DR. H. DEBUS ON THE CHEMICAL THEORY OF GUNPOWDER. 
547 
Composition of the powders. 
Cannon powder. 
Rifle powder. 
Saltpetre. 
73-78 
77-15 
Sulphur. 
Charcoal—■ 
12-80 
8-63 
Carbon. 
i—i 
o 
CO 
oo 
11-78 
Hydrogen .... 
0-38 
0-42 
Oxygen. 
1-82 
1-79 
Ash. 
0-31 
0-28 
Composition of the products of explosion. 
Cannon powder. Rifle powder 
Grms. Grms. 
Potassic carbonate 
. . 7-14 
7-096 
„ sulphate .... 
. . 13-61 
12-354 
„ hyposulphite 
. . 1-04 
0-605 
,, sulphide .... 
. . 0-04 
o-ooo 
Carbonic acid. 
. . 6-40 
7-442 
„ oxide. 
. . 0-97 
0-504 
Nitrogen. 
. . 3-60 
3*432 
Hvdrogen. 
. . 0-04 
0-047 
Marsh gas. 
. . 0*15 
0-167 
Sulphuretted hydrogen . 
. , o-io 
0-079 
Carbon. 
. . 0-94 
0-887 
Sulphur ....... 
. . 1-73 
0-397 
Ammonic carbonate . 
. . 0-9.9 
0-908 
Loss.. 
. . 0-08 
0-235 
Cannon powder gave 30"77 per cent, of gas and 69'25 per cent, solid residue. Rifle 
powder gave 34'8 6 per cent, of gas, and 65‘14 per cent, solid residue. 
Karolyi, comparing his results with those of Bunsen and Schischkofe, arrives at 
the conclusion that the nature and quantities of the products of explosion are not 
much influenced by the conditions under which the combustion takes place, but that 
the composition of the powder determines in a great measure the proportions in 
which the products of explosion are formed. Besides this, he deduces no other 
conclusions from his experiments. Karolyi’s observations do not support Craig's 
assertion ; the pressure in the metallic cylinder before explosion must have been great, 
yet very little or no potassic sulphide has been formed. 
A few years later (1869) Fedorow* published the results of some experiments 
executed by him on the explosion of gunpowder. He, like Craig, concludes that 
* Zeitsclirift fur Annalytisclie Chcrnie, Bd. ix., p. 127; Streckee, Jakresbericht, 1869, p. 1059. 
