[Yoruichi-san]

Disappointed that Prof. Templeton's guest lecture had been canceled due to an incident involving a large animal amidst the sakura blossoms, Y-san decided to take the time to check out a lead she had gotten from Police Chief Leroy on IETNAT. Apparently, there had been a series of murders in which the assailant threw an incendiary device through the windows of his victims and blew them up. According to Police Chief Leroy, an anonymous tip pointed the finger of suspicion at a student working in the Biology Building.

Upon entering the building, Y-san's ears were greeted by an all too familiar sound...screaming. She looked up to see her friend Woon, who was working as a Teaching Assistant for the Biology Department, running towards her. Being used to this by now, she stopped him and addressed him in a calm, resigned voice, "What's wrong now?"

Woon paused just long enough to catch his breath, then blurted out "It's Vic! There was an explosion in the lab he was working in. Someone attacked him!"

After sending Woon to call an ambulance and the police, Y-san headed over to the lab in question. There was indeed evidence of an explosion in the lab. The floor of the lab was strewn with metal beakers, spatulas, stirring rods, clamps, small lighters, and other lab instruments. The side wall was paneled with posters of DNA models. Propped against the back wall were heavy, stable, pressurized tanks of helium, argon, and liquid nitrogen. Leaning against a burnt lab bench was whom she guessed to be Vic. Frowning at what she saw, she stepped over to him.

Seeing Y-san, the injured Vic's eyes widened. "Thank goodness you're here!" he cried. "Someone threw something through the window." He pointed towards the open window with a burnt hand.

As Y-san studied the surrounding more closely, her frown grew deeper. A few minutes later, Campus Police arrived. Y-san left Vic's side and walked over to them and whispered "Get Police Chief Leroy."

When Police Chief Leroy arrived on the scene, before he could utter a word, Y-san gave him her usual enigmatic grin, and declared "Here's your killer for you."

After the suspect was in custody, the Police Chief, flipping over the reports, turned to Y-san with a confused look on his face. "Okay, I see why you suspected Vic, but I still don't understand," he admitted. "The only things in the lab were the usual harmless lab equipment and non-volatile gases."

"Exactly." Y-san said. "He was trying to clear himself by setting himself as a target. He can't be outside throwing the incendiary device in and inside as the victim at the same time."

The Police Chief shook his head vehemently. "Yes, but I still don't see how he caused the explosion..."

Edit: Terminology ;P

Edited November 25, 2008 by Yoruichi-san

[Guest]

I don't know much about chemicals, so this will probably make me sound stupid, but....

Could the liquid nitrogen be used to freeze a metal beaker to under -0.5deg, and then this beaker be used to extract the butane from the small lighters and keep it in liquid form? and then simply tip the butane out onto the bench using the last lighter to ignite it?

Or maybe there is some other way to use other other chemicals to release it with the stirring sticks?

[Yoruichi-san]

Although there are no batteries or mains connections in the room, could electrolysis be undertaken by inserting a cathode & anode of different metals into a natural battery cell such as a potato or other fruit/vegetbles? Electrons can flow in a potato (or similar) due to the presence of Phosphoric acid within it. I know there is phosphate in each nucleotide of DNA, but that about as far as my limited chemistry can go. Probably on the wrong track, but this is an interesting puzzle!

Good thinking...but no...you would still need to complete the circuit by connecting the electrodes, and there are no material available for those connections.

the oxgen benn let out of the tank thru its hose, and using a small lighter be ignited?

No...no tanked oxygen...but there is something else in tanks...

I don't know much about chemicals, so this will probably make me sound stupid, but....

Could the liquid nitrogen be used to freeze a metal beaker to under -0.5deg, and then this beaker be used to extract the butane from the small lighters and keep it in liquid form? and then simply tip the butane out onto the bench using the last lighter to ignite it?

Or maybe there is some other way to use other other chemicals to release it with the stirring sticks?

Good idea, but the lighters were the flint kind that are kept in chemistry/biology labs, not the butane kind you would buy in a store.

For all your good efforts, here's another hint...

