Emerging Journalist

Emerging Journalists is a student-led publication that accepts submissions from middle and high school students, showcasing original research and creative projects across a variety of fields.

Optimal Fuel Mixtures for Potassium Nitrate Reactivity

Trent Lasher (1) and Adam Abisourour (2)

(1) Tuscarora High School, (2) Emerging Journalist (EJS)

March 20, 2025

Potassium nitrate reacts with different fuels to release energy through exothermic reactions. This experiment tested nine fuel mixtures—magnesium, aluminum, charcoal, sulfur, wood shavings, zinc, copper, iron, and sugar—combined with potassium nitrate to determine which produced the fastest and most intense reaction. Reactivity was measured by the time required for each reaction to complete using slow-motion video analysis. Magnesium and sulfur showed the strongest reactivity, completing reactions in about five seconds, while charcoal and copper produced slower, less intense reactions. These results supported the hypothesis that magnesium powder mixed with potassium nitrate would be the most reactive combination due to its highly exothermic nature. Overall, the findings demonstrate how fuel composition influences reaction speed and intensity, offering insights relevant to pyrotechnics and energy production where controlled reactivity is essential.

Copyright © 2025 All Emerging Journalist (EJS) articles are distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives (CC BY-NC-ND) license. This means you may copy, share, and redistribute the complete, unaltered article for non-commercial purposes as long as proper credit is given to the original authors and Emerging Investigators. Derivative works or commercial use are not permitted without written consent.