Contact Explosive
A contact explosive is a chemical substance that explodes violently when it is exposed to a relatively small amount of energy (e.g. friction, pressure, sound, light). Though different contact explosives have varying amounts of energy sensitivity, they are all much more sensitive relative to other kinds of explosives. Contact explosives are a part of a group of explosives called primary explosives, which are also very sensitive to stimuli but not to the degree of contact explosives. The extreme sensitivity of contact explosives is due to either chemical composition, bond type, or structure. Types These are some common contact explosives. Reasons for instability Composition Presence of nitrogen Explosives that are nitrogen-based are incredibly volatile due to the stability of nitrogen in its diatomic state, N2.Senese, Fred. "Why Is Nitroglycerin Explosive?" General Chemistry Online: FAQ: Redox Reactions:. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Oct. 2016. Most organic explosives are explo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Detonating Nitrogen Triiodide
Detonation () is a type of combustion involving a supersonic exothermic front accelerating through a medium that eventually drives a shock front propagating directly in front of it. Detonations propagate supersonically through shock waves with speeds in the range of 1 km/sec and differ from deflagrations which have subsonic flame speeds in the range of 1 m/sec. Detonations occur in both conventional solid and liquid explosives, as well as in reactive gases. The velocity of detonation in solid and liquid explosives is much higher than that in gaseous ones, which allows the wave system to be observed with greater detail (higher resolution). A very wide variety of fuels may occur as gases (e.g. hydrogen), droplet fogs, or dust suspensions. In addition to dioxygen, oxidants can include halogen compounds, ozone, hydrogen peroxide and oxides of nitrogen. Gaseous detonations are often associated with a mixture of fuel and oxidant in a composition somewhat below conventional flammabi ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Fulminate
Fulminates are chemical compounds which include the fulminate ion (). The fulminate ion is a pseudohalic ion because its charge and reactivity are similar to those of the halogens. Due to the instability of the ion, fulminate salts are friction-sensitive explosives. The best known is mercury(II) fulminate, which has been used as a primary explosive in detonators. Fulminates can be formed from metals, such as silver and mercury, dissolved in nitric acid and reacted with ethanol. The weak single nitrogen-oxygen bond is responsible for their instability. Nitrogen very easily forms a stable triple bond to another nitrogen atom, forming nitrogen gas. Historical notes Fulminates were discovered by Edward Charles Howard in 1800. The use of fulminates for firearms was first demonstrated by a Scottish minister, Alexander John Forsyth, who patented his scent-bottle lock in 1807; this was a small container filled with fulminate of mercury. Joshua Shaw determined how to encapsulate the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Oxidizer
An oxidizing agent (also known as an oxidant, oxidizer, electron recipient, or electron acceptor) is a substance in a redox chemical reaction that gains or " accepts"/"receives" an electron from a (called the , , or ). In other words, an oxidizer is any substance that oxidizes another substance. The oxidation state, which describes the degree of loss of electrons, of the oxidizer decreases while that of the reductant increases; this is expressed by saying that oxidizers "undergo reduction" and "are reduced" while reducers "undergo oxidation" and "are oxidized". Common oxidizing agents are oxygen, hydrogen peroxide and the halogens. In one sense, an oxidizing agent is a chemical species that undergoes a chemical reaction in which it gains one or more electrons. In that sense, it is one component in an oxidation–reduction (redox) reaction. In the second sense, an oxidizing agent is a chemical species that transfers electronegative atoms, usually oxygen, to a substrate. C ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Triple Bond
A triple bond in chemistry is a chemical bond between two atoms involving six bonding electrons instead of the usual two in a covalent single bond. Triple bonds are stronger than the equivalent single bonds or double bonds, with a bond order of three. The most common triple bond, that between two carbon atoms, can be found in alkynes. Other functional groups containing a triple bond are cyanides and isocyanides. Some diatomic molecules, such as dinitrogen and carbon monoxide, are also triple bonded. In skeletal formulae the triple bond is drawn as three parallel lines (≡) between the two connected atoms. Bonding The types of bonding can be explained in terms of orbital hybridization. In the case of acetylene each carbon atom has two sp-orbitals and two p-orbitals. The two sp-orbitals are linear with 180° angles and occupy the x-axis (cartesian coordinate system). The p-orbitals are perpendicular on the y-axis and the z-axis. When the carbon atoms approach each other, t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Nitro Compound
In organic chemistry, nitro compounds are organic compounds that contain one or more nitro functional groups (). The nitro group is one of the most common explosophores (functional group that makes a compound explosive) used globally. The nitro group is also strongly electron-withdrawing. Because of this property, bonds alpha (adjacent) to the nitro group can be acidic. For similar reasons, the presence of nitro groups in aromatic compounds retards electrophilic aromatic substitution but facilitates nucleophilic aromatic substitution. Nitro groups are rarely found in nature. They are almost invariably produced by nitration reactions starting with nitric acid. Synthesis Preparation of aromatic nitro compounds Aromatic nitro compounds are typically synthesized by nitration. Nitration is achieved using a mixture of nitric acid and sulfuric acid, which produce the nitronium ion (), which is the electrophile: + The nitration product produced on the l ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Nitrogen
