Nitro Compounds

Matthew Fontaine, Colin Pollard

Early Explosives
Gunpowder
-Originally created in China, black powder is among the first man-made explosives.

-The first records were found in the 11th century, under the Song Dynasty, detailing
the early recipe for the weak explosive.

-The carbon in gunpowder was in the form of wood charcoal and gives the powder its
black color.

-Gunpowder was originally used for firecrackers and fireworks but later was used for
more violent purposes.

-Following the Chinese creation of the explosive, it remained largely a secret of the
dynasty, until it spread to much of the Muslim world and parts of Europe.
Application of Black Powder
-First used for pyrotechnics and entertainment, firecrackers, and various types of
fireworks were greatly popular

-Soon after, it was largely used for warfare, Black powder was used in the first
chemical-propelled weapons, starting with early versions of cannons, as well as flaming
projectiles of any and all sorts.

-The destructive properties of gunpowder were quickly known, however blackpowder

based explosives were not largely used, as the low velocity made them rather
ineffective for demolition.
Chemical Composition
-Early records of gunpowder, use the formula of: Seven parts saltpeter, five parts
charcoal, and five parts sulfur.

-The burn time of gunpowder can be controlled by how fine or coarse the gunpowder
is (the finer the powder, the faster the burn).

-This recipe changed over time, and to adapt to different uses, for example, the
Chinese reportedly used “Fire Projectors” that siphoned a less volatile gunpowder to
use as an incendiary towards other craft, and towards soldiers.
Gunpowder’s Signature
-Explosives get their power from two factors, expansion of gas formed, and the heat generated

-Gunpowder when burned produces a relatively large amount of gas, however it is slow moving, and does not do extreme damage
at distance.

-When gunpowder is burned it generates Potassium Carbonate and Potassium Sulfide, both of which are dispersed into the air in
tiny particles, creating the legendary black smoke.
Explosive Power and Chemistry
Explosive Chemistry - Shock Waves and Heat
-The destructive power of an explosion is due to the shock wave caused by a very rapid
increase in volume of gases formed.

-The shock wave produced by gunpowder travels approximately 100 meters/sec, for
high explosives, the shock wave travels around 6,000 meters/sec.

-A high temperature increases the volume of gas and therefore makes an explosion
more powerful.

-The heat of an explosion can be attributed to the large difference in energy between
the products and reactants of the chemical equation.
Explosive Chemistry - Speed
-For explosions to occur, a lot of oxygen is needed, more
than is available quick enough from the surrounding
atmosphere.

-To achieve sufficient oxygen levels for an explosion,

C7H7NO2
oxygen must be present in the molecule that is exploding.

-The binding of nitrogen and oxygen is often explosive

(nitro groups).
Properties of Explosions
-Explosions give off a lot of heat (highly exothermic).

-Explosions create gases.

-Explosions must be extremely rapid.

 Chemistry of Nitro Compounds
-The explosiveness of a nitrated molecule depends on the number of nitro groups
attached.
Nitroglycerin
-Advances in explosives developed in the 19th century when an Italian chemist, Ascanio Sobrero
created nitroglycerin.

-After creating the nitroglycerin, he tasted the unfamiliar compound and described it:

“A trace placed on the tongue but not swallowed gives rise to a most pulsating, violent headache,
accompanied by great weakness of the limbs.”

-Nowadays, nitroglycerin is used to treat angina

pectoris (chest pain) by dilating the blood vessels

supply the heart muscle with adequate blood flow.

War and Explosives
-Dynamite could not be used to fire projectiles as it was too powerful.

-Picric acid was often used as a propellant for projectiles.

Pros
It was a more powerful propellant than ConsBeing an acid, it reacts with metals and
gunpowder. becomes very shock sensitive.

It didn’t produce black smoke. It was difficult to detonate when it was wet.

Safe to handle. Sometimes lead to misfiring.

Allowed for quick loading.

-TNT was a more practical explosive for munitions.

The Haber Process
-During WWI, Germany lost their supply of sodium nitrate from Chile due to a British naval
blockade.

-Fritz Haber was a German chemist who developed a process for synthesizing ammonia by
combining nitrogen from the air with hydrogen gas.

-Ammonia was crucial during WWI because it was needed to create nitric acid which is used in
explosives.

-Fritz Haber won the nobel prize for chemistry in 1918. It was controversial.
Alfred Nobel and Dyno Nobel
-Born in 1833, Alfred Bernard Nobel revolutionized the mining
industry.

-Previous to his invention, nitroglycerin burned slowly due to its

detonation based on a traditional fuse, but more importantly,
was incredibly difficult to safely set off, making it largely
unusable.

-Nobel’s idea was to use a small charge of blackpowder to set off

a much larger charge of nitroglycerin very quickly.
The Problem Transport Explosion

Nobel Factory Explosion

Nitroglycerin is very
Emil volatile, which by design is very helpful for exploding rocks,
buildings, people you don’t like etc. But this makes it very difficult to handle without
mass casualties, even in the form of dynamite, early versions still wreaked havoc.
Warehouse Explosion SS European
Nobel Factory Explosion The First major explosion, involved five factory workers
Emil at Nobel’s Factory,
In another
170 Tons which
case, prompted
a Wells Fargohim to move his
warehouse
labratory onto pontoons
improperly handledon In another
theLake instance,
in 1866aSan
Mälaren.
explosives transport
Francisco. carrying a large load of explosives was
accidentally oiled with nitroglycerin
oil...

Notice A Pattern?
 ● Germany and Belgium banned
nitroglycerin
● Nitroglycerin had the tendency
to leak a volatile acid, and eat
More Problems away its zinc container
● Due to its slow composition, it
created a small pressure over
time that popped open
containers
 Nobel realized the inherent instability
of the material, and first proposed
solidification in order to keep the
same energy, but lower volatility.
Initial attempts included mixing with

The Solution sawdust, cement and powdered

charcoal. In his research, he came
across a material substituted for
Stabilization
sawdust, kieselguhr. Once added 1
part to every 2 nitroglycerin oil, it
formed a putty he dubbed dynamite,
after the greek word for power.
Kieselguhr (Diatomaceous earth)
● Commonly used as a natural pesticide, kieselguhr is made from the fossilized
skeletons of aqueous creatures, called diatoms, a hard shelled algae.
● The material is particularly good at absorbing oils, lipids, and fats, making it a potent
killer to small insects, but leaves humans unaffected unless inhaled.
● Diatoms are commonly referred

to as light brown algae, and glass shelled

algae, due to their silica based shells.

Nobel’s Fortune and Philosophy
Nobel considered himself a pacifist, despite his massive wealth originating from
munitions, and explosives. He believed that eventually, if a terrible enough weapon
was invented, it could “scare” the world into peace, however he died long before the
conception of nuclear weapons, in 1896.

“[The fact that Nobel] was also a pacifist may seem a contradiction, but then Nobel’s
whole life was full of contradictions. As a child he was sickly and was not expected to
live to adulthood, but he outlasted his parents and brothers. He has been described in
somewhat paradoxical terms as shy, extremely considerate, obsessed by his work,
highly suspicious, lonely, and very charitable” (98).
Nobel’s Fortune and Philosophy Cont.
Nobel and his fortune later went on to found
the Nobel Prize, as detailed in his will. He
allocated 94% of his fortune to the new
organization, to give prizes to those who give
“the greatest benefit to mankind” in areas of
Chemistry, Physics, Physiology, as well as Peace,
Literature, and Medicine. To this day 579 prizes
have been awarded, four of which were to US
presidents. Nobel’s company is modernly
known as Dyno Nobel, and has the regional
headquarters in Salt Lake City.