A BOMB EXPLODES IN THE LABORATORY
A BOMB EXPLODES IN THE LABORATORY A Swansea Student’s Alarming Shock During Scientific Experiments It was in the pages of the South Wales Daily Post , published in July 1926 , that readers first encountered the explosive story emerging from Swansea University College at Singleton — a tale of scientific inquiry interrupted by a sudden and startling detonation. Within the quiet precincts of the Summer Mining School, where earnest students labour to unlock the mysteries of coal and combustion, an unexpected blast shattered the calm and drew public attention. The Experiment — A Device of Heat and Pressure The young scholar at the centre of the affair, Mr. Wilfred Maliphant , of “Brookfields,” Kingsbridge, Gorseinon, had been engaged in determining the heating value of a particular grade of coal by means of a bomb colorimeter — a compact vessel designed to endure intense pressure. With the apparatus prepared and the coal sample secured within, Mr. Maliphant bent to the telescope to observ...
