Replies

Were they planning to make a big bomb by daisy chaining the lithium ion batteries

Jokes aside, can they be doing something with these phones that we have not thought of.

The conventional wisdom is that they are going to be used as detonators. Where are they going to get the 10 tons (or so) of high explosives to attach to all these detonators.

Why so many? They only need 20 or 30 to get a Fox News Alert.

This is a reply I got on another thread from EL CID 89

Normally a Li-Ion battery would only explode if it was short-circuited or overheated, and wouldn't create a huge explosion (although it would certainly get one's attention). A large amount of it put together would create a large, very intense fire. It appears to be particularly unstable when exposed to moisture, and makes one wonder if there would be a connection between this and the banning of liquids and gels from aircraft....if the lithium was in a compartment of a water bottle for instance, and was allowed to combine, what would be the effect? Maybe someone with a better knowledge of chemistry could opine. The more likely use would be to disassemble the battery and remove the lithium, which is used as a reducing agent in making illegal drugs. As a sidelight, lithium is also a mood stabilizer found in prescription drugs such as Eskalith. Of course, the antenna and receiver in the phone would be used as part of the detonator of an explosive device... As another sideline, modern cellphones contain what may be called a "smartchip" which actually contains all the information for a phone. If these guys were removing the chips, they could keep switching the chips in one phone and it would appear they were making calls from different phones with different numbers.

50 posted on 08/12/2006 3:14:20 PM EDT by ElCid89

Where are they going to get the 10 tons (or so) of high explosives to attach to all these detonators?

The explosive of choice for Islamic terrorists these days seems to be TATP (tri-acetone-tri-peroxide). It's insanely sensitive and unstable (like its makers), but can be made with easily-available ingredients

Shoe bomber Richard Reed, the Oklahoma University suicide bomber of last year, and the UK plane bombers of this week all were using TATP

It doesn't take ten tons. They can make the same stuff that was going to be used on the aircraft quite easily in a few hours if they have the right material and I am sure they could have obtained it. The guy who blew himself up at the football stadium parking lot last year was using TATP and had pounds of it in his back pack and pounds more of it in his apartment, of course he wasn't a terrorist, he made all that explosive to just commit suicide(snicker).

TATP only takes about 7 easy, hair raising steps to create but if you survive the process and are able to transport it without being blown to bits, it could quite easily take down a bridge if place correctly, and it can be remotely detonated.

They could hook them up to propane cans, detonate them.
I knew a fire fighter and he said one can of propane can take out a city block, no problem. The blast and then the burn.

Im sure there are other items. They may have dynamite from construction jobs.

I think we will find out soon. I bet a lot more Muslims are being arrested as we speak.

I think the peaceful Muslims may use propane canisters, and the radical Muslims may try the dynamite. Just my guess.