As several have noticed, oxygen (O2) is everywhere around us...but in it's natural state in air, it will not undergo very rapid (almost spontaneous) combustion if lighted, i.e. explode...but if you could condense it...;P

There's actually not that much chemistry required to get this puzzle...maybe a wee bit of googling though...;P

[Prof. Templeton]

The Argon. While all the gases in the cylinders have a lower boiling point then Oxygen, the Argon is lower then the Oxygen in the air, but not lower then the Nitrogen, so the Oxygen will condense out of the atmosphere and leave the Nitrogen still in gaseous form.

[Yoruichi-san]

The Argon. While all the gases in the cylinders have a lower boiling point then Oxygen, the Argon is lower then the Oxygen in the air, but not lower then the Nitrogen, so the Oxygen will condense out of the atmosphere and leave the Nitrogen still in gaseous form.

Great thinking! (and googling bps ) I think you've figured out the method...good work .

But a bit of lab knowledge...the tanks of Argon and Helium are under the conditions that they are a gas when they are released. Sorry, I realized I neglected to specify they were gases, but I did say the tank of Nitrogen was liquid nitrogen ;P.

[Prof. Templeton]

Great thinking! (and googling bps ) I think you've figured out the method...good work .

But a bit of lab knowledge...the tanks of Argon and Helium are under the conditions that they are a gas when they are released. Sorry, I realized I neglected to specify they were gases, but I did say the tank of Nitrogen was liquid nitrogen ;P.

That you did.

Only the LN2 will condense the O2 in the atmosphere. What did Vic collect it into before igniting it I wonder.

[Prof. Templeton]

Since liquid oxygen is nonflammable something else must have been thrown into the mix. An oily rag maybe?

[Yoruichi-san]

That you did.

Only the LN2 will condense the O2 in the atmosphere. What did Vic collect it into before igniting it I wonder.

Yep...that's the other part of the puzzle...thinking up a suitable apParatus for collection...there is probably more than one answer though...;P

Since liquid oxygen is nonflammable something else must have been thrown into the mix. An oily rag maybe?

No...don't get confused by the 'liquid'...butane is a liquid too...liquid oxygen is quite flammable...I have personal experience to testify to that ;P

[Prof. Templeton]

Yep...that's the other part of the puzzle...thinking up a suitable apParatus for collection...there is probably more than one answer though...;P

No...don't get confused by the 'liquid'...butane is a liquid too...liquid oxygen is quite flammable...I have personal experience to testify to that ;P

I'm no chemist, but I always believed oxygen itself is nonflammable but it is a strong oxidizer and organics that burn in air will do so more vigorously in oxygen. In other words it supports the combustion of other matter. Don't the transport trucks that carry liguid oxygen have placcards the say "Oxygen compressed - cryogenic liquid - nonflammable gas"?

[Yoruichi-san]

I'm no chemist, but I always believed oxygen itself is nonflammable but it is a strong oxidizer and organics that burn in air will do so more vigorously in oxygen. In other words it supports the combustion of other matter. Don't the transport trucks that carry liguid oxygen have placcards the say "Oxygen compressed - cryogenic liquid - nonflammable gas"?

You're right...sorry, my bad, I was considering the case of being lit by a match thrown in...and then I realized I neglected to include matches in the inventory . But yeah, some pencil shavings or anything organic will work. Thanks for pointing that out.

[Guest]

And I was thinking it's his colleagues bithday and he was making a cake. Boom when the flour went up... Thought I tried to check on those lighters earlier??

BTW - Thought Argon was used to extinguish fires???

Edited December 4, 2008 by Lost in space

[Guest]

Oxygen is required for combustion to occur, but is by no means flammable. The argon is also an inert gas, and does not burn. Consider that incandescent light bulbs are filled with argon in order to keep from burning. The question is still "what was burned?". I have not been convinced that there was a fuel source in the room. Most chemistry labs have gas lines to fuel the Bunsen burners. I would think that Vic would have been far more likely to have used the natural gas from the gas lines to cause the explosion. If you could have collected that, and compressed it, he could have gotten a pretty good explosion. There would certainly be fire.

[Guest]

also discovered that argon is used as a 'shield' when welding - maybe Im missing something as Y-s is usually spot on

[Yoruichi-san]

Oxygen is required for combustion to occur, but is by no means flammable. The argon is also an inert gas, and does not burn. Consider that incandescent light bulbs are filled with argon in order to keep from burning. The question is still "what was burned?". I have not been convinced that there was a fuel source in the room. Most chemistry labs have gas lines to fuel the Bunsen burners. I would think that Vic would have been far more likely to have used the natural gas from the gas lines to cause the explosion. If you could have collected that, and compressed it, he could have gotten a pretty good explosion. There would certainly be fire.

