It is used extensively as an intermediate detonating agent for high-explosive shell, as it is somewhat more sensitive than most of the explosives used, and can consequently be detonated by a small charge of fulminate. It is also called C. E.

Grisou-TETRILITE. See Favier Powder.

TEUTONIT is a German Favier explosive containing not less than 70 per cent. of ammonium nitrate, not more than 5 per cent. of flour or potato meal, and not more than 15 per cent. of aromatic nitro- and dinitro-compounds. It may also contain neutral salts.

TEUTONITE was a name given occasionally to White Gunpowder (q. v.).

THAMES POWDER is a coal-mine explosive on the Permitted List made by the British Explosives Syndicate, Ltd.—

No. 2  
Date of Permit 22-6-14   28-1-15
Nitroglycerine 6·5 10  
Ammonium nitrate 55   59[3]
Potassium nitrate 10   —  
Wood meal 4·5 10  
Starch 5   —  
Ammonium oxalate 19   —  
Sodium chloride —   21  

Limit charge

32  

22  
Power (swing of ballistic pendulum)  2·78 2·59”

THERMIT is not an explosive, although in some respects it resembles one. It generally consists of a mixture of about three parts oxide of iron with one part of aluminium powder, but other oxides and other metals are sometimes used. When initiated by strong heat in one place a reaction sets in with great evolution of heat and the formation of a white-hot mass of molten iron and slag. It differs from an explosive in that no gas is formed and the reaction is comparatively slow. It is used for filling incendiary bombs and for many industrial purposes.

THORNIT.—A German blasting explosive consisting of ammonium nitrate and vegetable meal. It may also contain animal or vegetable fats.

TITANITE.—A coal-mine explosive manufactured in Hungary. A variety of it was on the old British Permitted List—

Ammonium nitrate 87
Trinitro-toluene 7
Curcuma charcoal   6

Other varieties containing a smaller percentage of ammonium nitrate have been used for general blasting.

T.N.T. stands for trinitro-toluene or trotyl.

TOLITE stands for trinitro-toluene.

TONITE, or Cotton Powder, is a blasting explosive which was much used at one time. It consists of guncotton mixed with a nitrate and compressed into blocks or cylinders, but a small percentage of a nitro-compound has sometimes been added. A Belgian Tonite had the composition—

Guncotton 53·0
Barium nitrate 37·6
Sodium nitrate   9·4

That made by the Cotton Powder Co. consists of—

Guncotton 50
Barium nitrate   50

TOXOL is a high explosive, a mixture of trinitro-xylene and trinitro-toluene.

TREMONIT is a German coal-mine explosive containing gelatinised dinitro-glycerine, e.g.

   Tremonit S II.
Dinitro-glycerine 33  
Collodion cotton 1  
Trinitro-toluene 2·5
Ammonium nitrate   26·5
Pea flour 12  
Sodium chloride 25  

Ammon-Tremonit or Gesteins-Tremonit contains a considerable proportion of ammonium nitrate.

Gesteins-Tremonit V. contains also up to 10 per cent. of potassium perchlorate, and is similar to Astralit V.

TRINOL.—A name for trinitro-toluene.

TRIPLASTIT was a plastic high explosive obtained by gelatinising a liquid or semi-liquid mixture of nitro-toluenes with collodion cotton and mixing it with lead nitrates, e.g.

Nitro-toluenes 70  
Collodion cotton   1·2
Lead nitrate 28·8

It was intended for filling shell, etc.

*TROISDORF SMOKELESS POWDER became prominent in England in 1897 in connection with Mannlicher cartridges for the Bisley long-range competitions. It was occasionally recorded as Pigou Wilkes Powder, as that firm were agents for it. The following are analyses of samples taken in 1898 (“Arms and Explosives,” 1917, p. 90)—

  Shot-gun
  Powder.
Rifle  
  Powder.
Nitrocellulose, insoluble 24·9   1·5  
”   soluble   61·7   96·5  
Starch, agar and dye 11·5   —  
Moisture 1·9   2·0  

The shot-gun powder was a fibrous bulk powder, and the charge for a 12-bore cartridge was 33 grains. The rifle powder was gelatinised.

