Procedure for ensuring secure transport and storage of banknotes and documents employs heated sulphuric acid to achieve rapid destruction in event of attempted theft

摘要

The procedure, in which cellulose molecules in paper are subjected to rapid dehydration and neutralisation, employs a 75 - 98 per cent concentration of sulphuric acid, heated to a temperature compatible with the desired destruction process, with the resulting energy deployed immediately inside a container in which banknotes or documents of value are being transported or an automatic machine from which they are dispensed or recycled. The heat is provided by an exothermic chemical that heats the acid to a temperature of between 150 and 300 degrees C. The transport or storage container has a first compartment (2) containing the papers (1) and a second adjoining compartment (3) holding one vessel (4) with the dehydrating product and a second vessel (5) for the exothermic chemical product, with a pyrotechnic device (6) between them to break open the two vessels and the wall (7) separating the compartments.