Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-10-09
By Marvin Dana


while those that detonate termed high explosives
Niroglycern is, of course, high explosive, of
the very veiest although at certain temperatures and
in small quantities it is capable of burning without
detonation When detonated, the volume of gases and
the heat developed such that the products of
buSton occupy a space ten thousand times that
quired by the original body of the liquid. and this
change of bulk in sing gle instant. 1t is this ir
resstibe demand for vastly multiplied room that gives
to nitrogycerin its enormous explosive force.
For the sake of precision in considering the
in which explosive bodies consumed, defamation is
differentiated from explosion. Defamation is descriptive
of the action in high explosives when the explosive
passes through the body with the extreme of velocity.
But in the of conclusive explosives the body
burned its exposed surfaces fire the crate,
only with much rapdity and this action is tech
ncaly termed explosion. The heat at the surface
verts the body under the fame into cases. that.
fast the solid diss pated into gas the oxygen
ried in the material combines with the combustble ee
ments, thus evolving still heat. which maintains
the action until the body is entirely consumed.
How 1t Is Mad.
ULTIMATELY, as the nature of this action became
~ understood after much experimenting, chemists
able to render ntroglycerin bit docile al
though yet it is far from being stoid, dependable
Purity of the compound has been secured at
last and some measure of stability.
In the present method of manufacture, charge of
seventy-hve hundred pounds of mixed nitric and sui
into steel tank, which is provided with vertical
rotating shaft armed with paddles for rapid stirring of
the acids when glycerin is admitted. The tank is
equipped with coils Also through which cold is
circulated for the purpose of maintaining low tenn
perature. In order to keep down tie heat developed
by reaction, the temperature must be held between
twenty and twenty-five degrees Centgrade sixty-eght
and seventy-seven degrees Fahrenhet). This regu-
lated by the of glycern injected into the mixed
acids and by the efficacy of the cooling device. The
glycern allowed to into the acids continuous
stream, while the acids constantly agated very
gently. The quantity of gycerin should be fourteen
and onehaf per cent of the total weight of acids used
When all the gycerin has been run in, the charge is
drawn off into separating tank where the nltroglycern
rises to the top while the acids are drawn OFT to be re-
covered and the ntrog conducted into drowning
and washing tanks One pound of sweet glycern should
yield nearly two and quarter pounds of ntroglycern
Despite all advances in the art of manufacture how
ever ntrogycerin has seadasy retained its unsavory
reputation freak invention, too sensitive for safe
employment
1t was Nobel who at last to the He dis
covered that by absorbing the treacherous liquid in
duced He offered this mixture to the world in 1866,
under the of dynamite. That mad monster nitro
glycern, in chains!
Several years later Nobel discovered that form of
nitrocelluose guncotton could be made. which
would dissolve in warm nitrog ycerin, establishing
thick jelly, and that this jelly, nitrogelatin could be
rendered very nsensitve the percentage of nitro
CelltlloSe dissolved in it increased.
To-day the of inusorial earth in the manufacture
of dynamite has been generally abandoned; but the
principle involved has survived to splendid efficiency of
achievement for it that which underlies the pro-
duCtOn OF all dynamite, and IN 1T are found safety,
economy and supreme energy At the present time the
absorbent for nitrog ycerin composed OF mixture
containing wood meal and puverzed nitrate of soda
nitrate of ammonia often with the addition of small
percentage of sulphur, resin charcoal Frequently,
too, nitroglycerin is thickened with about two per
cent of geatin-pyroxyln, before being mixed with
absorbent materials This known gelatin dynamite.
Both common dynamite and gelatin dynamite
classed according to the percentage of nitrogycern
contained in them The favorte is the forty per cent;