Seidlitz powder

“ In addition to the difference in chemical composition of these Schultze powders, I would point out that there is a difference in density—the Blissett being heaviest, the Bland next, and the New the lightest of the three. I think this fact also has some bearing on the violence of the explosion. In black powders, I believe, a dense powder, speaking generally, is stronger than a lighter one; and the Schultze patent states that hard woods make more explosive powders—not, I take it, because the composition is thereby altered, but because a denser powder is produced. ”

“ Distillation proceeds quietly and uniformly, the fire being regulated according to how the ether runs off from the worm. Such uniform distillation is, however, only attained by the use of the sodium acetate in the form of powder, and thoroughly mixing it with the acid. If large pieces of the salt are present or the powdered salt balls together, the formation of ether sometimes takes [Pg 203] place so suddenly that the vapors cannot condense in the cooling apparatus, but escape violently, or if they cannot escape rapidly from the condenser, may even burst the apparatus. ”

“ Care must be taken that all the dry ingredients be finely pulverised, and that the harder and gritty ones be reduced to the state of an impalpable powder, either by levigation or elutriation. The mixture of the ingredients must also be complete. This is the most readily effected by stirring them well together until they form an apparently homogeneous powder, and then passing this powder through a very fine sieve. Those which contain volatile substances should be preserved in closely corked wide-mouth bottles, and those which contain acidulous or gritty matter should not be frequently employed. ”

“ This powder explodes even when moist, if struck with a hard body. When dry, the slightest friction will explode it. Its detonation is owing to the same cause as that producing the explosion of the other preparation of this metal, as it is also composed of oxide of silver and ammonia.
The fulminating silver of Chenevix explodes only by [175] a slight friction in contact with combustible substances. It is nothing more than chlorate of silver. It is formed by passing chlorine gas through alumina, diffused in water, and afterwards digesting, in the liquor, some phosphate of silver. ”

“ With respect to the granulation of powder, we may observe, that although some writers consider that granulated powder is stronger than the fine powder, yet others are of opinion, that its strength is not increased by granulation. Grained powder is more fit for use; but the graining of it prevents the whole of the powder from taking fire instantaneously. Gunpowder, although prepared in the best manner, is not wholly consumed by inflammation. ”

“ The centre space of the floor, about thirty-six feet square, was sunk four feet to allow water from the canal to pass around the bottoms of two of the large evaporating pans, which were placed therein near the centre of this area, and nine feet apart; these were used for a special purpose.
The best quality of gunpowder can only be made from the purest [p13] saltpetre; the impurities of the crude material are mainly deliquescent salts, which rapidly deteriorate the strength of the powder by the moisture absorbed. ”

“ All powder, whether it is intended for blasting, hunting, rifle-shooting, or warfare purposes, is made in the same general way, and so, in telling of a visit I recently made to the Du Pont Works, near Wilmington, I shall reveal no secrets if I describe the various mills and processes which practically all powder goes through before it is finished. Ordinary powder is composed of three ingredients—saltpetre, sulphur, and charcoal, or nitrate of soda, sulphur, and charcoal. Powder intended for blasting is generally made with soda; powder intended for shooting is generally made with saltpetre. ”

“ The present German powder is made from such a compound of tri-nitro-cellulose and soluble nitro-cellulose.
Nevertheless, this compound is a makeshift as compared with the nitro-cellulose used by this Government. Ours is a far better explosive, and is less erosive on the guns, because the gases which it generates are not so hot. We have the best smokeless powder in the world, and, after this war is over, our powder will be universally used. ”

“ If a portion of powder be mixed with distilled water, the water will dissolve only the saline substances, leaving the charcoal and sulphur. When the whole is thrown on a filter, the fluid, which passes through, will contain the saltpetre, and foreign salts, if any are present. The same experiments may then be performed with the solution, and the quality of the nitre, of which the gunpowder was made, be determined. Some gunpowder absorbs a large portion of water, which is owing to the presence of deliquescent salts. ”

“ Potassium sulphide (K2S) is a solid substance, and it is largely due to it that gunpowder gives off smoke and soot when it explodes. Smokeless powder consists of organic substances which, on explosion, give only colorless gases, and hence produce no smoke. Sodium nitrate is cheaper than potassium nitrate, but it is not adapted to the manufacture of the best grades of powder, since it is somewhat deliquescent and does not give up its oxygen so readily as does potassium nitrate. ”

“ If the acidity does not fall within these limits it must be corrected by soaking the powder before chroming for twenty minutes in ten to twelve times its weight of water, to which the requisite calculated quantity of standard alkali or acid has been added. The hide powder must not swell in chroming to such an extent as to render difficult the necessary squeezing to 70-75 per cent. of water, and must be sufficiently free from soluble organic matter to render it possible in the ordinary washing to reduce the total solubles in a blank experiment with distilled water below 0.005 gm per 100 c.c. ”

“ However, powder is usually effective only on objects which have a hard, smooth, nonabsorbent surface, such as glass, tile, and various types of highly polished metals and is usually not effective on absorbent materials, such as paper or unfinished wood or metal, which absorb perspiration so that there is nothing on the material’s surface to which the powder can adhere. ”

“ THE POWDER STILL WORSE
So much for the liquid. The powder seems to be something entirely different, for, according to the chemist’s report, over 90 per cent. of it is inert, absorbent, talcum-like material. There is enough camphor and carbolic acid to give the powder an odor and thus mislead physicians, especially those who are in the habit of taking for granted that whatever statements nostrum manufacturers make are true. ”