The size of most flare-ups from fires, and explosions (an explosion is essentially a very rapid, almost spontaneous fire, i.e. combustion) are limited by the concentration of oxygen available, not by the amount of fuel. With pure liquid oxygen (100% concentration in condensed form) the combustion would go very quickly and cause a decent sized flare-up. Not that much fuel is actually required...some paper or pencil shavings would be able to provide enough to burn the lab bench and Vic

[Yoruichi-san]

also discovered that argon is used as a 'shield' when welding - maybe Im missing something as Y-s is usually spot on

Glad you're doing so much research. The argon is leading you down the wrong track though...

Oh, and congratulations ;P.

[Guest]

Glad you're doing so much research. The argon is leading you down the wrong track though...

Oh, and congratulations ;P.

So what you're getting at is...

The argon to partially shield himself from the explosion (however that works) and make himself look like the victim without actually becoming one.

Is there more to find out, or was that the ultimate answer to the officer's question?

[Yoruichi-san]

So what you're getting at is...

The argon to partially shield himself from the explosion (however that works) and make himself look like the victim without actually becoming one.

Is there more to find out, or was that the ultimate answer to the officer's question?

Lol...sorry...the 'congratulations' is leading you down the wrong track ;P...it was about something else (unrelated to the puzzle)

But that's a clever thought...I didn't think about shielding...just that the explosion wasn't that huge ;P

The last part of the puzzle is to think up a suitable apparatus for collection of the LO2 using what's in the room...more than one possible answer ;P

[Prof. Templeton]

Lol...sorry...the 'congratulations' is leading you down the wrong track ;P...it was about something else (unrelated to the puzzle)

But that's a clever thought...I didn't think about shielding...just that the explosion wasn't that huge ;P

The last part of the puzzle is to think up a suitable apparatus for collection of the LO2 using what's in the room...more than one possible answer ;P

Maybe a metal beaker, with crumpled up posters as insulation. Perhaps a better idea would be to use something organic that would be consumed in the ensuing inferno. Would the just the posters themselves hold LO2 long enough to light it off?

[Yoruichi-san]

Maybe a metal beaker, with crumpled up posters as insulation. Perhaps a better idea would be to use something organic that would be consumed in the ensuing inferno. Would the just the posters themselves hold LO2 long enough to light it off?

Wow...great ideas...you could definitely fold the posters as the final vessel...those are excellent ideas for the ignition (I do believe you're smarter than Vic ;P)...the collection though is still unresolved...

...oh, and if you want to keep the LO2 cold (which you do)...there is a more surefire way to do it...;P

[Prof. Templeton]

Wow...great ideas...you could definitely fold the posters as the final vessel...those are excellent ideas for the ignition (I do believe you're smarter than Vic ;P)...the collection though is still unresolved...

...oh, and if you want to keep the LO2 cold (which you do)...there is a more surefire way to do it...;P

Put LN2 into a beaker with another, smaller beaker inside to hold the LO2. Don't forget the insulation again.

[Yoruichi-san]

Put LN2 into a beaker with another, smaller beaker inside to hold the LO2. Don't forget the insulation again.

Refilling works just as well...not like Vic's going to have a use for that LN2 when he's in jail...;P

[Prof. Templeton]

Refilling works just as well...not like Vic's going to have a use for that LN2 when he's in jail...;P

Chill the container first with the LN2. Like a bottle of bubbly.

[Yoruichi-san]

Chill the container first with the LN2. Like a bottle of bubbly.

Lol...well, I wouldn't recommend drinking the cryogenic liquid...;P

keep it in a LN2 'bath'...which you can keep refilling as needed...since the bp of O2 is higher than N2, it will keep the O2 collected in liquid form.

[Guest]

On a side note, does Redrum have any professors left? I think we've killed/arrested 4 or more in the last 2 weeks alone! They really need a better screening process.

[Yoruichi-san]

On a side note, does Redrum have any professors left? I think we've killed/arrested 4 or more in the last 2 weeks alone! They really need a better screening process.

Lol...it's okay...seeing as how Vic was busy with his 'side projects', I doubt he would have gotten tenure...;P