Sorry for the double topic but I was feeling laxy.

I was wondering:

1) straight after producing nitroglycerine mixing with kieselguhr/infosurial earth in the appropriate ratio (which I have) results in Guhr Dynamite. How fine does the kieselguhr have to be? what is the ratio just in case it differs from mine for some of you? how is the mixing done. Please guide me straight after nitroglycerine synthesis what to do. Since I have never made nitroglycerine any cautionary advice would be MUCH APPRECIATED - I value MY LIFE. Guhr Dynamite obviously needs blasting cap to detonate right? Any comments and your experiences if any with Guhr dynamite would be much appreciated

2) I will try mixing 78% pottassium chlorate with 22% nitrobenzene to get binary which detonates at 3500m/s. Any comments on the sensitivity/texture/handling properties/incompatibilities of this mixture would be much appreciated. What type of detonator required to detonate this cheddite?

The ammount of kieselguhr to NG depends on how strong you want the dynamite, I think you should use at least 40% NG (most common dynamite strength IIRC), 60% would be more brisant, above that you may have trouble getting all the NG to be absorbed.

I didn't have any kieselguhr so I used powdered AN, I think I made 60% dynamite and all the NG was not absorbed and some would seperate. Although I did not mix it very thoroughly (weary of NG).

I used less than a half inch tall column of AP pressed lightly into a section of plastic biro tube. It was less than you would get into a .22 case. Dynamite is pretty sensitive.

I had tried long ago mixing a similar explosive but I used the ratio of 25%NB and 75% chlorate,but I found undetonated residues in portions of the container.which I found later that it was not right(20/80 is the recommended which I realized in another tests).I was able to detonate it with normal no8 blasting cap but.I think your mixture should be satisfactory. You should use a strong blasting cap in order to get optimum results.This binary is not that critical if you do not store it long.To prepare it measure first your chlorate then place in a suitable container,press it tight;then measure a required amount of nitrobenzene and pour it on top of the powder and and let it absorb.When fully absorbed if the container containing it is slanted horizontally,the contents will not move and no lquid should ooze out..Total absorption time should be done within half an hour.You can then use as desired.

[This message has been edited by cutefix (edited August 28, 2001).]

I find a similar mixture of 80% NaClO3 and 20% MNN to be surprisingly sensitive to shock. Not dangerously so, but more so than I would have expected. It is increased even more by the addition of a few % of Al powder (I never weighed the Al, I just sprinkled some in), instead of some of the MNN. This detonates reliably from 0.5 grams of PETN, which is roughly a #8 I think. It is considerably more sensitive to shock than the vaseline mixture. Also you can make a sort of castable plastique with it: I took 12.5 grams of the above mixture, and kneaded in about 1 gram of vaseline and a few drops of lubricating oil, and it formed a plastic blob (the chlorate must be ball-milled). You can squeeze this into a container and warm it to 60*C, and the MNN will melt and recrystalise, forming a fairly hard solid. I expect it to have a low VoD (c. 2.5 -> 3 km/s), but it's fun and easy to make.

The particle size of the chlorate was one factor .I have tried a few times finely ground chlorate in other formulation and its more sensitive.Therefore the more surface area exposed to the fuel the more intimate the mixture will become,and more easier to initiate to detonation, and is a critical factor for improving sensitivity.In those trials I made with chlorate I used mostly the fine free flowing material direct from the bottle.I had tried also with sodium chlorate but I find that potassium chlorate is better for me.This sodium salt is somewhat hygroscopic and prone to lumping in humid area where I live before.I even experienced a misfire with that sodium salt,even with the no 8 cap.
I think humidity was the factor with that sodium chlorate based explosives.A farmer I know who makes his own explosives for( stump removal and rock blasting) with sodium chlorate but lived in a drier region was able to set off his explosives reliably with a smaller blasting caps.

I had tried long ago mixing a similar explosive but I used the ratio of 25%NB and 75% chlorate


Where did you get nitrobenzene?

Nitrobenzene is used in gun cleaning fluids. I don't know where you would get
it in pure form. IIRC, nitrobenzene mixed with KClO3 is a Sprengel type
explosive called rackarock.

Nitrobenzene is used in gun cleaning fluids.

Wasn't it banned due to its toxicity? IIRC 0,5g is enough to kill.

Last time I sniffed, amyl acetate was the solvent in my Hoppes #9. The MSDS lists "trade secret ingredients" and "organic ester" however-
http://www.sandersresearch.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=873&Itemid=67

Can I instead KCLO3 use KMnO4 in the rackarock explosive?

:rolleyes:

...........................

Who resurrects a five year old thread to ask "Where did you get nitrobenzene?", honestly.....

I thought the resurrection of dead threads like this without adding something new or of interest to the topic was an offense punishable by HED???

Playing with your food again eh', NBK....:p

Better they bring up an old thread, than create a new one. :)

What about soybean oil and potassium chlorate ???
Maybe mixed with some paraffin and Al powder....

I think it would be powerful enough (4 km/s or even more) and not pretty sensitive... and it wouldn't be toxic like rack a rock

(4 km/h or even more)

So you can walk away from it? :p
Read what you wrote sometime:D or explain your post to me at least since I have certainly lost you on that one.

Sorry I mean 4km/s not per hour...
4 km/s = 4,000m/s

I have found nitroglycerin to be a big headache - literally. Even the vapors are nasty. Recomend against the Guhr dynamite unless you have a manufacturing facility that does not require you handling the stuff.

The finer the ingrediants, the faster the detonation. Some become easier to detonate, but others became very difficult to initiate into detonation.

Using (90%) KClO3 with (10%) vaseoline, the velocity increases with density, which is related to particle size and loading pressure, until it reaches a critical density, where it becomes insenitive even to PETN or RDX boosters. I understand that this, and uniformity of the mixture, are the problems with most Cheddites and related explosives. In WW1, the Germans added sulfur to Carbonit (bombs & grenades) to make it more cap sensitive. You may try this to sensitize some mixtures.

You may want to add 0.5% lecithin (find in health food stores) to slow down the recrystralization of the chlorate. Semtex today eliminates lecithin from its formulation to reduce diversion to terrorists - it hardens like concrete after a year or two. KClO3 & vaseoline will harden in about two weeks without lecithin.