TROJAN COAL POWDER is an American coal-mine explosive on the Permissible List. It contains nitro-starch.

TROTYL is a name for trinitro-toluene.

TUNNELIT is a German safety explosive containing ammonium nitrate, sodium nitrate, not more than 10 per cent. of trinitro-toluene (or not more than 6 per cent. together with not more than 2 per cent. of neutral liquid trinitro-toluene), not more than 20 per cent. of dinitro-chlorhydrin, not more than 5 per cent. of nitroglycerine, not more than 1 per cent. of collodion cotton, and carbohydrates.

TUNNELITE is an American coal-mine explosive on the Permissible List. Brands AA, B and C are ammonium nitrate explosives, whereas numbers 3 to 8, 6LF and 8LF are nitroglycerine explosives.

TURPINITE. See PANCLASTITE.

TUTOL.—A coal-mine explosive made by the Westphalia Anhalt Explosives Co. in Germany. It was on the old Permitted List. A variation of it, No. 2, was for a time on the new List, but it was repealed in Nov. 1916.

    No. 2.
Nitroglycerine 25   25  
Potassium nitrate 33   —  
Barium nitrate 2   —  
Sodium nitrate —   29  
Wood meal 39·8 36·3
Sodium chloride —   9·5
Sodium bicarbonate 0·2 0·2

Limit charge

—  

22 oz.
Power (swing of ballistic pendulum)   —   2·11”

UPLEES POWDER.—A coal-mine explosive of the Grisounite type made by the Cotton Powder Co. It was for a time on the Permitted List but was repealed in 1914.

VELOX GELATINE.—A blasting explosive for hard rock made by the British South African Explosives Co. It contains less nitroglycerine than blasting gelatine, and is intended to husband stocks of glycerine (“Arms and Explosives,” 1916, p. 81).

Gelatine VENDER is a Swiss explosive consisting of dinitro-acetin gelatinised with a little collodion cotton and mixed with ammonium nitrate.

VICTOR POWDER was a coal-mine explosive made by Nobel’s Explosives Co. There were two varieties at one time on the Permitted List—

No. 2. 
Date of Permit 13-5-14   15-1-15
Ammonium nitrate 68   67  
Potassium chloride 14·5 —  
Sodium chloride —  15  
Nitroglycerine 8·5 9  
Wood meal 9   9  

Limit charge

18  

16  
Power (swing of ballistic pendulum)  2·96” 2·63”

VICTORITE.—A coal-mine explosive of the Carbonite type made by Nobel’s Explosives Co. It was on the old Permitted List.

VIEILLE POWDER. See Poudre B.

VIGORIT. See MONACHIT.

VIGORITE is a name that has been given to several explosives in the past. One of these, manufactured in California in the ’seventies of the last century, contained potassium chlorate and nitroglycerine, and consequently was decidedly dangerous. It gave rise to a serious accident on the Grand Trunk Railway.

The Atlas Powder Co. in America manufacture a series of coal-mine explosives under this name. They are nitroglycerine explosives.

VIKING POWDER is a coal-mine explosive made by Nobel’s Explosives Co. There are two varieties on the Permitted List—

  No. 1.  No. 2. 
Date of Permit 15-1-15   15-1-15
Ammonium nitrate 59   67  
Nitroglycerine 10   8·5
Wood meal 10   8·5
Sodium chloride 20   15  
Magnesium carbonate 1   1  

Limit charge

26  

18 oz.
Power (swing of ballistic pendulum)  2·44” 2·59”

This explosive is used extensively.

VIRITE.—A coal-mine explosive made by the Nitrate Explosives Co. which was on the old Permitted List—

Ammonium nitrate 38  
Potassium nitrate 35·5
Sulphur 4·5
Charcoal 11·5
Ammonium oxalate   10·5

There have been other explosives of the same name.

