Black powder

Black powder in a glass jar

Black powder, also known as gunpowder, is the earliest known chemical explosive. It consists of a mixture of sulfur, carbon (in the form of charcoal) and potassium nitrate (saltpetre or saltpeter). The sulfur and carbon act as fuels while the saltpetre is an oxidizer. Gunpowder has been widely used as a propellant in firearms, artillery, rocketry, and pyrotechnics, including use as a blasting agent for explosives in quarrying, mining, and road building.

Ignition of gunpowder packed behind a projectile generates enough pressure to force the shot from the muzzle at high speed, but usually not enough force to rupture the gun barrel. It thus makes a good propellant, but is less suitable for shattering rock or fortifications with its low-yield explosive power. Nonetheless it was widely used to fill fused artillery shells (and used in mining and civil engineering projects) until the first high explosives were put into use.

the exact chemical mix varies but the widely accepted best and most efficient is 75% saltpetre (potassium nitrate) 15% charcoal 10% sulfur. The mixing and constancy of the gun powder is important generally the finer the individual particles are the higher performance.

Materials used

Saltpeter (potassium nitrate)

Softwood charcoal

Sulfur

Crafting method

Mix 75% potassium nitrate (known as saltpeter or saltpetre), 15% softwood charcoal, and 10% sulfur. Keep away from open flame

Uses

Gun powder is classified as a low explosive, as the shockwave it produces is slower than the speed of sound (called deflagration, as opposed to explosion, for shockwaves faster than the speed of sound). This made it ideal for use in firearms, where a high explosive would damage the weapons and potentially the user. It has also been used in mining and excavation, as blasting powder, but was replaced by high explosives in this regard.

Dependencies

• Saltpeter
  • Black powder

Attached Mathematics/Physics

• Trigonometry
• Dimensional Analysis
• Pyrotechnics
• Energetics

See also

• Dynamite
• Fire
• Nitroglycerin
• Explosives
• Smokeless powder

References

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Gunpowder, which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License (view authors).