Colored smoke is a kind of

smoke Smoke is a suspension of airborne particulates and gases emitted when a material undergoes combustion or pyrolysis, together with the quantity of air that is entrained or otherwise mixed into the mass. It is commonly an unwanted by-produc ...

created by an

aerosol An aerosol is a suspension of fine solid particles or liquid droplets in air or another gas. Aerosols can be natural or anthropogenic. Examples of natural aerosols are fog or mist, dust, forest exudates, and geyser steam. Examples of anthropogen ...

of small particles of a suitable

pigment A pigment is a colored material that is completely or nearly insoluble in water. In contrast, dyes are typically soluble, at least at some stage in their use. Generally dyes are often organic compounds whereas pigments are often inorganic compou ...

dye A dye is a colored substance that chemically bonds to the substrate to which it is being applied. This distinguishes dyes from pigments which do not chemically bind to the material they color. Dye is generally applied in an aqueous solution and ...

Colored smoke can be used for

smoke signal The smoke signal is one of the oldest forms of long-distance communication. It is a form of visual communication used over a long distance. In general smoke signals are used to transmit news, signal danger, or to gather people to a common area ...

s, often in a military context. It can be produced by

smoke grenade Smoke grenades used at demonstrations in Paris, 2008 upBritish L83A1 Smoke Grenade manufactured in May 2008. This grenade has already been used. A smoke grenade is a canister-type grenade used as a signaling device, target or landing zone mark ...

s, or by various other pyrotechnical devices. The mixture used for producing colored smoke is usually a cooler-burning formula based on

potassium chlorate Potassium chlorate is a compound containing potassium, chlorine and oxygen, with the molecular formula KClO3. In its pure form, it is a white crystalline substance. After sodium chlorate, it is the second most common chlorate in industrial use. ...

oxidizer,

lactose Lactose is a disaccharide sugar synthesized by galactose and glucose subunits and has the molecular formula C12H22O11. Lactose makes up around 2–8% of milk (by mass). The name comes from ' (gen. '), the Latin word for milk, plus the suffix ' ...

dextrin Dextrins are a group of low-molecular-weight carbohydrates produced by the hydrolysis of starch and glycogen. Dextrins are mixtures of polymers of D-glucose units linked by α-(1→4) or α-(1→6) glycosidic bonds. Dextrins can be produced from ...

as a fuel, and one or more dyes, with about 40-50% content of the dye. About 2%

sodium bicarbonate Sodium bicarbonate ( IUPAC name: sodium hydrogencarbonate), commonly known as baking soda or bicarbonate of soda, is a chemical compound with the formula NaHCO3. It is a salt composed of a sodium cation ( Na+) and a bicarbonate anion ( HCO3− ...

may be added as a coolant, to lower the burning temperature. Coloured smoke was first used in 1967 during an American burnout competition by a small contestant, as a means to wow the crowd. Smoke released from aircraft was originally based on a mixture of 10-15% dye, 60-65%

trichloroethylene The chemical compound trichloroethylene is a halocarbon commonly used as an industrial solvent. It is a clear, colourless non-flammable liquid with a chloroform-like sweet smell. It should not be confused with the similar 1,1,1-trichloroethane, ...

tetrachloroethylene Tetrachloroethylene, also known under the systematic name tetrachloroethene, or perchloroethylene, and many other names (and abbreviations such as "perc" or "PERC", and "PCE"), is a chlorocarbon with the formula Cl2C=CCl2 . It is a colorless liq ...

, and 25%

diesel oil Diesel fuel , also called diesel oil, is any liquid fuel specifically designed for use in a diesel engine, a type of internal combustion engine in which fuel ignition takes place without a spark as a result of compression of the inlet air and t ...

, injected into the exhaust gases of the aircraft engines. Most commonly, teams now use specifically prepared liquid dyes and only gas oil, light mineral oil or a food grade white oil without harmful chlorinated solvents.

Mixtures

Some mixtures used for production of colored smokes contain these dyes: ;Red *

Disperse Red 9 Disperse Red 9, or 1-(methylamino)anthraquinone, is a red dye derived from anthraquinone. Disperse Red 9 is used in some older red and violet-red colored smoke formulations. It is used in the M18 colored smoke grenade and also often in dye packs ...

(older, used e.g. in the M18

grenade A grenade is an explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A modern hand grenade genera ...

) *

Solvent Red 1 Sudan Red G is a yellowish red lysochrome azo dye. It has the appearance of an odorless reddish-orange powder with melting point 225 °C. It is soluble in fats and used for coloring of fats, oils, and waxes, including the waxes used in turpe ...

with

Disperse Red 11 Disperse Red 11, or 1,4-diamino-2-methoxyanthraquinone, is a red disperse dye derived from anthraquinone. It is water insoluble. Disperse Red 11 can be used in plastics and textiles industry to dye polyvinylchloride, polyester, polyamide, and ...

