Amatol Amatol is a highly explosive material made from a mixture of TNT and ammonium nitrate . The British name originates from the words ammonium and toluene ( a raw material of TNT ) . Similar mixtures were known as Schneiderite in France . Amatol was used extensively during World War I and World War II , typically as an explosive in military weapons such as aircraft bomb s , shells , depth charge s , and naval mine s . It was eventually replaced with alternative explosives such as composition B , torpex , and tritonal . Manufacture and use . Amatol exploits synergy between TNT and ammonium nitrate . TNT has higher explosive velocity and brisance , but is deficient in oxygen . Oxygen deficiency causes black smoke residue from a pure TNT explosion . The oxygen surplus of ammonium nitrate increases the energy release of TNT during detonation . Depending on the ratio of ingredients used , amatol leaves a residue of white or grey smoke after detonation . Amatol has a lower explosive velocity and correspondingly lower brisance than TNT but is cheaper to make . Amatol allowed supplies of TNT to be expanded considerably , with little reduction in the destructive power of the final product , so long as the amount of TNT in the mixture did not fall below 60 % . Mixtures containing as little as 20 % TNT were for less demanding uses . It must be remembered that TNT is 50 % deficient in oxygen . Amatol is oxygen balanced and is therefore more effective than pure TNT when exploding underground or underwater . RDX is also has a negative oxygen balance . Oxygen balanced filaments also have application for nuclear weapon s ; the Hiroshima bomb " Little Boy " used amatol . Relatively unsophisticated cannery equipment can be adapted to amatol production . TNT is gently heated with steam or hot water until it melts , acquiring the physical characteristics of a syrup . Then the correct weight ratio of powdered ammonium nitrate is added and mixed in . Whilst this mixture is still in a molten state , it is poured into empty bomb casings and allowed to cool and solidify . However , the lowest grades of amatol could not be produced by casting molten TNT . Instead , flaked TNT was thoroughly mixed with powdered ammonium nitrate and then compressed or extruded . The colour of amatol ranges from off - white to slightly yellow or pinkish brown , depending on the mixture used and remains soft for long periods of storage . It is also hygroscopic , which complicates long - term storage . To prevent moisture problems , amatol charges were coated with a thin layer of pure molten TNT or alternatively bitumen . Long - term storage was rare during wars because munitions charged with amatol were generally used soon after manufacture . Amatol should not be stored in containers made from copper or brass , as it can form unstable compounds sensitive to vibration . Pressed , it is relatively insensitive but may be detonated by severe impact , whereas when cast , it is extremely insensitive . Primary explosives such as mercury fulminate were often used as a detonator , in combination with an explosive booster charge such as tetryl . The explosive charges hidden in HMS " Campbeltown " during the St . Nazaire Raid of 1942 contained amatol . The British X class midget submarine s which planted explosive charges beneath the German battleship " Tirpitz " in September 1943 carried two " saddle charges " containing four Long ton of amatol . Warheads for the German V - 1 flying bomb and V - 2 rocket s also contained amatol . A derivative of amatol is amatex , consisting of 51 % ammonium nitrate , 40 % TNT , and 9 % RDX . Ammonite . Amatol is rare today , except in legacy munitions or unexploded ordnance . A form of amatol exists under a different name — ammonite . Ammonite is a civilian explosive , generally comprising a 20 / 80 mixture of TNT and ammonium nitrate . Typically , it is used for quarrying or mining purposes . It is a popular civil engineering explosive in Eastern Europe and China . Because the proportion of TNT is significantly lower than in its military counterpart , ammonite has much less destructive power ; given ammonite ' s use , this is not a problem . In general , a 30 kilogram charge of ammonite is roughly equivalent to 20 kilograms of TNT . Amatol , the town . Amatol was the name given to a munitions factory and planned community built by the United States government in Mullica Township , New Jersey during World War I . After the war , the town was dismantled . The Atlantic City Speedway was built on part of the Amatol site in 1926 .