Nitrogen is the chemical element with the symbol N and atomic number 7. Nitrogen is a nonmetal and the lightest member of group 15 of the periodic table, often called the pnictogens. It is a common element in the universe, estimated at seventh in total abundance in the Milky Way and the Solar System. At standard temperature and pressure, two atoms of the element bond to form N2, a colorless and odorless diatomic gas. N2 forms about 78% of Earth's atmosphere, making it the most abundant uncombined element. Nitrogen occurs in all organisms, primarily in amino acids (and thus proteins), in the nucleic acids ( DNA and RNA) and in the energy transfer molecule adenosine triphosphate. The human body contains about 3% nitrogen by mass, the fourth most abundant element in the body after oxygen, carbon, and hydrogen. The nitrogen cycle describes the movement of the element from the air, into the biosphere and organic compounds, then back into the atmosphere. Many indus ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Silver Nitride
Silver nitride is an explosive chemical compound with symbol Ag3N. It is a black, metallic-looking solid which is formed when silver oxide or silver nitrate, is dissolved in concentrated solutions of ammonia, causing formation of the diammine silver complex which subsequently breaks down to Ag3N. The standard free energy of the compound is about +315 kJ/mol, making it an endothermic compound which decomposes explosively to metallic silver and nitrogen gas. History Silver nitride was formerly referred to as fulminating silver, but this can cause confusion with silver fulminate or silver azide, other compounds which have also been referred to by this name. The fulminate and azide compounds do not form from ammoniacal solutions of Ag2O. Fulminating silver was first prepared in 1788 by the French chemist Claude Louis Berthollet.See: * Berthollet (1788"Procéde pour rendre la chaux d'argent fulminante"(Procedure for making fulminating silver chalk), ''Observations sur la physique' ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Armstrong's Mixture
Armstrong's mixture is a highly sensitive primary explosive. It is very friction-sensitive. Formulations vary, but one consists of 67% potassium chlorate, 27% red phosphorus, 3% sulfur, and 3% calcium carbonate. It is named for Sir William Armstrong, who invented it sometime prior to 1872 for use in explosive shells. Toys Armstrong's mixture can be used as ammunition for toy cap guns. The mixture is suspended in water with some gum arabic or similar binder and deposited in drops, each containing a few milligrams of explosive, to dry between layers of paper backing. The dots explode with some smoke when struck. Armstrong's mixture can be used in impact firecrackers known as ''cap torpedoes'', which explode on impact when the ball (made of clay or papier-mâché) is thrown or launched by slingshot. The firecrackers may include gravel with the explosive mixture to ensure detonation. Military use With the addition of a grit such as boron carbide (in a modified formulation ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Flash Powder
Flash powder is a pyrotechnic composition, a mixture of oxidizer and metallic fuel, which burns quickly and produces a loud noise regardless of confinement. It is widely used in theatrical pyrotechnics and fireworks (namely salutes, e.g., cherry bombs, M-80s, firecrackers, and cap gun shots) and was once used for flashes in photography. Different varieties of flash powder are made from different compositions; most common are potassium perchlorate and aluminium powder. Sometimes, sulfur is included in the mixture to increase the sensitivity. Early formulations used potassium chlorate instead of potassium perchlorate. Flash powder compositions are also used in military pyrotechnics when production of large amount of noise, light, or infrared radiation is required, e.g., missile decoy flares and stun grenades. History Lycopodium powder is a yellow-tan dust-like powder historically used as a flash powder. Today, the principal use of the powder is to create flashes or flames t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tetrasulfur Tetranitride
Tetrasulfur tetranitride is an inorganic compound with the formula . This gold-poppy coloured solid is the most important binary sulfur nitride, which are compounds that contain only the elements sulfur and nitrogen. It is a precursor to many S-N compounds and has attracted wide interest for its unusual structure and bonding. Nitrogen and sulfur have similar electronegativities. When the properties of atoms are so highly similar, they often form extensive families of covalently bonded structures and compounds. Indeed, a large number of S-N and S-NH compounds are known with as their parent. Structure adopts an unusual “extreme cradle” structure, with D2d point group symmetry. It can be viewed as a derivative of a (hypothetical) eight-membered ring (or more simply a 'deformed' eight-membered ring) of alternating sulfur and nitrogen atoms. The pairs of sulfur atoms across the ring are separated by 2.586 Å, resulting in a cage-like structure as determined by single crystal ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Picric Acid
Picric acid is an organic compound with the formula (O2N)3C6H2OH. Its IUPAC name is 2,4,6-trinitrophenol (TNP). The name "picric" comes from el, πικρός (''pikros''), meaning "bitter", due to its bitter taste. It is one of the most acidic phenols. Like other strongly nitrated organic compounds, picric acid is an explosive, which is its primary use. It has also been used as medicine (antiseptic, burn treatments) and as a dye. History Picric acid was probably first mentioned in the alchemical writings of Johann Rudolf Glauber. Initially, it was made by nitrating substances such as animal horn, silk, indigo, and natural resin, the synthesis from indigo first being performed by Peter Woulfe during 1771. The German chemist Justus von Liebig had named picric acid (rendered in French as ). Picric acid was given that name by the French chemist Jean-Baptiste Dumas in 1841. Its synthesis from phenol, and the correct determination of its formula, were accomplished during 1841. ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |