An Improved Gun-powder.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 24th Oct., 1893-Accepted, 25th Nov., 1893
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION,
An Improved Gun-powder.
I, MASON EMORY LEONARD, Main Street, Manchester, New Jersey, United
States of America, Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in
what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement :-
My invention relates to improvements in gun powder and has for its object to
produce a high power, smokeless explosive.
The powder consists of nitroglycerine, gun cotton, lycopodium and a neutralizer
of free acid such for example as urea crystals or dinitrobenzol with or without the
addition of oil.
The above ingredients are combined in the proportions and in the manner herein-
after set forth, the particular proportions of the several ingredients being varied
somewhat to adapt the powder to guns of varying calibres.
For the United States thirty calibre rifle the following proportions have given
very satisfactory results :-
One hundred and fifty parts by weight of nitroglycerine,
Fifty parts by weight of gun cotton,
Ten parts by weight of lycopodium, and
Four parts by weight of finely triturated urea crystals.
If dinitrobenzol is used instead of the urea crystals four parts by weight should
be used.
In practice I first mix the several ingredients above named together and then
introduce as a solvent either acetone alone or acetone combined with acetate of
amyl or acetone combined with acetic ether. The amount of solvent which I
employ is a matter of judgment, care being taken that a sufficient quantity be
introduced to thoroughly dissolve the gun cotton. The error should be on the side
of introducing too much rather than too little and, as I have not yet determined
the least amount of the solvent which is necessary to dissolve the gun cotton, I have
used successfully one and one-half times as much by weight of the solvent as I used
of gun cotton.
The form of gun cotton which I prefer to employ is trinitrocellulose.
After the introduction of the solvent the mixture will be in a condition of viscid
liquid or of a pasty nature and after stirring it as a person would mix mortar, it is
allowed to stand in sealed jars for a period of twelve hours, more or less.
The mixture is then agitated, either by means of hand or by a mixer or beater of
any well known or approved form, such for example as a "Dover egg beater,"
built upon a scale adapted to the work in hand, for the purpose of evaporating
the solvent and bringing the active ingredients of the explosive into intimate
contact.
The mass is then formed into a cake or granules of the desired size by pressure
in suitable moulds. The mould employed should be made to correspond with the
size of grain desired and is purely a matter of mechanical judgment. I have used
for the purpose of moulding the grains a macaroni machine in which the material is
pressed through perforations by means of a plunger, the result being to form the
mass into long, flexible rods. To form small grains, these rods are made extremely
small, one-twentieth of an inch in diameter for example, and are then cut up into
short pieces by feeding them to a cutter in the nature of an ordinary hay cutter.
For use in cannon, where a further deterring and moisture proof effect is desired,
I add to the ingredient above named seven parts by weight of cotton seed oil.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. A gun powder, composed of nitroglycerine, gun cotton, lycopodium and a
neutralizer of free acid such for example as urea crystals or dinitrobenzol.
2. A gun powder, composed of nitroglycerine, gun cotton, lycopodium, a neutralizer
of free acid such for example as urca crystals or dinitrobenzol and oil.
Dated this 24th day of October 1893.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.