“ Let cool, grind the turbid mass obtained, and pour a little coal benzine or petroleum benzine over it in a flask. By repeated shaking of the flask the soluble portion of the molten mass is dissolved; filter after allowing to settle; into the filtrate put 300 to 400 parts of bronze powder of any desired shade, the brocades being especially well adapted for this purpose. If the metallic powder remains distributed over the mass for a long time it is of the right consistency; if it deposits quickly it is too thin and a part of the solvent must be evaporated before stirring in the bronze powder. ”

“ The powder-making facilities created during the war by the DuPont Powder Company near Wilmington, for instance, almost at once after the armistice turned to the manufacture of dyestuffs. Another war powder plant, with practically the same machinery, is to-day producing artificial silk, a cellulose commodity similar in chemical composition to smokeless powder. A third is making celluloid and artificial ivory ”

“ But this classification is very rough; because although some of the better known purely military powders are not suited for use in sporting guns, nearly all the manufacturers of sporting powders also manufacture a special variety of their particular explosive, fitted for use in modern rifles or machine guns, and occasionally, it is claimed, for big guns also.
Of the purely military powders, the best known are cordite, ballistite, and the French B.N. powder, the German smokeless (which contains nitro- glycerine and nitro-cotton) ”

“ It is equally evident that in the construction of compound medicinal powders, the addition of an inert ingredient, which the mere chemist might condemn and discard as useless, not unfrequently acts a very important part in the combination, owing to its effects in dividing and comminuting the mere active constituents: the sulphate of potass in Dover’s powder acts merely in dividing and mixing more intimately the particles of opium and ipecacuan: the phosphate of lime appears to act in the same mechanical manner in the Antimonial Powder ”

“ As charcoal enters into the composition of gunpowder, and the effective force of powder depends considerably on the quality, as well as the proportion of charcoal, it is obvious for this purpose, it should be as pure as possible.
Carbon is always obtained from some of its combinations, as from pitch, tar, rosin, wood, and oil. Various processes are employed for this purpose. Thus, by the combustion of rosin and oil, as well as pitch, tar, turpentine, &c. a soot is [90] formed that collects, called lampblack, which is nothing more than the carbon or charcoal. ”

“ Notwithstanding the repeated trials and experiments made by the greatest artists, to add to the strength of gun-powder, all have proved without success, and most of them have agreed that the present powder will not admit of a fourth ingredient; therefore it is evident, that any thing being mixed with the present composition of gun-powder, would rather reduce it’s strength than add to it; consequently coloured powder must be weaker than black; so that the making of powder of different colours, is only a fancy that serves to please the curious, without any other effect. ”

“ Comparative merits of foreign and English gunpowder.The Continental powder is usually very soft in [22] its grain, dusty, and quickly absorbs moisture from the atmosphere; its density is below the English powder, on account of its never being subjected to pressure; consequently it is not so durable, and forms a good deal of dust in transport; a great amount of residue is generally left in the gun, and its strength, as a propelling agent, is far inferior to our powders. ”

“ Frit of silica powder, borax, feldspar, fused together, and then ground with clay, feldspar, and magnesia.
The approximate quantities of each constituent will be given later, but it must always be remembered that no hard-and-fast line can be laid down. Chemicals vary in purity, the furnaces vary in temperature, the pounding, grinding, and mixing are not always done alike, and each of these exerts a certain influence on the character of the “melt.” These compositions may be applied to the metal either in the form of a powder or of a liquid. ”

“ When the powder is newly made, or 'green,' the solvent is given off rapidly; but as the percentage of the solvent in the mass is reduced, it volatilizes less rapidly and comes off less freely. When the solvent is reduced to about 10 per cent., this closed-circuit process is discontinued and the drying of the powder is completed in the ordinary drying houses. ”

“ Attempts have been made to impart a progressive combustion to ordinary black powder, by using in the outer layers of the same, saltpetre crystals of larger size than in the inner layer, but in this way the desired result will not be obtained, owing to the fact that the larger crystals make the product more porous, and as the quickness of combustion of powder increases with the porosity of the same, it will easily happen that a result is obtained which is contrary to the one sought for. ”

“ It consists of a mixture of nitro-cellulose, paraffin, barium, nitrate, and some other ingredients. It is claimed for this powder that it combines hard shooting with safety, great penetration, and moderate strain on the gun. It is hard and tough in grain, and may be loaded like black powder, and subjected to hard friction without breaking into powder, that it is smokeless, and leaves no residue in the gun. The charge for 12 bores is 42 grains by weight, and 1-1/8 oz. ”

“ The excellent preservative qualities of English and American powders are largely due to their high densities,—the standard being about 1.75. A certain degree of density is absolutely essential to grain powder to prevent the inflamed gases from penetrating the pores of the powder and flashing off the whole mass to the destruction of the gun. In the manufacture of powder the density depends, first, upon the amount of trituration to which the ingredients are subjected in the incorporating mill ”

“ This powder is extracted with petroleum spirit, and the solution shaken with water containing a trace of copper acetate. If rosin be present, the petroleum spirit will be coloured emerald-green.
Borax, soda crystals, and ammonia are all used to dissolve shellac, and it may be asked: Which of these is least injurious to wool? and why? How is their action modified by the presence of dilute sulphuric acid in the wool? I would say that soda crystals and ammonia are alkalis, and if used strong, are sure to do a certain amount of injury to the fibre of wool, and more if used hot than cold. ”

“ It is claimed that this powder is entirely smokeless and flameless, that it does not foul the gun nor heat the barrel, and is at the same time 150 per cent. stronger than black powder.
The German "Troisdorf" powder consists of nitro-cellulose that has been gelatinised together with a nitrate. Kolf's powder is also gelatinised with nitro-cellulose. The powders invented by Mr E.J. Ryves contain nitro- glycerine, nitro-cotton, castor-oil, paper-pulp, and carbonate of magnesia. Maxim powder contains both soluble and insoluble nitro- cellulose, nitro-glycerine, and carbonate of soda. ”