The Cornstarch Flamethrower

TL;DR

The paper introduces the 'cornstarch flamethrower,' a simple, reproducible demonstration that produces large fireballs, enhancing public engagement and educational value in physics demonstrations.

Contribution

It presents a novel, effective design for a cornstarch-based flamethrower that ensures reproducibility and crowd appeal in physics demonstrations and classroom settings.

Findings

Produces consistently large fireballs

Effective for public demonstrations and classroom use

Simple and reproducible design

Abstract

Igniting cornstarch powder is a classic physics demonstration that showcases the rapid conduction of heat for a material in which the surface area is greater than the volume of its constituent particles. Including such a demonstration in a physics "magic show" for the general public presents certain challenges such as reproducibility and consistent crowd appeal. A simple but effective design for widely scattering cornstarch dust over a flame breaches these challenges and always results in consistently large, crowd-pleasing fireballs; so much so that the resulting demonstration has been dubbed the "cornstarch flamethrower." A small-scale version may also be used effectively for classroom instruction.