Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1901-10-17
HA'PENNYDlPiTE.
Exposition of the Way to Manufacture
New High Explosive.

Exposition of the Way to Manufacture
New High Explosive.
High explosives are booming just at
present. The world at large has been
let into the secret that to make a
brand-new lite" it is merely necessary
to aGd something new to picric acid,
or, for the matter of that, fresh pro-
portion of something old. The thing
is so easy that the most important
part of the business is the reclame.
Consequently it is highly probable that
certain citizens of the United ST ties of
America where the art OF advertise
ment is best understood, viii be able
to pose as first-class inventors for
some time to come. II brown. Jones
and Robinson wish to immortalize
themselves in this connection, ali the
preparatory work they need is to read
up an article in Engineering on August
2, which shows what changes can be
made on high explosives by mixing
them together or by adding TO them
small quantities of greasy substances,
such as castor oil, yaseline or cod
liver OIL If our three friends will
each choose their oil, there is no rea-
son why samples of Brownie, Jones'
tie and Robinsonite should not be on
their way to the war Office forthwith.
The Scientific American has also been
writing on the subject and we regret
that it has joined the brass band to
IL
surname to it. However, we can quote
paragraph from this journal which
yurports to specify the requirements
of the United States government for
a high explosive
Perfect chemical stability, or keep
mig qualities, very great explosive
power, high specific gravity, given as
much force as possible per unit of
volume, great insensitiyeness. so great
as to make it incapable of defamation
from she elk, rendering it not only safe
for projection from guns at high We
locities, but capable of witIstanding
he far greater shock of penetration of
armor plate as thick as the strongest
armor-piercing projectiles themselves
can pass through. 1t should be com
paratively inexpensive to manufac-
ture. | should be capable of being
melted at a comparatively low tenn
perature, and it should be incapable
of explosion from ignition, enabling it
to be melted over an open fire, as oc-
casion might require, and without any
danger, for filling projectiles. 1t
should be incapable of defamation from
overheating, but should boil away
like water on the rise of temperature
beyond certain point. 1t should
solidify in the projectiles, forming a
dense and solid mass, incapable of
shifting even on striking armor-plate.
1t happened one day last week that
this specification was put before a
well-known authority on high ex-
plosives, with the inquiry as to
whether it was difficult to arrive at
such a compound. He remarked with
emphatic tautology that he would pro
duce 10-year-old girl who, with 10
minutes instruction, would make the
| thing in 10 minutes He would bet
! $40 on it. There is always skeptic
in every company, and the particular
one present accepted the wager glee-
fully. Appropriately enough, it was
decided on the 10th.
On that day the young lady of 10
was produced, with certificate OF
birth all complete, and took her in
structions in the stipulated time.
Then, being fully qualified as the in
ventor of an lite" she proceeded to
make her witch brew She first took
three teaspoonfuls of picric acid. one
teaspoonful of di-nitro benzol, and a
tablespoonful of vaseline, these she
placed in a small wedgewood mortar
ground them up steadily for nine
minutes. and the compound was fin
lished This contained from 3 to 4 pei
cent. of vaseline. Upon testing, il
was found that it could be driven into
a piece Of tool steel with a powerful
blow without exploding; such blow
as this would have readily set of an
other kind of explosive that could be
produced, including pure picric acid
The compound was then thrown into
a redhot furnace, without exploding
it was boiled away over the fame Of q
Bunsen burner, without even taking
fire: il melted in warm water, was
stirred up with red-hot iron, and wa'
still calm and unresponsive.
4 A. A.