The morning call., 1893-08-17
SMOKELESS POWDER.

L he mysteries OF cordlte and all smoke
less powders for use In the army and navy,
and also in sport. are likely to receive elu-
cidatiOn In very sensational trial in the
English courts. Alfred Nobel, the pat
entee Of dynamite and nitro-gelatine. has
brought an action against the British
Government for infringement of patent
he holds for smokeless powder. There
are hundreds of patents connected with
this class of ammunition, and as the pro-
prletary rights over all the materials used
have disappeared it will probably be i'm
possible to make good any claim of the
kind preferred. The revelations during
the trial are, however, of the greatest in
terest to all countries with armies and
navies. and for their enlightenment Ii is
desirable the:litigstion should proceed.
- A smokeless powder quite perfect has;
never yet been made, but practically there
may be many kinds well nigh perfect.
That is+to say, the carbon is all com bined
with ok gen and forms carbonic acid. and
mostof the. oxygss remaining is combined
with hydrogen and forms water. Nobel
holds a patent:for balistite, which consists
of nitro-glycerine: and: guncott0n IN about
equal proportions; with some other ingre-
0iObt Hiu ubOs las
tried to Introduce in Italy, but he has not
succeeded: in the. manufacture. : He has
factories in a number. of countries, but has
thus far failed to make his explosive suit
able fol- any of the fighting services. The
smo keless;@ owder made in. Britain is
called cordite,< and is also a com Dosition Of
:nitro-glycerinea and :guncotton, with other
toregulate the combustion, and
assisted by solvents in mixing. The name
of powder is unsuitable, because the sub
stance is plastic like gum, and is no, finely
subdivided, but nodded into any shape.
In the form:of cords it is found to answer
Its purpose admirably. Cordite is the.IR-
.yention: OF Sir Frederick Abel, formerly.
chemist of the War Department, and Pro-
lessor: Dewar of the Royal Institution,
London, and also of Cambridge University.
a chemist who now stands very high in
Europe: .-..,.::; -
Probably it will be found that there is
no patent in cordjte either. That WIFI not
matter much to the manufacturing world;
because the real difficulty in .productoni is
hitting upon the process by which large.
quantities can be made. That is being
done by the English Government at Wal
than Abbey factory. All the tests neces-.
saryin heat or cold, dry or wei weather,
storage in the. tropics OF elsewhere, have
been passed successfully, and this powder
is available for.both the army and navy in
any quantity and is really far safer 10
handle than gunpowder. If Nobel were 60.
establish his con tention he would be in the:
position of succeeding through others in "a
manufacture which his own ingenuity has.
failed to make successful. His claim,
would have better footing if his paten t
for nitro-gelatine-wh ich consists of 80
per cent of nitro. glyce rine and Z per
cent of nitro-cotton-were extant, bHt it.
has been dead three years. The Govern
ment admit the value of nirro-gelatine. but
nothing else that Nobel claims, and they
hold that their process is substar TALLY dit-
ferent from any other in use. Naturally
they refuse to diVulge more of their
methods than is necessary. 1t will as
suredly be great case for the lawyers
and expert witnesses summoned from all
parts of Europe
. Every country has some form of smoke
less powder. France clings to-. melinite,
one of the pierre forms of explosive. Ger
many has powder with which it Is well
satisfied and Italy. has still opes Of balls
lite: Cordlte, besides being safe, gives
the very high initial velocity of 2SO0 feet
pei: second to a projeclile and develops a
maximum pressure within the gun OF from
fifteen to eighteen tons per square inch.
& 1t is very powerful ammunition ahead
of gunpo WIDER -. -. -. ~.