NEW EXPERIMENTS WITH SMOKELESS 
POWDER. 
REPORT OF EXPERIMENTS AT HERR KRUPP’S FACTORY. 
PRECIS BY 
MAJOR E. S. MAY, R.A. 
Smokeless powders have hitherto been viewed with considerable suspicion from 
a service standpoint owing to their sensitiveness to the hygrometic condition of 
the atmosphere. If we are to trust Herr Krupp, chemical science has now 
mastered the difficulty, and he is possessed of powder whose stability leaves 
nothing to be desired. 
The following is a short precis of the results arrived at. 
In order to test what effect the state of the atmosphere was capable of pro¬ 
ducing, samples, weighing two kilogrammes, of four different natures of prism 
powder of various sized grains were exposed freely to the air for one year. 
These samples were carefully weighed every four weeks, and the quantity of 
moisture absorbed was judged by the alterations in weight. These variations 
were found at the end of the year to range from a loss of 1*6 grammes to an 
increase of 1*6 grammes, or, in other words, the powder lost or gained *08 per 
cent, of its weight in dampness during that time. 
These results were considered very satisfactory when compared with the 
experiences gained when black powder was similarly tested, when the variations 
are stated to have been five times as great. The treatment of the grains with 
graphite, which had been adopted to obviate the chance of their striking together, 
appears to have materially contributed towards security against damp. 
The dangerous effect of a high temperature on smokeless powder is well 
known to everyone who has used such an explosive for sporting purposes, and 
has been well exemplified in the accident on board the “ Admiral Duperre ” 
(noticed some time ago in these “ Proceedings ”), when a 34 cm gun burst owing 
to the magazine in which the ammunition was stored having become unduly 
heated. Herr Krupp contends that we need no longer fear such accidents with 
smokeless powder. 
He subjected his powder to a temperature of between 40° and 60° centigrade 
for a continuous period, at first of four, and afterwards of 15 days. The 
metal cases which held the cartridges are stated to have become so hot that they 
could not be handled with the hand unprotected. 
Experiments showed that the muzzle velocity of the 8'7 cm gun, which with 
powder at a normal temperature (17° centigrade) was 624 metres, rose to 645 
metres when powder was used which had been kept at 50° centigrade for 15 
days. 
The pressure of the gas similarly was only increased from 2320 to 2560 
atmospheres, while the uniformity of the pressures developed throughout the 
bore were at the same time found to have been but little altered. 
7. VOL. XIX. 
47b 
