Ray,
Speaking of photos, I recall seeing one of the piece with holes in it, but can't remember where I saw it. My research method a lot of times is a more or less free association of random ideas. Sometimes it turns up pay dirt and sometimes it doesn't. My most recent random idea was that I don't know what the end of a piece of steel would look like if it was hit with an explosive charge, so my thought was to see if I could find a photo and compare it to the WTC piece. So far I haven't had much luck, but ran across these items while looking:
This one is related to using cutting charges to sink a boat:
bcdiving.com
<<<There were 15 cutting charges in place, 1 at the stern and 7 along each side. The charges will heat the steel in front of them to 10000 degrees Fahrenheit and the steel vaporized and the vessel will begin to sink.>>>
This one is a pdf file (which I hate) which I though had some pretty good photos and discussion on the effects of explosives.
sainc.com
<<<The forces in metals in contact with detonating explosive are often 100 to 1000 time the strength of the metal. Any imperfection in the explosive may cause tearing of the metal. Everyone who has worked with explosives has seen unexpected marks and tears in metal fragments, but apparently little has been published about such features.>>>
If I was a professional researcher, with a fat bankroll, I'd just pick up a few I-beams and half a dozen different types of explosives, then start blowing the ends off the beams to see what happens. Maybe see if a thin layer of concrete, with rocks in it, blows holes through the metal in places. Maybe deform some demolition tape with heat to see what it looks like. Burning an end off with incendiaries might be a good project also.
In the mean time, I guess we'll just have to settle for the theory it was magically dipped in acid rain which made it possible for a puddle of kerosene to melt it. Perhaps I'm lucky I'm not a professional. That was one of their ideas. Oh well. |
