It is important for these researchers to take the next step in informing the public of what really caused the WTC towers to collapse. Even if military-grade nanothermite is unavailable to them anywhere in the world, as they claim it is, there is nothing stopping them from taking some steel columns and a similar incendiary or explosive, painting it on, and showing how an “energetic coating” of it severs steel, but doesn’t produce any bright flashes or loud bangs on 236 outside WTC tower columns in plain view to everyone, or leave any melted steel column ends in debris piles. If it turns concrete completely to dust in seconds, they could get some old sidewalk or patio and demonstrate that also, and if it keeps steel molten for several months, that should also be documented, and we may have a solution to our energy problems here.
This project could be recorded on video and posted on the ae911truth web site, and it’s possible that PBS would even bankroll a documentary and cover all of their costs, or Richard Gage could earmark some of his donations for it, since his research up to now has only consisted of dropping inexpensive cardboard boxes on each other.
Without giving the public a visible frame of reference for the nanothermite theory, it will never be widely accepted, and this modest project would silence all of the skeptics. Currently, all we know is that a highly reactive incendiary painted on steel columns or otherwise secretly applied to them will quickly migrate to one point and make a cut that looks just like one from an acetylene torch, complete with slag, and some may need to see that clearly demonstrated in order to believe it.
I feel that this is an exceedingly worthwhile project, and should be done as soon as possible.

Doesn’t it seem odd to you (albury) that you are expecting a citizen based group of volunteers to be the ones who should perform your suggested experiments when, as NIST’s lead engineer, John Gross states in this video: http://tinyurl.com/y9rjwyp “We were charged with finding out the cause of the collapse”? Yet, NIST admits they didn’t even look for signs of explosives when the ‘NFPA 921: Guide for Fire and Explosion Investigations’ states that this should be done whenever a building completely collapses?

If Richard Gage and company did perform the experiments that you suggest would that really prove anything to the 9/11 Debunkers? Or will they then follow up their skepicism with the following type questions:

How do I know if was really nanothermite that Gage used?

How do you know how much nanothermite was needed to bring down the towers?

How did they get it in the building without getting caught?

How was it attached to the beams and facings?

You get my point right?

Instead of trying to divert the nanothermite argument into a 100 different directions the real question to ask is…

WHAT IS NANOTHERMITE DOING IN THE DUST SAMPLES FROM THE WTC IN THE FIRST PLACE?

And only a real, independent and thorough 9/11 Investigation with subpoena power will answer those questions. Until then, all we can do is go off of the scientific evidence and (unfortunately) only speculation to the other questions of who, how and when.