, and exploding fireworks ensue. Pyrotechnicians also calculate the altitude of each firework so that explosions happen at the right time and location. Trained experts designing and handling fireworks, known as pyrotechnicians, measure the correct amount of black powder, mineral elements, and other chemicals, and arrange these compounds under a specific order to provide the firework with a particular shape and colour. Graph: Penn Today/University of Pennsylvania. Additional chemicals, such as carbon, sulphur, aluminium, and manganese, are added to the fireworks, functioning as stabilisers, oxidisers, and extra colours. Other colours, such as orange, require a combination of mineral elements which are strontium and sodium, or purple necessitates a mix of strontium and copper. For example, only strontium is needed to make red, sodium for yellow, and barium for green. Some colours simply require one element to produce the targeted colour. Mineral elements are mixed with black powder, providing colour to these explosions. When black powder – which is made from a mixture of 75% potassium nitrate, 15% charcoal, and 10% sulphur – is placed inside a shell and ignited with a fuse, a loud, gaseous, and hot chemical reaction is created, essentially an explosion.Įxploding black powder does not seem very entertaining to watch, at least not to some. The most basic component that all fireworks have is black powder, also known as gunpowder. In order to understand the damaging effects a firework has on the environment, it is necessary to first understand what fireworks really are. Put aside the thought of entertainment and moneymaking for a few minutes because the planet we live on is hurting from fireworks. In other words, a consumer buying one case of fireworks for $100 can result in a profit of $300 for the business owner.įireworks, as spectacular when displayed and profitable when sold, are a real-life horror show for the environment. On the business side, fireworks are a profitable industry where the average retail price for consumers to buy fireworks is about three times the wholesale price.
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