- Sparklers are fireworks you can hold in your hand. Instead of exploding, they create colored sparks from the end of a metal rod. One end of the metal rod has no combustible material, and the other is coated with a chemical compound. When the chemical end is lit, it gives off colored sparks until all the chemicals have burned.
-
The chemicals on the end of a sparkler are a combination of powdered potassium chlorate, aluminum granules and charcoal. The charcoal and the aluminum are fuel. When the sparkler is lit, the fuel keeps the rod on fire. The potassium chlorate is what causes the sparks.
Strontium nitrate is added to the dry ingredients to make the sparks red, and barium nitrate is used for green. Iron can be added for orange sparks, and ferrotitanium, for gold.
To make it possible to coat the wire, water is mixed with dextrin or nitrocellulose, and added to the dry ingredients. Dextrin holds the chemicals together on the end of the rod. The water combines all the elements and turns the powdered chemicals into a batter, which is used to coat one end of the metal rod.
To turn a metal rod into a sparkler, the rod is simply dipped into this batter mixture.
The batter end of the sparkler's metal rod must dry before it is ignited. This takes several hours. When dried, the metal rod should look have a gray, crusty coating on one end. - Fireworks companies are notoriously tight-lipped about how they make their products, whether it be a sparkler or a Roman candle. While the basics of making a sparkler are clear, it is less clear how these pyrotechnics are mass-produced, however, it likely matches the basic sparkler production process: mix chemicals, dip onto metal rods and dry.
