DIY Smoke Grenades for Photography

Smoke grenades, sometimes referred to as colored smoke bombs, are pyrotechnic devices that, when set ablaze, emit colored smoke. They are frequently employed in many different contexts, such as military signaling, entertainment, photography, and leisure pursuits.

I'll demonstrate how to manufacture homemade smoke using sugar and potassium nitrate in this tutorial.

We need following Items to make DIY sugar smoke bomb.

1) Cardboard

2) PVC Pipe 1 inch dia.

3) Black Tape

4) Sugar

5) Potassium Nitrate ( KNO3 )

6) Baking Powder

7) Food Color

8) Fuse

1) Cut a long strip of cardboard :

1. Length = circumference ( 30 cm )
2. Height = desired cylinder height ( 30 cm )

2) Bend the strip gently along the corrugation lines to curve it.

3) Wrap the curved strip around one PVC pipe and glue it along the edge.

4) Use tape or rubber bands to hold it until it dries.

Repeat on the other side with the second circle.

5) Now remove pvc pipe from cardboard cylinder.

Make a mixture of KNO3 : Make sugar with a composition of 2 : 1 and place it on glass. The composition does not have to be accurate. , 1: 1 composition can also be used but the smoke bomb will be more difficult to burn and burn slowly, whereas if the mixture ratio is 5 : 3 , the smoke bomb will burn quickly.

Baking soda, also known as sodium bicarbonate, is a chemical compound with the formula NaHCO3.

Add a comparable amount of potassium nitrate and baking soda.

I use food color to make smoke color.

I add red color to my smoke grenade at first.

Cook the mixture with Teflon using low heat, stir. If you see that sugar melts too quickly before you stir it. Turn off the heat and cool it again.

Pour the prepared mixture into the cardboard cylinder and insert a fire fuse at the center, as shown in the picture

When trying smoke bombs, do it in a place with a lot of ventilation or outdoors and in a place that is Non-flammable.

Note :

1. Homemade smoke bombs are made using potassium nitrate and sugar, which are both found in food. While not intended to be eaten, they are largely non-toxic.
2. Some smoke bomb recipes call for cooking the ingredients, which presents the risk of fire or smoke. Smoke bombs do not explode.
3. Adult supervision is recommended.