198 



EXPLOSIVES. 



atmospheric pressure by which the nitrobenzene 

 was carried off and the cellulose nitrate was in- 

 durated so that the mass became light yellow to 

 gray and as dense and hard as ivory, and it was 



DIB AWD PERFORATED CYLINDER OF SMOKELESS POWDER. 

 (Hfl)SON MAXIM PATENT.) 



bv this physical change in state, which could be 

 varied within limits by the press, that I modified 

 the material from a brisant rupturing explosive to 

 a slow-burning propellent." This explosive is also 

 known as the naval smokeless powder, and in his 

 report for 1892 Secretary of the Navy Tracy says: 

 " It is a gratifying fact to be able to show that 

 what we could "not accomplish through the assist- 

 ance of others we succeeded in accomplishing our- 

 -clves, and that the results are considerably in 

 advance of those hitherto attained in foreign coun- 

 tries." Experiments made with indurite showed 

 that in two successive rounds in the 6-inch rapid- 

 firing gun, using 26 pounds of the powder and 

 a 100- pound projectile, the pressures were 13.96 

 and 13.93 tons and the velocities 2,469 and 2,456 

 feet per second respectively. 



l>n 1'ont iioinlcr. In 1893 F. C. and P. S. Du 

 Pont, of Wilmington, Del., patented a smokeless 

 powder consisting of nitrocellulose and nitroben- 

 zene or another suitable solvent, which they granu- 

 lated by a special process. Into a convenient 

 holder fitted with stirring paddles water (contain- 

 ing in some cases niter) is poured, and then a 

 quantity of finely divided gun cotton is added. 

 By means of the paddles the mixture is stirred 

 until the gun cotton is evenly suspended in the 

 liquid, when nitrobenzene is added. A plastic 

 llocculcnt mass is formed by the action of the sol- 

 vent on the suspended gun cotton, which by slow 

 stirring gradually becomes granular. The stirring 

 is continued and steam is added until the solvent 

 is entirely removed and the powder made dense 

 ;ill(l solid. 



Ififlritt-. X. X., X. If., x. A"., X. I., and 8. B. 

 linirilcr are varieties of smokeless powder made 

 I iy tin- Smokeless 1'owder Company of Warwick, 

 Kngland. for sporting. They are not patented, 

 and their composition is secret, but from analysis 

 they are believed to be soluble wood nitrocellulose 

 mixed with niter and nitrobenzene, granulated in 

 a manner similar to the process used in the manu- 

 facture of the E. C. powder. 



I'liixttininiifi-. invented by Hermann Guttler, of 

 Keichenstcin. is made by melting dinitrotoluene 

 over a water bath and gradually adding one fifth 

 part of nitrocellulose. The resulting mass is 

 formed into fine grains that are of different shades 

 of brown. It finds its chief use for sporting. 



In addition to the foregoing there are several 

 smokeless powders that deserve mention, but do 

 not readily fall into the classification above. 

 Amoiiir them are: 



Kiilliinnlii run h'tilkmstrhi innr<lrr, invented by 

 .1. K. von Falkenstein, is made by dissolving finely 

 divided eolliiln-i- iii M Id per cent, solution of po- 

 tassium permanganate, and mixing the resulting 

 amorphous cellulose with manganese dioxide, form- 



ing a brown mass. This product is then mixed 

 with nitric acid, and after standing for twelve 

 hours is heated over a water bath until all the 

 manganese dioxide is converted into manganese 

 nitrate, while the amorphous cellulose separates 

 as a white precipitate and is pressed into a cake, 

 which, after drying, is ground into powder. This 

 powder is next nitrated with a mixture of nitric 

 and sulphuric acids, and the nitrocellulose washed 

 and placed in solution of potassium permanganate, 

 to which nitric acid is added and the mixture 

 heated. The resulting nitrocellulose is washed, 

 ground, and made into a paste with gum traga- 

 canth, which is finally pulverized, and the grains 

 are sifted, to be glazed in a drum. 



Kolfite is a smokeless powder invented by Her- 

 bert Kolf, of Bonn, Germany, and is made by 

 nitrating vegetable waste such as malt grains 

 and beet-root cuttings and sulphonating the re- 

 sulting cellulose with alkaline sulphates under a 

 pressure of 5 atmospheres. The product is then 

 mixed with niter and soaked in a solution of di- 

 nitrobenzene. 



Poudre pyroxyl6e. A smokeless powder with 

 this name has been issued by the French Govern- 

 ment for sporting. Its composition is as follows: 

 Soluble gun cotton 28 parts, insoluble gun cotton 

 37 parts, barium nitrate 29 parts, and potassium 

 nitrate 6 parts. The ingredients are first mixed by 

 hand and then in incorporating mills, with tht 

 addition of 40 per cent, of water. The mass is 

 then pressed through a sieve with ^ -inch mesh, 

 and dried in drying house till it has less than 1 

 per cent, of moisture. After the drying, ether is 

 added to the mixture and the paste is granulated, 

 after which it is revolved in a w r ooden drum, mois- 

 tened with water, and again dried. The grains are 

 then sorted and glazed, and the finished product 

 consists of regular and hard yellowish grains. 



PERFORATED POWDER GRAINS. (HIRAM 8. MAXIM PATENT.) 



Poudre J. This explosive was invented by M. 

 Bruneauand, and is made by the French Govern- 

 ment for sporting. It is brown, much harder than 

 black powder, and is produced in four sizes. The 

 process by which it is made has not been published, 

 but its composition is said to be 83 parts of gun 

 cotton and 17 of potassium bichromate. 



Literature. In addition to the Kxplosive Notes 

 issued by Dr. Charles E. Munroe at irregular in- 

 tervals from Columbian University, Washington, 

 D. C., there is published from time to time Notes 

 on the Construction of Ordnance, from the Ord- 

 nance Department of the United States Navy De- 

 partment. A periodieal entitled Arms and Explo- 

 -ives is issued regularly in London, and besides 

 the foregoing the following works may be con- 