VULCAN POWDER is a brand of American dynamite.

W.A. See Lafflin and Rand.

WALLONITE.—A Belgian blasting and coal-mine explosive—

    II.  III.  
Ammonium nitrate   90 70  70  
Sodium nitrate 20  25  
Nitrated resin 10 10  5  

Charge limite

50

  125

  600 g.

*WALSRODE SHOT-GUN POWDER was a gelatinised 28-grain dense powder, which the German makers endeavoured to introduce into England in the ’nineties, but it gave high pressures. A powder of this name is still used in Germany, however, but it is a 35-grain powder in the form of small grains, greyish white and greyish green in colour.

WALSRODE SICHERHEITS-SPRENGSTOFF is a German coal-mine explosive containing ammonium nitrate, trinitro-toluene, flour, and a little guncotton and sometimes sodium chloride.

Wetter-Walsrode is also an ammonium nitrate explosive. It contains no guncotton but may contain potassium nitrate, sodium chloride, naphthalene, and various other substances.

WESTFALITE is a coal-mine explosive which is made in Germany and England. The German explosives vary much in composition, and some of them are intended for ordinary blasting. Some of those recently introduced contain up to 10 per cent. of potassium perchlorate. Originally Westfalite was made by milling ammonium nitrate with an alcoholic solution of gum lac, but later the use of the gum was abandoned.

British Westfalite, Ltd., had two mixtures on the old Permitted List—

  No. 1.   No. 2. 
Ammonium nitrate   95 91
Potassium nitrate 4
Resin 5 5

That formerly on the Permitted List differed considerably from the above—

  Westfalite No. 3.
Date of Permit 1-9-13
Ammonium nitrate 60
Potassium nitrate 14
Trinitro-toluene  5
Ammonium chloride   21

Limit charge

12 oz.
Power (swing of ballistic pendulum)    2·55”

WETTERDYNAMIT is a name that has been given in Germany to various coal-mine explosives containing nitroglycerine.

WETTER-DYNAMMON. See DYNAMMON.

*WETTEREN.—A gelatinised rifle smokeless powder made by the Cooppal Co. of Belgium. The following analyses were given in “Arms and Explosives,” 1917, p. 91—

Date of Sample   1892   1893
Nitrocellulose, insoluble 16·0 57·3
”   soluble 46·2 37·6
Nitroglycerine 27·3
Shellac 3·5
Charcoal 9·0
Moisture 1·5 1·6

WHITE GUNPOWDER is a mixture of—

Potassium chlorate   50
Potassium ferrocyanide 25
Sugar 25

It is not produced commercially, and, indeed, is too sensitive, but it is sometimes made in the laboratory. It has also been called Angendre’s powder, White German powder, American powder, and Baron and Cauvet’s powder.

WILHELMIT is a German blasting explosive of the Cheddite type. It consists of sodium or potassium chlorate hydrocarbon oil with a flash point not below 30° C., and carbohydrates. For use in coal mines neutral salts are added. It was introduced during the War.

WITHNELL POWDER.—A coal-mine explosive of the Grisounite type made by the Lancashire Explosives Co., which was on the old Permitted List—

Ammonium nitrate   89·5
Trinitro-toluene 5  
Flour 5·5

WITTENBERGER WETTERDYNAMIT. See SALIT.

XPDITE is an American coal-mine explosive on the Permissible List. It is made by the Hercules Powder Co., and contains nitroglycerine.

YONCKITE.—A Belgian ammonium perchlorate explosive. The composition has been varied somewhat, and one formula, No. 10, is on the list of Explosifs S.G.P., and consequently is permitted for use in Belgian coal mines. No. 1 is a more powerful explosive used for general blasting.

  No. 10. I.
Ammonium perchlorate   25     20
Ammonium nitrate 30   27
Sodium nitrate 15   27
Barium nitrate —   6
Trinitro-toluene 10   20
Sodium chloride 20  

Charge limite

900 g.

 

ZELTIT. See Celtite.