Ammonal
Ammonal (compound name from Ammon iumnitrat and Al uminium) is a proven explosives based on ammonium nitrate and aluminum , which was invented in 1900 by two chemists simultaneously and independently. The aluminum content in the explosive varies between 4% and 25% and is adapted to the respective requirements of the blast.
history
In 1899 Ernst Richard Escales from Munich received the corresponding English patent No. 24377 and the Belgian patent No. 145599 in the name of Wenghöffer and in 1900 Hans Ritter von Dahmen received the German Reich patent DRP No. 172327 and the English patent for ammonium No. 16277 obtained.
Both inventors redesigned the conventional ammonium nitrate explosives by adding aluminum. Chapman, who used magnesium in bang sentences in 1888, is considered to be the forerunner of this idea . As early as 1897, Deissler proposed the use of the light metal aluminum as a component for explosives. He was followed by Goldschmidt, Escales, von Dahmen and Roth. In later years Kast researched military explosives containing aluminum.
The following metals have also been suggested as additives to explosives: magnesium, zinc, silicon, as well as ferrosilicon, aluminosilicon and calcium silicide . In contrast to aluminum, however, these metals and alloys rarely found their way into the practice of explosives.
The aluminum generates much more heat during detonation, and the ability of the explosives to initiate is greatly improved. But that doesn't mean that ammonal is easy to detonate. A sufficiently strong initial charge is required to initiate the detonation , so it is also a safe explosive.
Hans Ritter von Dahmen has to be called the inventor of ammonal, since only he was able to secure a large use of his intellectual product. Hans Ritter von Dahmen founded or managed several explosives factories in Germany before he moved to Austria in 1896 and there, with the help of the G. Roth AG company, fully developed the ammonium. The company G. Roth in Vienna and Hans Ritter von Dahmen have received patents on the ammonal in most countries.
The main areas of application for ammonal were mining and war technology. Although ammonal was invented as early as 1900, its use in larger quantities did not begin until 1909, when its production and sale was carried out on a large scale by G. Roth AG, Powder Works Department Felixdorf ad Südbahn in Austria.
For military purposes, the so-called reinforced or explosive T-ammonal (also called toluene-ammonal) was developed by the company G. Roth AG in Austria, which was then used on a large scale during the First World War (e.g. in the mines at the Battle of Messines , 1917 or still visible today, the Lochnagar crater ).
Compared to its predecessor, the ammonia grain powder, used in the military, T-ammonal has two more components, aluminum and trinitrotoluene , the addition of which has a much greater effect. The reason for this is that the aluminum increases the explosion temperature enormously, while the trinitrotoluene significantly increases the detonation speed.
The T-ammonal produced in the form of dust was first pressed and granulated in order to produce compacts of high cubic density from the explosive, which nevertheless have a high detonation speed. However, not only pure grain but a mixture of grain and dust was used in the production of compacts, the latter filling the cavities remaining between the individual grains and thus ensuring good transmission of the detonation.
composition
The classic composition of ammonal, which was mainly used for non-military purposes, consists of:
- 72% ammonium nitrate
- 25% aluminum powder
- 3% carbon
The composition for the T-ammonal is given as follows:
- 47% ammonium nitrate
- 1% carbon
- 22% aluminum grit
- 30% di- or trinitrotoluene (TNT).
Another variant is the so-called "French ammonal" (= French ammonal). This consists of:
- 86% ammonium nitrate
- 8% aluminum powder
- 6% stearic acid
During the First World War , the German ammonal used for military purposes had the composition:
- 72% ammonium nitrate
- 12% TNT
- 16% aluminum powder
During the Second World War , Germany and other countries used ammonals, for example in mines, but also as filling for bombs and grenades. These types of ammonal were pressable or pourable mixtures with the following composition:
Ammonal I:
- 54% ammonium nitrate
- 30% TNT
- 16% aluminum powder
Ammonal II:
- 72% ammonium nitrate
- 12% TNT
- 16% aluminum powder
Ammonal B:
- 93.4% ammonium nitrate
- 3% carbon
- 3.5% aluminum powder
- 65% ammonium nitrate
- 15% TNT
- 10% carbon
- 10% calcium silicide
- 64% ammonium nitrate
- 15% TNT
- 3% carbon
- 18% aluminum
Nitramite:
- 72% ammonium nitrate
- 6% paraffin
- 22% aluminum
Echo:
- 62% ammonium nitrate
- 5.5% nitrocellulose
- 7.5% animal fats
- 22% aluminum
Sabulite:
- 78% ammonium nitrate
- 8% TNT
- 14% calcium silicide
Schneiderite:
- 68% ammonium nitrate
- 15% TNT
- 17% aluminum
Minex: cast explosive charge made of hexogen, TNT, ammonium nitrate and aluminum powder
Minol: pourable mixture of 40% TNT, 40% ammonium nitrate and 20% aluminum powder
literature
- Förg, Dr. phil. Richard (K. and k. Marine Oberchemiker): Ammonal, a comparative explosives individual. Vienna: Waldheim-Eberle, 1917.
- Escales, Dr. Richard: Ammonium nitrate explosives Leipzig: Verlag von Veit & Comp., 1909; Reprint 2002 ISBN 3-8311-3563-0 .
Web links
- Dr. Rainer Haas Lexicon of German explosive mixtures
- Working aid for the investigation of blasting sites (accessed on May 8, 2020)
- Some of the chemistry and technology of explosions and explosives. (accessed on May 8, 2020)
- Lexicon of German Explosive Mixtures (accessed on May 8, 2020)
- Transport of dangerous goods (accessed on May 8, 2020)