To produce thermite, which is a composite substance made of aluminum powder, you'll generally need to use a machine called a ball mill. A ball mill is a mechanical apparatus that is driven by a motor to turn a cylinder for a long period of time. Inside the cylinder are the grinding materials, which are referred to as "balls." It's important that you don't use anything that can emit sparks when friction is introduced with the aluminum, or you can lose all of the charge power from the thermite. To build a ball mill that will help you make thermite from aluminum cans, you'll need to follow a specific process.
Instructions
1.Attach the metal rods to each end of the cylinder you use. Your cylinder has to be closable on at least one end so that you can retrieve the materials you mill. The metal rods should look as if they've been shoved through the cylinder from end to end. These will be the ends you set into the bracing that will allow it to spin.
2.Run the belt around the drive pulley on your motor and the cylinder, and mount them in a manner that pulls the belt tight. If you don't have the correct tension, the slippage that is created will make your mill inefficient. You can either put the belt directly on the cylinder and wrap something around the cylinder so that the belt doesn't slide, or you can put the belt around one of the metal rods on either end of your cylinder.
3.Put your ball material in the cylinder with your milling material. Your ball material should be made out of lead or another material that will not spark as it tumbles, and your mill material in this case is your soda can grindings. You'll have to have ground your cans up at least into small pieces, because they should be much smaller than the size of your ball material. Secure the cover on your cylinder once you've placed your materials inside of it, and activate the motor. Stop the motor every three to four hours and check that consistency of your milled aluminum.
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