Year: 1888

page_text: Date of Application, 31st Jan., 1888
Complete Specification Left, 28th Nov., 1888
Complete Specification Accepted, 31st Dec., 1888
I, ALFRED VINCENT NEWTON of the Office for Patents, 6 Bream's Buildings,
Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughtsman, do hereby
declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
Efforts hitherto made with a view of substituting Nitrate of Barium for Saltpetre
in gunpowder have resulted in complete failure, owing chiefly to the sluggishness of.
combustion inherent in Nitrate of Barium powders. In order to overcome such
sluggishness, it is now proposed to mix Nitrate of Barium powder (composed of 100
parts by weight of said Nitrate and 12 to 20 parts of charcoal or equivalent solid
powdered combustible) with vivifying substances of organic or inorganic nature, such
as picrates, finely pulped nitrated cellulose, nitrated starch, or nitrated dextrine,
ferricyanides or other cyanides, amorphous phosphorus.
Amongst nitrated organic substances for such purpose, Picrate of Ammonia is
preferred. This substance is added in the proportion of from 15 to 30 per cent. of
the weight of the baryta powder, the ingredients being mixed, very intimately in a
moist condition, containing, say, from 6 to 10 per cent. of water. Gum arabic, or
other glutinous substance may be added in order to give consistency to the powder
grains.
Amongst the aforesaid inorganic vivifying substances, amorphous phosphorus is
preferred, of which a very small quantity is needed to give to baryta powder the
needful inflammability which it lacks.
Intimately mixed in a moist condition with 3 to 5 per cent. of amorphous phos-
phorus, the baryta powder will serve for rifles; and for its use in heavy guns the
proportion can be reduced even to 2 per cent., the percentage varying as the size of
the gun and the windage varies.

page_text: The addition to baryta powder above described of the aforesaid vivifying substances,
does not increase the amount of smoke given off at firing. The powders aforesaid
are made, charged, and ignited like ordinary powder, but care must be taken; o
regulate the charge in accordance with the power capable of being developed by the
powder.
NEWTON & SON,
Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Explosive Compounds.
1 ALFRED VINCENT NEWTON of the Office for Patents, 6 Bream's Buildings,
Chancery Lane in the County of Middlesex, Mechanical Draughtsman, do hereby
declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement-
Efforts hitherto made with a view of substituting nitrate of barium for saltpetre in
gunpowder, to be used for propelling purposes, have resulted in complete failure,
owing chiefly to the sluggishness of combustion inherent in nitrate of barium
powders.
Now the object of the present invention is to overcome this sluggishness of com-
bustion, and the way in which the desired result is obtained will be clearly understood
from the following description, as rendered by the inventor :-
I mix nitrate of barium powder (composed of 100 parts by weight of said nitrate,
and 12 to 20 parts by weight of charcoal, or equivalent solid powdered combus-
tible in explosive proportions) with vivifying substances of organic or inorganic
nature, such as picrates, finely pulped nitro-cellulose, nitrostarch, nitrodextrine,
ferro or ferricyanides, cyanides, amorphous phosphorus.
Amongst nitrated organic substances for said purpose, I give preference to picrate
of ammonia. Of this substance, finely powdered, I mix intimately 15 to 30 parts by
weight with 100 parts by weight of the aforesaid nitrate of barium powder, to which
may be added, moreover, 10 to 20 parts by weight of finely powdered-nitrate
of barium, in order to furnish the quantity of oxygen requisite for complete
combustion of the aforesaid picrate of ammonia. The powder here described is made
like ordinary gunpowder in a moist condition, containing say from 6 to 10 per

page_text: cent. of water, in which gum arabic or other glutinous substance has been dissolved
in such quantity as to give sufficient consistency to the powder when grained. 1 per
cent. by weight of gum generally suffices for such purpose.
In the powder here described, the charcoal can be replaced entirely by a chemico-
equivalent quantity of picrate of ammonia, but it then becomes more expensive, besides
exercising a greater strain on the barrels of firearms.
Amongst the aforesaid inorganic vivifying substances, amorphous phosphorus is
preferred, of which a very small quantity is needed to give to baryta powder the
quickness of combustion which it lacks.
Intimately mixed in a moist condition with 1 to 5 per cent. of its weight of
amorphous phosphorus, the aforesaid nitrate of barium powder becomes very much
vivified as regards combustibility. The wide range here given, from 1 to 5 per cent..
is owing to the very different conditions under which combustion takes place in
different arms. Thus, for instance, 2 per cent. of said phosphorus will vivify sufficiently
nitrate of barium powder to be used for a rifle of 8 millimeters calibre, whilst 4 to 5
per cent. of said phosphorus has to be added for use in rifles of 11 to 12 millimeters
calibre. As regards heavy artillery guns, even 1 per cent. of said phosphorus will
vivify the aforesaid powder to be used therein.
Although the aforesaid vivified nitrate of barium powders may be fired in a
granulated state, exactly like ordinary powder, still, as they are somewhat more
sluggish to catch fire, a very small primer of gunpowder or other equivalent quick
explosive is useful in regulating its combustion, and also permits of reducing to a
minimum the percentage of the aforesaid vivifying materials.
Such a primer usefully consists of a small gunpowder charge not exceeding of a
gramme for rifle cartridges, and lodged at the breech end of the cartridge case, and
for cannon, of a gunpowder charge not exceeding 2 per cent. of the weight of the
entire charge, and lodged nearest the touch hole.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to me by
my foreign correspondent, I declare that what I claim is :-
1. Combining with nitrate of barium powder, organic or inorganic vivifying
ingredients, as and for the purpose herein described.
2. Gunpowder composed of nitrate of barium, charcoal, or its equivalent, and
picrate of ammonia, as herein described.
3. Gunpowder composed of nitrate of barium, charcoal, or its equivalent, and
amorphous phosphorus, as herein described.
Dated this 26th day of November 1888.
NEWTON & SON,
Agents for the Applicant.