Was molasses used in bombs? Tbe sticky brown syrup was being put to a new and perbaps surprising use: to make bombs. Heated up in a process called distillation, molasses can be turned into a liquid called industrial alcobol. In tbis form, molasses became a key ingredient in tbe explosives used in tbe war against Germany.
What caused the 1919 Boston Molasses Disaster?
Sugary-sweet molasses turned deadly on January 15, 1919, when a holding tank burst and sent 2.3 million gallons of the sticky liquid sweeping through the streets of Boston. Sugary-sweet molasses turned deadly on January 15, 1919, when a holding tank burst and sent 2.3 million gallons of the sticky liquid sweeping through the streets of Boston.
What was the source of the Great Molasses Flood?
The source of what became known as the “Great Molasses Flood” was a 50-foot-tall steel holding tank located on Commercial Street in Boston’s North End. Its sugary-sweet contents were the property of United States Industrial Alcohol, which took regular shipments of molasses from the Caribbean and used them to produce alcohol for liquor...
Why did they build the first molasses tank?
The company had built the tank in 1915, when World War I had increased demand for industrial alcohol, but the construction process had been rushed and haphazard. The container started to groan and peel, and it often leaked molasses onto the street.
What happened to the molasses?
Sharp said the flood could be broken down into two stages, with the first called “The Tsunami.” “Molasses is 1.5 times heavier than water. It’s very dense,” Sharp said. The tank, piled so high with molasses, stored a large amount of potential energy. When the tank ruptured, all that potential energy became kinetic energy.
How was molasses used in munitions?
Molasses Munition Factories, such as the one in Boston run by the Purity Distilling Company in the early 1900s, distilled molasses to create ethanol. This was a key component in creating munitions during World War I. To convert molasses into ethanol, distillers rely on fermentation.
Is molasses used for dynamite?
But the tank had been built quickly in the winter of 1915 to meet rising demand for industrial alcohol, which could be distilled from molasses and sold to weapons companies, who used it to make dynamite and other explosives for use during World War I.
What was molasses used for in the 1900s?
Its sugary-sweet contents were the property of United States Industrial Alcohol, which took regular shipments of molasses from the Caribbean and used them to produce alcohol for liquor and munitions manufacturing.
Did molasses almost destroy Boston?
Great Molasses Flood, disaster in Boston that occurred after a storage tank collapsed on January 15, 1919, sending more than two million gallons (eight million litres) of molasses flowing through the city's North End. The deluge caused extensive damage and killed 21 people.
How was molasses used in explosives?
Heated up in a process called distillation, molasses can be turned into a liquid called industrial alcobol. In tbis form, molasses became a key ingredient in tbe explosives used in tbe war against Germany.
What was molasses used for in the 1800s?
In the 1800s, however, molasses was North Carolina's sweetener of choice. It took the bitter edge off collards, made grits, cornbread and popcorn taste better, and molasses was mandatory for pie, especially molasses pie, the ancestor of pecan pie.
What was molasses used for?
The lighter grades of molasses made from sugarcane are edible and are used in baking and candy-making and to make rum. Blackstrap and other low grades of cane molasses are used in mixed animal feed and in the industrial production of vinegar, citric acid, and other products.
Can you swim in molasses?
Viscosity is affected by temperature: things become slurpier at higher temperatures and stiffer at lower, which is why “slower than molasses in January” means painfully poky. Caught in a molasses flood, could you swim in the stuff? Probably not, according to an article in Scientific American.
Why did the molasses tank explode?
Structural defects in the tank combined with unseasonably warm temperatures contributed to the disaster. Local legend has it that on particularly warm days, you can still smell the faint aroma of molasses seeping up from the streets of the old North End.
How many horses died in the molasses flood?
On January 15, 1919, the North End of Boston experienced an odd incident in which 2.3 million gallons of molasses exploded out of a tank and into the city. It knocked out some buildings and even led to a number of deaths. 21 people and 12 horses died.
How long did it take to clean up the molasses flood?
It took weeks to clean the molasses from the streets of Boston. This disaster also produced an epic court battle, as more than 100 lawsuits were filed against the United States Industrial Alcohol Company.
What does molasses smell like?
Earthy with touch of sweetness !
What ingredient may dynamites contain?
nitroglycerin, also called glyceryl trinitrate, a powerful explosive and an important ingredient of most forms of dynamite.
Which is used in preparation of dynamite?
Nitroglycerine is an explosive liquid which was first made by Ascanio Sobrero in 1846 by treating glycerol with a mixture of nitric and sulphuric acid.
What food is used in dynamite?
Peanut oil can be processed to produce glycerol, which can be used to make nitroglycerine, an explosive liquid used in dynamite. However, there are other processes that can be used to make dynamite without using peanuts at all. So, this little factoid isn't completely false and it isn't completely true.
What food item can be used to make dynamite?
Here's some fun food trivia: Which nut is used to make dynamite? The Peanut – peanut oil can be processed to produce glycerol, which can then be used to make nitroglycerine – an explosive liquid used in dynamite.
Many know that molasses can be used as a sweet substitute in your favorite sugary treats but did you know it has surprising health benefits too?
Many know that molasses can be used as a sweet substitute in your favorite sugary treats but did you know it has surprising health benefits too?
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Lauren Rearick is a freelance writer/editor based out Pittsburgh, specalizing in arts, entertainment, music, health and wellness as well as lifestyle writing.
