Patent ID: 6982015

Claim:
A method of reducing the energy of an emulsion blasting agent as it is being loaded into a borehole comprising the steps of: a) selecting an emulsion blasting agent comprising an aqueous inorganic oxidizer salt solution forming in droplet form a discontinuous phase and an organic liquid fuel forming a continuous phase; b) conveying the emulsion blasting agent; c) adding an energy-reducing agent to the emulsion blasting agent as it is being conveyed wherein the energy reducing agent is selected from the group consisting of water and aqueous solutions; d) mixing the energy-reducing agent uniformly and homogeneously into the emulsion blasting agent to form a second discontinuous phase in an amount of from about 5% to about 22.5% by weight of the emulsion blasting agent; e) adding gassing agents to the emulsion blasting agent to reduce its density and increase its sensitivity; and f) loading the conveyed emulsion blasting agent into a borehole.