Solvent Red 27 Oil Red O (Solvent Red 27, Sudan Red 5B, C.I. 26125, C26H24N4O) is a lysochrome (fat-soluble dye) diazo dye used for staining of neutral triglycerides and lipids on frozen sections and some lipoproteins on paraffin sections. It has the appearance ...

(C.I. 26125) *

Solvent Red 24 Sudan IV (C24H20N4O) is a lysochrome (fat-soluble dye) diazo dye used for the staining of lipids, triglycerides and lipoproteins on frozen paraffin sections. It has the appearance of reddish brown crystals with melting point 199 °C and maxi ...

;Orange *

Solvent Yellow 14 Sudan I (also commonly known as CI Solvent Yellow 14 and Solvent Orange R), is an organic compound, typically classified as an azo dye. It is an intensely orange-red solid that is added to colourise waxes, oils, petrol, solvents, and polishes. Sud ...

(C.I. 12055) ;Yellow *

Vat Yellow 4 A value-added tax (VAT), known in some countries as a goods and services tax (GST), is a type of tax that is assessed incrementally. It is levied on the price of a product or service at each stage of production, distribution, or sale to the end ...

with

benzanthrone Benzanthrone (BZA) is a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon. It is a yellow solid. Its derivatives are used as a dyestuff intermediate for anthraquinone-based dyes. Dehydrogenative coupling gives violanthrone. It is prepared by reduction of anthroq ...

(older) *

Solvent Yellow 33 Quinoline Yellow SS is a bright yellow dye with green shade. It is insoluble in water, but soluble in nonpolar organic solvents. Quinoline yellow is representative of a large class of quinophthalone pigments. It is suggested that quinoline yell ...

Solvent Yellow 16 Sudan Yellow 3G, also known as Solvent Yellow 16, C.I. disperse yellow and C.I. 12700, is a yellow azo dye. It is soluble in fats and oils. Sudan Yellow 3G is used as a pigment in cosmetics and printer toners, and as a dye in inks, including ink ...

(C.I. 12700) *

Solvent Yellow 56 Solvent Yellow 56 is the organic compound ''N'',''N''-diethyl-''p''-(phenylazo)aniline. It is an azo dye, which has the appearance of a reddish yellow powder. Its EINECS number is 219-616-8.{{Ullmann, first1 = Klaus, last1 = Hunger, first2 = Pet ...

Oil Yellow R Aniline Yellow is a yellow azo dye and an aromatic amine. It is a derivative of azobenzene. It has the appearance of an orange powder. Aniline Yellow was the first azo dye. it was first produced in 1861 by C. Mene. The second azo dye was Bisma ...

;Green *

with

and

Solvent Green 3 Quinizarine Green SS, also called Solvent Green 3 is an anthraquinone derivative. It is a black powder that is soluble in polar organic solvents, but insoluble in water. It is used as a dye for adding greenish coloring to cosmetics and medication ...

(older) *

and

Oil Green BG An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturated ...

* Oil Green G ;Blue *

Solvent Blue 35 Oil Blue 35 is a blue anthraquinone dye used for colouring alcoholic and hydrocarbon based solvents, including oils, fats, and waxes. It is used also in lacquers and inks. In some countries, it is used as a fuel dye. It is also used in some blue ...

(C.I. 26125) * Solvent Blue 36 * Solvent Blue 5 ;Violet *

with 1,4-diamino-2,3-dihydroanthraquinone *

Solvent Violet 13 Solvent Violet 13, also known as D&C Violet No.2, oil violet, Solvent Blue 90, Alizarine Violet 3B, Alizurol Purple, Duranol Brilliant Violet TG, Ahcoquinone Blue IR base, Quinizarin Blue, Disperse Blue 72, and C.I. 60725, is a synthetic anthra ...

;Raspberry *

Rhodamine B Rhodamine B is a chemical compound and a dye. It is often used as a tracer dye within water to determine the rate and direction of flow and transport. Rhodamine dyes fluoresce and can thus be detected easily and inexpensively with fluorometers. ...

Article about colored smoke mix
made with potassium chlorate. {{div col end

References

External links

Smoke and masking agents
from the

Department of Veterans' Affairs Veterans' affairs is an area of public policy concerned with relations between a government and its communities of military veterans. Some jurisdictions have a designated government agency or department, a Department of Veterans' Affairs, Minist ...

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