The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1910-11-02
POWDER PLANT
READY JAN. |
DESCRIPTION OF DYNAM MITE
WORKS AT SENTER WHICH
WILL GO INTO COMMITS.
SION FIRST OF YEAR.

visit TO the new powder plant OF
the Dupont Powder company which
is being erected at Senter and which
probably viii begin operations about
January 1. is not without interest. II
is located on the Copper Range rail-
road about 10 miles from Houghton,
near the village of Dollar Bay
r. X. OBrien is the resident engi-
neer and when the train backed up
TO the warehouse OF the company with
a party Of visitors aboard. he was ON
hand TO escort them about the works.
For over a year a large force Of men
have been at work on the plant and
are now putting the finishing touches
on the various buildings.
The railroad approaches the plant in
a long curve and encloses the plant in
a large circle, The different buildings
in which the process Of making dyna-
mite is gone through, appear like forts.
Each is separated from the others by
a distance of at least 100 yards and
enclosed by embankments OF sand and
timber so that all that can be seen Of
the buildings themselves is the peak of
the roof. The military aspect Of the
whole place Is the most significant
feature OF the works.
The first building to be visited was
the one in which the paper shells are
made 10 hold the dynamite and the ap-
proach to this structure is lined with
numerous change houses for the men
employed at the works.
The shell machine which makes the
dynamite shells. familiar to most peo-
pie, shoots them out at about 200 a
minute. As they come out Of this ma
chine they measure eight inches in
length, one and one half inches i'm dia-
meter one end closed and the other
open. They are packed in crates and
carried by a belt into the parafhning
room where paraffine is sprayed over
them.
From this building the scene changes
to the machine which packs the shells
with the dynamite. Mr. OBrien IL
Illustrated the process of filling the
shells by filling a number with dummy
powder. The work here is very dan
gerous for If a shell became entangled
in the machinery an explosion would
surely occur. All the windows are
made to open outward and are built
down 70 the floor. should the men
fear an explosion at any time it is in
tended that they shall hurl themselves
through these windows and make
dash TO the outside Of the embank-
ment. There are three machines I'm
this department with a safe distance
between each, and together they can
turn out $4,000 shells or $4,000 pounds
of dynamite a day
The capacity OF the whole plant is
estimated at 100000 pounds a year.
with a possible total Of 22.OOO,OOO. A
little distance from the machine pack
ers are the packing plants where the
dynamite sticks are packed into the
familiar wooden boxes.
Dynamite. as il f. known the world
over, is nitro glycerine combined with
wood pulp TO make the explosive safer
to be handled. The nitro-glycerine is
2 compound Of pure glycerine and an
acid composed OF one-fourth nitric to
three-fourths sulphuric. All these in
gradients are manufactured at the
plant. At the top Of one OF the build
ings is the mixer where the glycer-
inc and the acids are combined TO form
nitro elycerine. The excessive heat
generated by the chemical reaction
when these two substances are COM
bined is reduced to so degrees by coils
Of cooling pipes enclosing the leaden
bowl in which the main action takes
place. Brine is kept circulating i'm
these coils at a temperature of Is de-
grees below zero. Should the temper
allure OF the compound exceed 80 de-
grees, an explosion would be lmmi-
nent and TO guard against an explo-
sion the attendant may increase the
circulation OF the brine may add more
ulvcnrfua or nc d Loot v.,e,rt t1,-