Created in the 1955s, FIERY MAGIC shows the creation of calcium carbide with lime and coke to generate acetylene gas, and the use of calcium chloride to make plastic products. The film was made by National Carbide which marketed its products under the trade name Airco.

At 8:23, the film shows how acetylene was used to power the headlights of early automobiles. At 9:04 the use of acetylene for welding and cutting in the forge is shown. At 9:44, calcium carbide is used to remove sulfur from cast iron in a steel mill. At 10:33 atomic models show the structure of the calcium carbide molecule. At 10:58, plastics made from calcium chloride are shown including Koroseal and Geon. At 11:02 a slide rule made from the plastic is shown as well as early plastic packaging. At 11;15 plastic gloves and toys, records and playing cards are shown made from these kind of acetylene based plastics. At 12:12 neoprene rubber is shown. At 13:09 drugs for dentists are shown including Trichloroethylene which is used as a pain killer.

Calcium carbide, also known as calcium acetylide, is a chemical compound with the chemical formula of CaC2. Its main use industrially is in the production of acetylene and calcium cyanamide.

The pure material is colorless, however pieces of technical-grade calcium carbide are grey or brown and consist of about 80–85% of CaC2 (the rest is CaO (calcium oxide), Ca3P2 (calcium phosphide), CaS (calcium sulfide), Ca3N2 (calcium nitride), SiC (silicon carbide), etc.). In the presence of trace moisture, technical-grade calcium carbide emits an unpleasant odor reminiscent of garlic.

Applications of calcium carbide include manufacture of acetylene gas, and for generation of acetylene in carbide lamps; manufacture of chemicals for fertilizer; and in steelmaking.

We encourage viewers to add comments and, especially, to provide additional information about our videos by adding a comment! See something interesting? Tell people what it is and what they can see by writing something for example like: “01:00:12:00 — President Roosevelt is seen meeting with Winston Churchill at the Quebec Conference.”

This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD and 2k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com