On Wed, 22 Jul 2009 09:13:35 -0400, Meat Plow
wrote:

Isn't pure Iodine highly unstable?

No. Ammonium tri-Iodide and Nitrogen Tri-Iodide are the traditional
unstable contact explosive. Great fun in high skool and college
blowing things up. It was also probably the origin of the term
"purple haze". It's fairly easy to make and equally easy to have a
spectacular accident.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KlAf936E90