Los Angeles daily herald., 1888-07-02
HIGH EXPLOSIVES.
Destructive Agencies Of
Modern Science,
GUN-COTTON AND ITS RIVALS.
Their Use for Military, Mining, Shells
and TOrpedOes-Advantages of
NitrO-Glyeerlne.

coal quietly glow and consume away in
the CRATE, that there are present all the
materials necessary for producing an ex-
plosion; yet such is the case, and it has
been found that the ignition of coal-dust
laden air is not infrequent source of
disastrous explosions in coal mines.
What has occurred with coal may oc-
cur with any combustible solid which is
timely pulverized and suspended in air,
and in this manner the explosions of
flour which destroyed several flour mills
In Minneapolis in 1878 are accounted
for. The explosions of sawdust in the
Pullman car shops and at Geldowsky's
furniture factory, the explosions of starch
in New York candy factory, of rice in
rice mills, and of dust in breweries and
spice mills, are among the many exam
pies OF the action of similar cause; but
perhaps the most unusual case of this
class OF explosions was that of finelv
powdered zinc, which occurred in 1884
at the Bethlehem zinc works.
Two British men-of-war, the Doterel
and the Triumph, have been blown ur
owing to the presence on board of a dryef
for paints of which benzine formed :
part; and the serious explosion in Paw
tucket, and the more disastrous one in
Rochester, arose from naphtha having
peen permitted to escape into the sew
ers.
The modern high explosives are bodies
Wnlch contain within their molecules the
elements necessary for ordinary combus-
ton, while at the same time they are
more or less endosmosmic; and the best
example, and perhaps the most impor-
tant, Ia OF these is the mercury illuminate.
Ihls substance was discovered by How
ara IN 1900, and was made by dissolving
mercury in strong nitric acid and pour
ing the solution into alcohol, Its discov-
cry aroused the liveliest interest, and it
was Immediately tested by firing in a
musket, but, though it impaired yerv
little velocity to the proiectile. and pro-
duced only slight recoil and report. Il
burst the barrel of the piece Completely
open, and hence it was relocated to the
position OF a chemical curiosity until re-
called for use as priming for percussion
caps.
Its adoption to modern uses began in
1868, when Nobel discovered that by the
explosion of few grains of this substance
nitro -glycerine might be detonated. and
was extended in 1873, when Mr.. f. O.
Brown discovered that not only could
dry gun-cotton be detonated by this
means, but that if small initial mass of
dry gun-cotton was detonated in contact
with mass OF wet gun-cotton the latter
would be also detonated, even lhough it
were completely saturated with water.
Baron Won Lenk, of Austria, took up
the study of this material in 1853, and
his efforts to perfect the methods of man
ufacture and to moderate the violence of
the gun charges were attended with such
apparent success that special battery of
l2-pounders was constructed for use with
it, and the position of the explosive
seemed assured, until 1865, when his
blew up spontaneously, and
the article was interdicted by the Gov
ernment.
While the Austrian experiments were
going on, Abel, the chemist to the War
of Great Britain, was also
engaged in the study OF the properties of
this substance, and the same year in
which Austria prescribed the article he
announced the invention of the process
by which its manufacture has since been
carried on.
Gun-cotton constitutes the best mill
tary. explosive known, for while its ex-
plosive force vastly exceeds that of gum
powder and approaches that of nitro
glycerine, it is the safest and most stable
explosive we possess, since it can be
stored and transported wet; and.
while in this state, though it NAV
be detonated as described above.
it cannot be exploded in any other
way. AS much as 1000 pounds OF wet
gun-cotton have been placed
in fierce bonfire, where it has gradually
dried, layer by layer, and been consumed
without exploding. Besides, gun-cotton
IS the only military explosive which can
be detonated with certainty when frozen.
In calling it military explosive mean.
Of course, for use in torpedoes and for
military mining, and not as a substitute
Tor gunpowder in guns; but it may be,
and has been, successfully used as q
charge for shells fired from gunpowder
guns both in this country and abroad.
Shells containing as much as ITO pounds
,f gun-cotton have been repeatedly fred
n Germany.
The most prominent rival of gun-cotton
or military uses and the best explosive
or industrial purposes is nitro-glycerine
md the mixtures of which it forms a part.
This substance was discovered bv So
orero in 1S47, while carrying out a series
If experiments under Pelouze. Its LIQUID
orm makes it difficult to store and trans
port, and permits it to find its way into
places, where it constitutes n
source Of danger. Considerations such
as these led Nobel, about 1867, to invent
dynamite. The name is now applied to
\ great variety of nitro -glycerine MKT
Tres, but they all consist Of porous solid
absorbent which sucks up the LIQUID
aitro- -glycerine by capillarity and holds it
IN its pores or interstices.
The most important nitro-glycerine
mixture is explosive gelatine, also in
vented by Nobel. This is made by heat
ing nitro-glycerine on water bath and
adding to it from to 10 per cent. Of solu-
BILE gun cotton.
The largest single charges ever fred
were employed in the blowing-up of
Hallett's Reef and Flood Rock. In the
latter, which occurred October 10. 1885,
the charge consisted OF 24O, ,399 pounds of
rack-a-rock and 4S,537 pounds of dyna-
mite No. l, yet SO nicely was this encr-
nous charge calculated for the work it
was to do that beyond breaking down
the rock, tossing up an enormous body of
water to a height ESTIMATED for the tall
est jet) of 100 feet, and generating an
earth wave which was observed as far